Kent State police officers will begin Crisis Intervention Team training today at the Student Recreation and Wellness Center.

The week-long training is sponsored by the Mental Health and Recovery Board of Portage County. It was previously held at NEOUCOM but will take place on Kent State’s campus for the first time.

“Officers are taught to recognize signs of mental illness, de-escalate someone who is in a mental crisis and refer them to the proper place,” said officer Jeff Futo of the Kent State Police Department.

He said two officers from Kent State will attend the training, and once certified, there will be 10 certified officers at Kent State.

Training is important because a mentally ill person in a crisis situation could get much worse if an officer doesn’t have the skills and knowledge to handle that situation, Futo said.

– Morgan Day