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Berwyn authorizes $96,000 contract with Ringcon Family Services for police behavioral‑health support
Summary
The City Council approved a $96,000 agreement with Ringcon Family Services to place a licensed behavioral‑health clinician alongside police, guarantee 40 hours per week of coverage, provide mobile crisis response and link to 988 crisis services, council members heard and approved at the May meeting.
The Berwyn City Council voted to authorize a $96,000 agreement with Ringcon Family Services to provide behavioral‑health and crisis intervention services that will support the Police Department, including a licensed clinician onsite and mobile crisis response, according to the contract presented at the council meeting.
Police Chief Fellows introduced the proposal and said the department had identified a need for a different vendor and that the relationship with Ringcon began after community outreach. "This partnership is essential for both our police officers and our residents we serve, ensuring that individuals receive programs in a timely manner and receive that support that they really need," Chief Fellows said.
Eddie Boreo, president and CEO of Ringcon Family Services and a longtime Berwyn resident, described the nonprofit's 53‑year history and its community‑rooted approach. "We are rooted in the community," Boreo said. He told the council Ringcon operates a range of services — from school‑based and youth programs (including the Dreamkeepers initiative) to senior services, workforce training and a 24/7 crisis line tied to the 988 system — and will both provide onsite clinical response and make warm handoffs to hospitals when needed.
Council members pressed for details. Boreo said the clinician assigned to the police department will be a licensed professional in the healing arts ("an LPA") — either an LCPC or an LCSW — and the contract guarantees 40 hours of coverage per week. Chief Fellows said the vendor's staff will be able to respond in the field, attend schools and take calls that come through 911 or walk‑ins.
Chief Fellows also framed the contract as a cost‑management step after challenges with the previous vendor. He said the department specified 40 hours per week in the new agreement to avoid staffing gaps that occurred previously and expects Ringcon's broader program offerings will provide more overall services even with a smaller on‑site clinician roster.
The council approved the motion to "authorize the city to enter into an agreement with Ringcon Family Services in the amount of $96,000" by roll call; the motion carried.
Next steps noted by council and Ringcon leaders include coordination with the Berwyn Health Department, scheduling and staffing decisions to set the clinician's weekly schedule, and pursuing complementary funding sources to expand services beyond the contract's initial phase.
