OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — Oak Ridge Schools wants to buck a disturbing trend across Tennessee.
The Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network said Tennessee's suicide rate among people 24 and under is the highest its been in 35 years.
The latest numbers from 2017 show about 1,200 young people took their own life.
It said we lose one young person every four days.
Oak Ridge Schools now has an app that allows students or teachers who need help have a two-way conversation and do it anonymously.
And that's why students said this app really helps.
"We're thrilled about, specifically, the anonymity of it," said Oak Ridge High School student Matthew Kendall.
Seeing a friend struggle with suicidal thoughts can be scary.
"We're going through so many changes in high school, and there's so much fear of being shamed," Kendall said.
But Matthew Kendall and his fellow students at Oak Ridge High School can get help without feeling that shame.
"It's super accessible," Kendall said.
Oak Ridge Schools partnered with the non-profit Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention to make AlertORS available to students and parents.
It's an app for your phone that allows someone to report a tip about a variety of problems, including physical and mental concerns.
"It was just another way for me to be able to support them," said Oak Ridge High School social worker Alison King.
King is one of the staff members who will be on the other end of the two-way conversation the app creates between students and staff.
She said students are starting to speak up more, even in the face of growing numbers of young people dying by suicide in Tennessee.
"We have had an influx of students coming to the counseling office with concerns of their fellow friends and classmates, whereas a year ago, that may not have happened," King said.
She said school counselors track causes of self-harming thoughts.
"It can be anywhere from academic concerns to family issues, to their own diagnosable mental illness, to relationships," King said.
Kendall said resources like the app give him inspiration.
"Keep pushing to tell people that they have resources, there are only more resources by the day, and that people do care," Kendall said.
The app is open to all ages, from Pre-K through the 12th grade.
You can download it for iOS or Android.
You need to download the Campus P3 App, and that allows you to log in to the Oak Ridge portion of the app.