By Benjamin White for The Montgomery News | June 30, 2026
Students who are training peers to recognize signs of mental health struggles got a warm reception at the Montgomery Township Committee, a contrast to the debate that accompanied the program's school board launch in the fall.
Hope Squad, a national peer-to-peer suicide prevention program, launched chapters across Montgomery schools this year. Faculty advisors and student members presented a progress update at the committee’s June 4 meeting.
Hope Squad faculty advisors and student members gave a progress report at the Montgomery Township Meeting on June 4. Left to right: Joe Bassford (Faculty Advisor), Deputy Mayor Vincent P. Barragan, Committee member Patricia Taylor Todd, Esq., Maya Bailey (10th Grade), Mayor Neena Singh, Dakota Nann (9th Grade), Committeemember Mike Martin, Danielle Santoro (Faculty Advisor), Lisa Romano (LMS Principal), Cory Delgado (Director of Counseling & Wellness)
“The premise of the entire program is for them to be able to spot something going on, and then simply just report it,” said Cory Delgado, the director of school counseling for the district and an advisor to Hope Squad. “They're not expected to solve the problem, they're more expected to just come and report it.”
Delgado introduced faculty advisors and student participants who advocated for the program’s approach of providing resources for students, hosting workshops and holding spirit weeks. Following the presentation, the committee members each expressed their support for the organization.
“This has been a personal passion to have a spirit of Montgomery,” Mayor Neena Singh said, adding that she saw the program as boosting the sense of community in the town. Singh previously authorized a $10,000 grant to support the program on behalf of the township committee.
Advertisement
Deputy Mayor Vincent Barragan asked the student presenters if there were any additional resources the program needed from the township, to which students answered that they were hoping to extend their outreach capacity.
Following the presentation, the committee carried out the remainder of its meeting with two audience members: a resident who came to thank Singh and committee member Dennis Ahn during public comment for meeting with them earlier in the day to discuss residential access to a public sewer, and Chief of Police Silvio Bet, who spoke to the committee during a resolution to renew the ARRIVE Together Program, which pairs police officers with mental health clinicians during crises.
Chief of Police Silvio Bet speaks about the resolution to renew the ARRIVE Together Program, which pairs police officers with mental health clinicians during crises.
Ahn arrived late to the meeting and abstained from voting on the first resolution subject to vote, but the remaining resolutions all received unanimous approval from the committee. Resolutions included salaries for non-union employees of the town, stipends for emergency roles and appointing community members to a health committee.
The committee briefly discussed a request from Bloomberg to relax local construction hour restrictions, but no representative from the company attended the meeting. Committee members said they were open to a compromise but wanted to better understand the request.
The committee also discussed an ongoing Somerset County study evaluating traffic conditions on Griggstown Causeway and River Road, agreeing to support recommendations for stop-ahead markers and updated street lights while awaiting further progress updates from county officials.
Discussion of future agenda items included liquor license renewals for select businesses, before the committee broke out into executive session to discuss affordable housing and contract negotiations.
