Today is World Suicide Prevention Day. Begun in 2003, World Suicide Prevention Day aims to improve education about suicide, decrease stigmatization and, most importantly, raise awareness that suicide is preventable.

Suicide is one of the top three leading causes of death for young people under 25. Each year, approximately one million people die by suicide. The World Health Organization estimates that by the year 2020, the annual toll will rise to one and a half million. UT’s Student Counseling Center and VolAware are committed to destigmatizing suicide and to offering students the resources to help prevent it. For information on the Distressed Student Protocol for students in need, and the VolAware Street Fair on Oct. 7, visit http://volaware.utk.edu/Default.html.

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