Taos students clinch national award for suicide prevention app

A mobile app designed by Taos-area high school students has won a slew of awards in the 2017 Verizon Innovative Learning app challenge, including "best in state," "best in region" – and now "best in nation."

The fifth annual national contest tasked students in grades six through 12 with creating innovative solutions using mobile technologies.

"See Something. Say Something" – the now well-known moniker of the project – was named as a winner this month, along with eight other teams from schools throughout the United States.

A ceremony was held Feb. 15 at Taos Academy to honor the students and faculty behind the app, whose concept was inspired by local youth who died by suicide last year.

Four Taos Academy students, Emmett Moulton, Sebastien Moulton, Zack Benton, Justis Daniels, and one Taos High School student, Aryanna Zarazua, worked on the project.

Local IT consultant and program manager Luckie Daniels, 50, served as project manager, guiding the students as they refined their concept and created a working prototype.

While the app remains in development, Justis Daniels, 17, explained that it will provide tools which combine "real-time crisis intervention with community and social engagement." The app is designed specifically for teens in distress.

Winning all three tiers of the competition, the students have been awarded a total of $20,000 in additional funding for their project, as well as tablets and the opportunity to work with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) scientists to further develop the app.

Around 100 students, teachers, parents and members of suicide prevention initiatives throughout Taos County attended the celebration.

Check out the photo gallery above to see what happened this week.

For more on this story, pick up the Feb. 23 edition of The Taos News.