By Crystal Hernandez, Psy.D., MBA, Denise Henry and Amanda Bradley, MS, LPC-S
Tulsa Technology Center is strengthening its Criminal Justice program by integrating mental health and wellness content directly into cadet training. Through a partnership with Family & Children’s Services, cadets can earn a mental health certification designed to prepare them for both the realities of public safety work and the challenges facing their peers.
The program reflects a growing shift within law enforcement training: introducing resilience, mental health awareness and wellness education before recruits ever enter an academy.
A two-pronged approach guides the effort:
- Prepare future officers for the mental and emotional demands of the profession
- Equip young people to better support themselves and their peers
The effort comes as agencies continue to navigate behavioral health-related calls, officer burnout and retention challenges, while many young people pursuing careers in public safety are already facing their own mental health struggles before entering the profession. [1-3]
Prong one: Building a strong foundation for future officers
Cadets are the future of law enforcement, and what they learn now shapes how they think under pressure, lead others and sustain themselves throughout their careers. Introducing mental health training at this stage normalizes important conversations before stigma takes root, builds stress-regulation skills before chronic exposure occurs and reframes help-seeking as a sign of strength. It also establishes adaptive coping strategies early, laying the groundwork for long-term resilience.
This is not remediation. It is preparation. We cannot expect future officers to manage crisis in the field if we haven’t first equipped them to manage it within themselves.
When these cadets enter the academy and eventually the field, they do so with a baseline skill set that supports sound decision-making, emotional regulation and effective crisis response.
Prong two: Supporting youth in the present
Equally important, these cadets are still young people immersed in peer networks where mental health challenges are part of everyday life. Structured training equips them to recognize warning signs in themselves and others, engage in supportive conversations, reduce stigma among peers, connect individuals to help and better manage their own stress responses.
This is prevention at its most effective: developing young leaders who can recognize problems early before situations escalate into crisis.
Inside the training
The training is structured, interactive and grounded in real-world application.
Cadets receive training in:
- Mental health literacy, including anxiety, depression, trauma and substance use
- Suicide awareness and early intervention skills
- Overdose awareness and response education
- Stress physiology and tactical regulation techniques
- Trauma exposure preparation
- Officer wellness foundations, including sleep, fitness and recovery
- Peer support and ethical leadership
- Resource navigation skills
Mental health resources are also visible throughout campus. Signage, support systems and referral pathways are treated as standard parts of training rather than separate conversations held behind closed doors.
Cadets leave with practical tools — not just awareness.
Proof from the field
We recently delivered this training as a comprehensive three-day program.
The cadets were engaged, thoughtful and fully present throughout the training. They participated actively, shared openly and demonstrated a level of insight that reflected both the relevance of the material and the need for earlier wellness education in public safety pathways.
This is a generation that wants to serve and lead. With the right investment and support, they will enter the profession better prepared for the realities of the job and better equipped to support themselves and others.
Why this matters for agencies
This approach extends beyond youth development. It is a force multiplier for public safety, a proactive framework for crisis prevention and an investment in workforce sustainability.
Agencies that invest early can expect better-prepared recruits entering the academy, stronger early-career resilience, enhanced crisis response capabilities, reduced stigma within the workforce and improved retention.
From an agency perspective, the long-term impact of early investment is both measurable and meaningful:
- Reduced stigma around mental health within the department
- Stronger early-career resilience
- Lower risk of maladaptive coping strategies
- Enhanced crisis-response competence
- Increased officer longevity and career satisfaction
- Stronger community trust
Officer wellness is not a secondary initiative. It is a public safety strategy, a workforce sustainability strategy and a risk mitigation strategy. When agencies intervene early, they help change the trajectory for both officers and the communities they serve.
Call to action
Agencies do not need to wait for a national model or a formal mandate. This work can begin locally through cadet programs, school partnerships and collaboration with behavioral health providers.
Advancing resilience training upstream — before academy entry — by leveraging local partnerships and embedding mental health into cadet pipelines can have a lasting impact on officer wellness, retention and public safety.
The blueprint already exists. The need is clear. Now is the time to act.
References
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2025). 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) releases.
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2020). National guidelines for behavioral health crisis care: A best practice toolkit.
- Blue H.E.L.P. (n.d.). Statistics.
About the authors
Crystal Hernandez, Psy.D., MBA, is a psychologist by training and behavioral health systems leader specializing in forensic mental health, crisis systems design and integrated public safety collaboration. She works nationally with law enforcement agencies, Tribal nations and state systems to strengthen behavioral health response and officer wellness frameworks. She has more than 20 years of field experience.
Denise Henry is an Instructor of Criminal Justice and Practical Law at Tulsa Technology Center, where she prepares high school students for careers in law enforcement and public safety, including Crisis Intervention Training. She brings more than 26 years of sworn law enforcement experience spanning city, tribal and state jurisdictions, including service as a Police Commissioner with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Lighthorse Police Department, Cherokee Marshal and investigator with the Mayes County Sheriff’s Office. She currently serves as a Reserve Officer with the Osage Nation Police Department. Her operational background includes patrol, investigations, drug interdiction, domestic violence and extensive instructor roles at both state and federal law enforcement academies.
Amanda Bradley, MS, LPC-S, is a behavioral health executive and public safety collaborator who bridges clinical systems, crisis response and organizational development. Focused on operational excellence and cross-sector alignment, she partners with law enforcement, healthcare leaders and community stakeholders to strengthen crisis response infrastructure and advance standards of care. Her work is shaped by both professional leadership and a lived perspective — as the spouse of a retired officer with more than 35 years of service and the mother of a current officer — deepening her commitment to officer wellness and sustainable public safety collaborations.
