Wisconsin Peer Specialist Employment Initiative

Wisconsin has long engaged and supported peer inclusion in the delivery of public mental health and substance use systems of care. The Wisconsin Peer Specialist Employment Initiative embodies this engagement. The Wisconsin Peer Specialist Employment Initiative was launched by the Wisconsin Recovery Implementation Task Force in December 2006. In January of 2010, the Wisconsin Peer Specialist Employment Initiative, now managed by Access to Independence and overseen by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, held their first certification exams and brought the initial cohort of newly Certified Peer Specialists to Wisconsin. By the end of 2010, approximately 100 Certified Peer Specialists were available throughout the state. In February 2011, a design committee was developed with leaders in the parent support community in order to build a system that reflects the challenges and opportunities in supporting parents of children and youth experiencing mental health and substance use challenges. In partnership with Access and DHS, this committee developed guiding documents, using the Certified Peer Specialist guiding documents as an inspiration. The training protocol and the competency-based exam were launched in 2018. Looking Towards the Future: Since 2006, many accomplishments have been achieved, including: building an active and engaged workforce composed of more than 1,400 Certified Peer Specialists throughout the state, collaborating with tribal nations to ensure professional peer support services are available in communities that want them, bringing CPS training, certification, and services to incarcerated persons throughout Wisconsin, launching a Certified Peer/Parent Peer Specialist Advisory Committee, and developing and implementing a Certified Parent Peer Specialist certification. Wisconsin is a leader in peer specialist services, and both the Certified Peer Specialist and Certified Parent Peer Specialist initiatives continue to evolve as we learn.