Over the summer, I attended the funeral of one of my students in Oakland who committed suicide. Grief, of course, refuses to be compartmentalized. One loss reminds me of all the others. So as I sat at the funeral I was also thinking of children we have lost here in Albany.

In the time I've been on the school board, there have been two suicides and one murder of teenagers. Another young person almost died of alcohol poisoning. As I was thinking of these youth, the minister reached the apex of his sermon. "Don't ask: Why?" he said. "Ask: What does God want me to do?"

It reminded me of a quote from one of my heroes. Mother Jones witnessed the deaths of many children as a result of industrialization 100 years ago. She said, "Pray for the dead, but fight for the living."

Albany is lucky that we have many hard working people who have taken this advice to heart. I thought, for example, about Dara Birnbaum and Tavie Tipton who work in University Village. They felt that the stress between generations in recent immigrant families could have played a part in one of the suicide deaths. So they started a class called "America 101" to help these families anticipate ways American youth culture might impact their children.

I also thought about our school superintendent, Marla Stephenson, who, as an assistant superintendent, initiated annual summit conferences on youth mental health. Each year these conferences bring together youth, parents, teachers and community members to consider the issues and discuss solutions. A standing Mental Health Committee was formed to follow up throughout the year.

One issue is that our school counselors are primarily academic counselors, without the training or the time to address serious mental health concerns. So Albany sought new funding from local parcel taxes to create a mental health program in the schools.

Through collaboration with Berkeley-Albany Mental Health Services, and by hiring Shelly Ball at Albany High School, Albany has been able to benefit from the time and attention of closely supervised therapist interns who work with youth one-on-one and in groups.

Former mayor and new Board of Education member Allan Maris was a part of this effort. Albany's current mayor, Joanne Wile, a member of the Mental Health Committee, is helping supervise intern therapists at the elementary schools. I think even Mother Jones, who didn't care much for politicians, would be impressed by this kind of civic leadership.

Alarmed by what we were hearing from young people about alcohol use, the school board instituted mandatory breathalyzer tests at high school dances, and made a year long health course, called "Identity, Health, and Society," mandatory for all freshmen. These were not popular decisions. Actually, I still get complaints about these requirements every year.

But I think of the young man who almost died because he didn't know drinking 10 shots of liquor in a row could kill him. I think about another young man who bled out from a knife wound while his friends wondered if they should seek medical help. We have to do anything we can that might stop things like this from happening. We just have to, period.

Of course, whatever we do is not enough. This past year many parents and young people have raised concerns about bullying in the schools. Albany's problems with bullying are not unique, but our response will define how strong we are as a community. I think the early efforts are encouraging.

Last year, school staff identified the need for a systematic approach to discipline that could follow students from kindergarten to graduation. They examined several options and selected the B.E.S.T. program. It was developed by Dr. Jeffery Sprague and has been used around the country.

B.E.S.T. emphasizes that discipline is about educating youth, not punishing them. It also focuses on district-wide coordination for early intervention.  In August, key teacher leaders from each school participated in a workshop with Dr. Sprague, the beginning of a multi-year focus on implementing B.E.S.T. in Albany.

There is so much that each of us can do. At Cornell Elementary, parents and teachers have kept their excellent conflict resolution program going despite funding cuts. At Marin Elementary, parents and teachers are exploring mindfulness training with funding from the PTA. The Albany Prevention Council's book for parents of teens contains many useful ideas.

Being young in today's society is, unfortunately, very dangerous.  Each loss is so devastating to our society. So I try to let my grief be a re-dedication. I ask myself again, what more can I do?