ACE Suicide Intervention Program

The individual I believe has been directly involved in community betterment and inspired me is Lieutenant Colonel Clarence L. Carroll III. He is The University of North Dakota’s Professor of Military Science. As the Senior Officer he is accountable for the supervision and mission success of the University of North Dakota Army Reserve Officer’s Training Corps otherwise known as ROTC.

Army Reserve Officer’s Training Corps mission is to educate, train, and commission college students to become the future officer leadership of the united States Army. Army ROTC is both rewarding and challenging, the program focuses on instilling values and leadership skills both in classroom and practice. While these skills are being developed the students are learning more about themselves and pushing themselves to become better-rounded individuals and leaders in their future as officers.

Part of the training and education process is to educate those apart of the Army Community to recognize the signs of those at risk for suicide.

Suicide in the army is a major concern. The ACE Suicide Intervention Training Program has had a tremendous impact on the prevention of suicides in the Army. It was developed to provide intervention skills specifically for soldiers. It is a four-hour training that gives soldiers the tools and skills they need to effectively intervene with those at risk for suicide. The acronym ACE stands for Ask, Care, and Escort. The program encourages soldiers who believe their battle buddy may be at risk for suicide to openly ask if they are having thoughts of suicide. For example, “Have you thought about killing yourself”. Then care for the battle buddy, it involves listening to your battle buddy in order to provide a sense of relief, just talking to them can go a long ways. The last part of the program is to escort them. It is important to not leave them alone. Bring them to a professional that may be of more help for their

situation.
Lieutenant Colonel Clarence L. Carroll has done an extraordinary job training these college students for their future role in the Army community. He has done so in many ways. He has helped the cadets learn how to deal under pressure with their numerous responsibilities they will have once commissioned. He has taught them military skills. He has taught themHe teaches these cadets how not only to lead but also to follow. He
Along with teaching these cadets how to do their primary job of becoming leaders. He e also has recognized the importance of suicide prevention. Suicide is a problem in the Army and preventing it is a major priority. Carroll provided training and the necessary skills for these soldiers to be conscious and knowledgeable at seeing the signs and knowing how to intervene for those at risk of suicide.
The training Carroll has provided is through well known programs that are already in place and recognized throughout the army as having a positive effect on those with suicidal idealizations. A particularly popular program now prevalently used is the A.C.E program. “Ask.Care.Escort.”