Chester County is one of six counties nationwide selected to pilot a new training program aimed at improving how law enforcement and community providers respond to youth experiencing mental health crises, county officials said.
The Crisis Intervention Team–Youth program, known as CIT‑Y, is an extension of the Crisis Intervention Team model and focuses on the growing number of young people with mental illness in the juvenile justice system. The training is sponsored by the National Alliance on Mental Illness Keystone Pennsylvania.
The first CIT‑Y training in Chester County was held March 4–6 and brought together participants from more than 15 county departments, law enforcement agencies, and community organizations, officials said.
In a joint statement, the Chester County Board of Commissioners said the program provides law enforcement, first responders, and community providers with tools to respond to youth in crisis with compassion and effectiveness.
“Teaching effective and compassionate methods for handling the crisis needs of a young person offers a critical opportunity to make a difference in their lives,” the commissioners said. “We are honored to have been chosen by NAMI to be one of the pilot counties to implement CIT‑Y programs across the commonwealth, focusing on teens and youth.”
The CIT‑Y program is run by the Chester County Department of Mental Health/Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. It provides instruction on adolescent brain development, mental health symptoms in youth, and strategies for engagement and connection to appropriate services and supports, according to county officials.
Department of Human Services Director Pat Bokovitz said county staff have worked closely with NAMI Keystone Pennsylvania for several years and welcomed the opportunity to serve as a pilot county.
“Chester County is committed to ensuring that people with mental health issues are treated safely and with respect,” Bokovitz said. He also credited the work of Teyanna Brunson, the county’s Children’s Mental Health Clinical Services coordinator, in supporting the partnership.
County departments represented at the training included the Department of Drug and Alcohol Services, the Juvenile Probation Office and the Human Needs Network. Participating agencies also included NAMI Chester County PA, the Chester County ACEs Coalition, Community Care Behavioral Health, Chester County’s Teen Talk Line, the Child Guidance Resource Center, PA State Police, Philadelphia Coordinated Health Care, The Arc of Chester County, the Crime Victims’ Center of Chester County, the Trans‑Parent Support Group, JusticeWorks YouthCare and the Maternal and Child Health Consortium.
County officials said lessons learned from the pilot program could help inform future expansion of CIT‑Y training in Pennsylvania.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
