Town Manager Responds to Questions About CRESS
Town Manager Paul Bockelman introduces new CRESS director Earl Miller at Cuppa Joe on April 15. Photo: Dennis Vandal for the Town of Amherst
Source: amherstma.gov
Following Monday’s (10/2) Town Council meeting, at which several concerns were raised about the state of the town’s community responders department (CRESS), Town Manager Paul Bockelman issued the press release below, in order to address the public’s concerns.
Below you will find information regarding the CRESS Department prepared by the Town Manager for the Town Council and the press.
Interim Leadership Team
With Earl Miller being on paid leave, I established an Interim Leadership Team to fill the need for leadership in the department. This team is led by DEI Director Pamela Nolan-Young and includes Fire Chief Tim Nelson, Police Sergeant Janet Griffin, and CRESS Implementation Manager Kat Newman. The Interim Leadership Team’s mission is to help stabilize the department at the present moment so it can continue and further develop the department’s work. It is important to recognize that all members of the Interim Leadership Team – and I, as Town Manager – are committed to the continued establishment of the CRESS Department as an important part of the town’s public safety response.
This leadership structure is similar to the Implementation Team that worked to establish CRESS and move it from concept to a real department. That Implementation Team included the Police Chief Scott Livingstone, Fire Chief Tim Nelson, the current Assistant DEI Director Jennifer Moyston, and the co-chairs of the former Community Safety Working Group (CSWG), Brianna Owen and Ellisha Walker. Others participating included Police Captain Gabe Ting, CSWG member Russ Vernon-Jones and dispatch leadership and others from time to time.
Daily, Pamela, Janet, and Kat meet every morning to discuss the ongoing operations/day-to-day aspects of the department. These three members of the Leadership Team also meet with the community responders each morning to help structure the day, review the day before (reviewing and updating, if necessary, the department’s daily log), and to help provide guidance and resources on active cases.
On September 19, the Interim Leadership Team dedicated the day to an all-day retreat to allow responders to ask questions of the Interim Leadership Team, participate in a restorative justice circle, set expectations, and review the CRESS department’s mission and values.
Two weeks ago, CRESS responders, all members of the Interim Leadership Team, the town’s Senior Accountant, and Town Manager hosted three representatives from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health for CRESS’s first-ever site visit for CRESS’s Equitable Approaches to Public Safety (EAPS) grant, a major source of funding for the department.
The Interim Leadership Team has established weekly in-service days to promote ongoing training for the department and professional development for the CRESS responders. Some examples of in-service topics/trainings include:
Radio review, communication policies, and call types (IT and Dispatch)
Trauma-Informed training on intimate partner abuse (led by Janet)
CIT Youth training (hosted by Western MA CIT and TTAC)
Staffing
There is funding for eight community responders. Eight were hired and went through the training in the summer of 2022. One community responder resigned at the end of the training. A new community responder was hired to replace that person and that kept the staffing at eight. A couple months ago, a community responder resigned and that position had yet to be filled. More recently, two community responders gave notice of their intention to resign. One said he would be working in the School District. With these two resignations, we are down to five community responders working daily. We will be recruiting for new community responders to fill the vacancies.
911 Calls
Dispatching certain 911 calls directly to the Community Responders without a co-response is a major goal for the Town. This is a complex issue that must be done with great care and attention to the public’s safety. In speaking with other similar departments around the country, we know accepting and responding to these emergency calls is very important – and it takes a lot of time to make sure we get it right. Through collective bargaining, we have successfully addressed some of the important issues raised by our dispatchers. We have more work to do on this to ensure both the dispatchers and the community responders are prepared when we begin dispatching calls.
Amherst Police Department CSO Staff
For years, the Amherst Police Department has worked with Clinical & Support Options (CSO), which provides mental health services including, most recently, a co-responder housed in the police department. The person who had been serving in this position resigned and CSO has been recruiting for a new position to fill this role. It is not a town employee.
Community Engagement
Members of the CRESS Department staff continue to engage in a variety of community engagement events.
Some examples of recent/upcoming events include:
• Neighborhood Resource Fairs
• 09/14 (Phillips Street)
• 09/19 (Valley Lane)
• Block Party (09/21)
• Monthly Veteran’s Luncheon at the Unitarian Universalist Society (09/27)
• Annual Rolling Green Pizza Party Event (CRESS will lead a children’s slime making activity, 10/03)
• 09/21, upcoming 10/05) CRESS worked with the Asian American Club at Amherst Regional High School to support with powerlifting 101 sessions with students.
• Upcoming, 10/10) Crocker Farm PreK Open House (CRESS will help provide transportation to families who otherwise would be unable to attend due to transportation barriers)
• Three CRESS staff and the shared DEI/CRESS AmeriCorps member attended the Liberatory Visioning sessions on 09/25 and 09/26 from 5:00PM-9:30PM conducted by Dr. Barbara Love to facilitate Liberatory Visioning Circles that DEI hosted.
• (Upcoming, 10/06) CRESS and the Jones Library established a monthly meeting to support ongoing CRESS/library relations
• The Leadership Team established an IT meeting to support equipment needs/to support department expansion
Individual Case Highlights
o CRESS, along with Veteran’s Services and APD Animal Welfare Officer, were able to support housing for a senior vet and animal in need
o When CRESS met with dispatch, dispatch stated they noted a decrease in calls from the Jones Library. CRESS Responders have had an office space and ongoing presence in the Jones Library since this spring.
o Citizen assists, business/town department assists, CRESS follow-ups, and wellness checks continue to be the majority of CRESS department calls.
o We have experienced an uptick in calls for senior citizen support in the last month (wellbeing checks and CRESS follow-ups via phone and e-mail)
I appreciate the detailed information and believe that there is an intention to fulfill the mission. A police officer can have awareness and sensitivity and need not be profiled. It sounds like a balanced group, collaborative in nature, actively educating itself and working within the community. I give this group my support.
The police have a very hard job to do and it sounds like some of the trained responders are seeing how hard it can be. Responding to domestic violence calls are one of the most dangerous things police have to do. I hope this new program works out and it seems like everyone is working together.
Like to see CRESS move into replace the police on more calls. Wondering if the citizen use of police as personal valet might decrease if so (“I see X and want the police to go there.” This has caused some difficulty as the majority of calls like this are more abt the caller and less abt the other party. Dispatch can prevent tax money spend on cops going on these ‘explorations’ by saying “That is the way that culture laughs.”; “That is the way that culture enjoys company”; “That is not breaking a law.”). CRESS needs to be sent on these if any one goes. We need dispatch w/better public relations/caller response, dispatch that can triage to cops and community responders. The Senior Center can use the de-escalation service rather than cops for their issues (mental health clients tangle w/the Director, cops create worse return behavior. Mr Miller, et al are pros @ this).
Yes, we need street social workers. CRESS is not for that. It is a third function the city could utilize. One of these huge human service agencies could provide it & @ no cost to the city (health insurance). CRESS/our city needs Earl back as he was heading the agency, police, town staffers (admin) and citizens’ toward the function originally surfacing from the occupancy of 30 or so Black folk acc the st from the police station days after the George Floyd murder and the few days later appearance of more than a thousand whites & BIPOC on the streets of Amherst. And Not ‘the bait and switch’ that was attempted in the days/months following. Some are attempting to push it off course again.