Feb 27, 2025 By Jon Andreassi 2 min read

Peters Township council voted last week to formally establish a social worker position within its police department.

Council voted unanimously at its meeting Monday to approve resolutions both creating the position and laying out the duties of the eventual hire.

Peters police Chief Joseph Glover said last month the social worker will assist officers with issues related to mental health and social welfare.

Glover used the example of a hoarding situation, and said police officers are not typically trained to be able to help someone in that situation.

According to the newly approved policies and procedures governing the social services coordinator position, officers can request that the employee ride along when responding to calls.

The social worker will also be expected to respond to situations involving substance abuse or suicide threats. The guidelines for the position also expect that the new hire will engage with the community in the form of community trainings, educational programs and small group meetings.

Peters Township will be the first municipality in the county to have a police social worker.

The social services coordinator will be paid a salary of $66,000. Peters Township is receiving $42,500 annually from Washington County for five years to offset the cost.

Councilman Frank Arcuri said at the meeting that the continued existence of the position after those five years will depend on how beneficial the social worker proves to be.

“I think, really, the county should have set it up as a regional thing so that the use of this type of person could benefit all the police departments and municipalities in the county,” Arcuri said. “I know that they’re throwing money at us, and I think that’s great, but I think that going forward, after this five-year period, I would not spend the money on that unless it’s very, very beneficial to the township.”

Township Manager Paul Lauer agreed that an arrangement with neighboring municipalities could be a way to push the idea of a police social worker forward.

“If everybody chipped in, you could have several of these and they could be of use throughout the county,” Arcuri said.