Slouched in a chair in Dartmouth High School’s principal’s office, Fall River native Chris Herren didn’t mention that he’d played a season for the Boston Celtics. Fifteen minutes later in front of 1,100 students, he’d reveal that he shot heroin for eight years and spent $2,500 monthly on Oxycontin, but he wasn’t there to talk about that either.

“I think we want to scare kids away from drugs instead of talk about why we begin them,” Herren said.

As part of the Healthy Dartmouth initiative, The Herren Project made its second appearance in two years at the high school on Tuesday, May 3. It is one of more than 200 schools the nonprofit will visit this year.

“It’s to be one of many steps in educating the students,” said principal Dr. John Gould. “Schools today are different than schools of 10 and 15 years ago. We need to be responsive.”

The gym was silent as Herren, in a black zip-up jacket and jeans, addressed why he needed to drink at 15-years-old just to hang out with kids he’d known all his life. He shared stories of students he’d met while touring who had overdosed in hallways and hung themselves in front yards, always returning to ask why these kids felt they weren’t good enough being themselves without drugs.

“If you could be you, would you really be taking your mommy’s money and putting it in some drug dealer’s pocket?” Herren asked the crowd. “It’s way more than just weed, man. It’s your escape.” Herren touched on themes of bullying and abuse as underlying causes of drug abuse and self harm.

The audience focused on the speaker, some intently, some wiping away tears, some shifting uncomfortably. A curly-haired girl in the front row walked away crying, landing in the arms of a few staff members before being ushered out to the team of guidance counselors set beforehand in case anyone needed to talk.

When the bell rang to signal the end of the school day, students walked away with messages of solidarity and encouragement, how to be a good friend, and where to find help. A couple dozen of those students gathered to talk directly to Herren in an administrative office, said Herren’s lifelong friend and Dartmouth High athletic director Jeff Caron.

“I remember what he’s talking about. I know the kids he’s talking about,” said Caron. “Now there’s more pressures with social media. Kids have to put up more masks and more disguises than ever before.”

As part of the Healthy Dartmouth initiative, the school will host a public viewing of “Most Likely to Succeed,” a movie focused on updating school curriculum, on May 5 at 6 p.m.