University of Texas – Pan American

The University of Texas-Pan American Fear Not Project is a collaborative comprehensive suicide prevention project involving Enrollment and Student Services and Academic Affairs.

This project seeks to dramatically increase awareness among students, families, faculty and staff of the risk of suicide among UTPA students. It will train significant numbers of students, faculty and staff to Question suicidal individuals, Persuade them to accept help and Refer them to appropriate resources (QPR Suicide Triage). It will also train professionals who evaluate and treat potentially suicidal persons in suicide risk detection, risk assessment and risk management (QPRT). The ultimate goal of the Fear Not Project is to create a network of gatekeepers who have the ability to detect risk and refer students wherever and whenever they find themselves in crisis.

The Fear Not Project will utilize a tiered approach to (1) raise awareness among entering freshmen and their families, (2) train gatekeepers to identify and refer students at-risk and (3) mandate therapy for students identified as severely at-risk or in imminent danger of harm to self or others. This tiered approach will allow a significant allocation of resources to raise awareness and a directed approach to provide intensive assistance to those most in need.