Project Grant H79SM091112

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services $735,000 on September 30, 2026, under the Center for Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance program (CFDA 93.532) to implement Connect3, a statewide youth suicide prevention and early intervention initiative.

The project delivers capacity building, early identification, referral, care coordination, continuity of care, specialized training, and system-level improvements targeting 5,000 youth and young adults across all 95 Tennessee counties over five years (750 in year one; 1,063 annually in years two through five). Work is performed in Nashville, Tennessee, with performance extending through September 29, 2031.

TDMHSAS partners with multiple organizations for project execution: Centerstone Research Institute conducts evaluation; Youth Villages, Mental Health Cooperative, Helen Ross McNabb Center, and Frontier Health deliver services; and the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network and Jason Foundation provide specialized training. The evaluation component measures effectiveness and outcomes of suicide prevention and intervention strategies deployed across the response system.

Tennessee's focus population comprises urban and rural areas with elevated poverty and unemployment. The state's suicide rate of 17.9 exceeds the national rate of 14.7, with nearly 1,300 suicides in 2022. Among the target population aged 10 to 17, suicidal ideation increased 24 percent from 2019 to 2023, and non-fatal intentional self-injury hospitalization rates rose 14 percent. In state schools, 23 percent of students seriously considered suicide and 13 percent attempted suicide one or more times.