Crisis Intervention Team
The Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) is a community-based program that brings together professionals from criminal justice and mental health systems, advocates, people living with mental illness and their families, and other partners to improve community responses to people experiencing mental health crises. CIT is an organizational model for the police's role in their crisis response system. The goals of Ohio CIT programs are:
- Improve the safety of all in situations where law enforcement officers interact with persons in crisis
- Improve outcomes when law enforcement officers interact with persons in crisis
- Increase understanding of, accessibility to, and improve responsiveness by the local crisis response system
- Divert persons in crisis from the criminal justice system to treatment alternatives, when possible
- Transform the local crisis response system to use law enforcement officers as first responders only when there is an immediate or imminent threat to safety or a serious criminal concern
Patrol officers are readily available to help any person in our community experiencing a mental health crisis and refer them to the appropriate service. Police Services then collaborates with other departments on campus for follow-up care, if needed.
Awards
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2009 – Michquel Penn
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2010- Jeff Futo
Campus CIT Officer of the Year (Ohio) 2010- Jeff Futo
CIT Program of the Year (Ohio) 2013- Kent State University Police Services
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2013- William Scritchfield
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2015- Ralph Stover
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2017- Anne Spahr
Portage County CIT Officer of the Year 2018- Bill Atha
