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Weekly roundup
This Week in Co-Response
This week, communities marked National Co-Responder and Crisis Responder Week with a mix of celebration and strain: the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Office thanked its crisis partners, Grand Junction highlighted its officer-clinician teams, and Lincoln's CenterPointe partnership reported resolving 93% of 589 calls on scene, while Sheboygan County announced it will cut city co-responder funding from $470,112 to $225,112 in its 2027 budget.
What’s New?
👮How Communities are Celebrating Co-Response Week
The Sheboygan County Sheriff's Office marked National Co-Responder and Crisis Responder Week (Sept. 13–19), crediting its co-responder partnerships with enabling a more comprehensive approach to mental and behavioral health calls.
Since launching in March 2025, the Lincoln Police Department's partnership with CenterPointe has handled 589 calls, with just 7% requiring involuntary intervention and 44% of people later engaging in services.
Grand Junction Police, whose co-responder program dates to 2018, pair officers with mental health clinicians so one can provide safety while both work to de-escalate and connect people in crisis to longer-term resources.
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Statistics
The Lincoln Police Department used National Co-Responder and Crisis Responder Week to spotlight its partnership with CenterPointe, a Lincoln-based nonprofit healthcare organization.
The program sends licensed healthcare professionals alongside officers to mental health crisis calls, and it launched March 3, 2025.
CenterPointe reports responding to 589 calls since launch, with 93% resolved on scene without involuntary intervention.
July 2026 was the program's busiest month so far at 47 calls, and CenterPointe expects September to surpass that.
Amber Dirks, CenterPointe vice president and co-responder unit manager, said the goal is to keep people in the community and connect them with resources.
Who’s mentioned in this story?
Amber Dirks, Vice President and Co-Responder Unit Manager, CenterPointe (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amber-dirks-ms-limhp-ladc-a25a2ab5/)
Funding Cuts
Sheboygan County Health & Human Services Director Matt Strittmater announced 2027 budget changes, citing years of rising costs and flat state and federal funding.
County funding for the City of Sheboygan's Mobile Crisis Co-Responder Program drops from $470,112 to $225,112, which will reduce the 84 weekly hours mental health professionals currently spend working with city police.
The co-responder team currently supports about 9 community members each week.
The county is also ending funding for the Open Door Drop-In Center, a peer support and recovery center serving about 26 adults daily, and for the Student Engagement Team (SET) program.
The changes will phase in gradually and be complete by January 1, 2027, with the county continuing to prioritize services such as communicable disease prevention, environmental health, and WIC.
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