Sheriff Christy Knowles of Ozaukee County has been recognized for her dedication to crisis intervention, earning the 2025 CIT Trailblazer Award at the NAMI Wisconsin Symposium. The accolade, highlighting her decade of work building and nurturing the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) program, was shared by the Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office on social media. Knowles' role in expanding the CIT, championing mental health awareness in the community, and fostering partnerships exemplifies the commitment the award seeks to honor.
In the past 10 years, including her current leadership on the NAMI Ozaukee CIT Coordinating Team, Sheriff Knowles has been a driving force in CIT education for various first responders. She has not only influenced sheriff deputies and 911 operators to be trained but also pushed for command staff to embrace CIT, ensuring that their mental health is a priority for the well-being of the community. As reported by the Sheriff's Office, working with local schools, she launched a mentor program aimed to support struggling students.
Her efforts extend to fostering an environment where officers can seek mental health support without concern for their job security. Emphasizing this aspect of policing has prompted Knowles to work closely with the Ozaukee County Human Services Department to set up Co-Response Teams. This action is a step towards integrating mental health and law enforcement in a collaborative framework for responding to crises strongly.
Sheriff Knowles' work has been pivotal in the CIT mission, not only within the training room but also throughout the broader Ozaukee county. As stated by the Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office, "Sheriff Knowles has gone above and beyond to support the CIT mission inside and outside of the training classroom." The Ozaukee County Sheriff’s Office Crisis Intervention Team, alongside figures like Dr. Weber, president of NAMI-Ozaukee, and Sergeant Graycarek from the Mequon Police Department, who also serves as CIP/CIT Coordinator, attended to celebrate the sheriff's achievements during the ceremony.
