"I just wanted to tell you about some amazing work that [Court Liaison] did on a case for a young man with considerable medical, cognitive and psychological issues. It is nothing short of miraculous and life changing. [Court Liaison] only got on this case a couple weeks ago. I asked for her to be appointed knowing this client would just go on her waiting list but because of the acuity of his situation, she moved him off of her waiting list. She then somehow succeeded in less than two weeks in getting this client placed from the jail at an acute in-patient health care facility—something about ten other professionals (including myself) had not been able to do in the past several months as this client remained in jail without the level of skilled nursing he needs. [Court Liaison] cut through loads of red tape so creatively, gracefully and diplomatically. She figured out long term Medicaid, momentum funding, guardianship, placement, transportation, bonds and then made a few (very neutral) nudges towards dismissal. [Court Liaison's] work on this case (and many others) is outstanding."
~local district public defender, September 2023
Bridges of Colorado was established as a judicial program, ‘The Bridges Program,’ to facilitate collaboration between the judicial system and mental health system. Through critical guidance to attorneys and judges, and representation to an underserved population, the Bridges Program has resulted in bringing services and support to thousands of individuals a year and a 35% release rate of those who were in custody.
This impact has been the catalyst for growth and a demonstration of delivering on our values. We want to share these with you.
We Deliver high-quality and effective care to participants, including engaging in community-based advocacy and problem solving for that care.
We Provide responsive and neutral delivery of both high levels of expertise and feasible and impactful problem solving to judges and attorneys.
We Serve the entire state of Colorado.
We Provide subject matter expertise across two complex fields (behavioral health and criminal justice), serving and collaborating with professionals in those fields who are required to have advanced education, licensure, and continuing education.
We Translate across the two fields so that professionals in both fields are able to successfully collaborate and problem solve.
We Succeed in collaborating and problem-solving with community partners and providers that have significantly differing mandates.
We Mitigate risk across the two fields and related organizations.
Looking forward, our focus is on the...
Establishment of Bridges as a statewide neutral authority on the needs of and best practices for the target population across the two fields.
Recognition of Bridges’ systemic change role at a local, regional, and statewide level through providing judge, attorney, and community partner education; promoting and advocating for positive outcomes for the target population; aand facilitating/participating in the development of community-based resources and systemic solutions.
Recognition of Bridges’ role as a nationwide promising practice (named as such by National Center for State Courts) and first program of its kind in the nation, underscoring both the necessity to develop, implement, and evolve a unique program model and its national leadership role in development of similar models.
To be named an “Employer of Choice” in Colorado through equitable hiring, management, and retention practices, promoting professional development and offering competitive pay and benefits; the result being a sustainable, highly trained, and competent workforce.
Total Rewards Philosophy
We understand the value of our team members and the practical realities of providing mental health and criminal justice system related services. Our focus is not only on the well-being and success of our clients, but also that of our team. As a historically underpaid industry, we recognize the need for sustainable, competitive pay and benefits. Our ‘time off’ plan was created to protect the mental and physical well-being of our team members and ensure work life balance. We intend to actively address this need while providing equitable compensation to all of our team members. We want to develop Experts in their field and give them room to grow.
Bridges of Colorado’s Total Rewards Philosophy is driven by...
Our Competitive Pay is based on third-party compensation analysis for governmental/non-profit organizations. We are competitive with the Denver market and State of Colorado Judicial and Behavioral Health positions. Our analysis of the market related to the uniqueness of the Office and roles of the employees, especially with a necessity to carry expertise in two complex fields, work with participants with high mental health acuity, serve as court-appointed experts, mitigate risk in both settings, engage high levels of creative problem-solving, and develop, implement, and evolve a nationally unique program model.
Our Value of Equity through intentionally meeting living wage guidelines and standards and by addressing the historically disparate compensation of “helping” professionals. We demonstrate our value of equity through alignment with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act and our unique structure that values equity across the organization.
Our Comprehensive Benefits meet or exceed standards within the behavioral health field. In addition to the competitive Judicial Branch offerings below, Bridges of Colorado will soon be offering many unique benefits focused on improving the lives of our employees and their families.
- Health & Dental Insurance
- Basic Life & AD&D, and Short-term Disability Insurance Paid by the State
- Long-term Disability and Optional Life Insurance
- Flexible Spending & Health Savings Accounts
- Several Retirement (and supplemental) Offerings
- Colorado State Employees’ Credit Union and Employee Discount Program
- Generous Paid Time Off, Eleven Paid Holidays and Extended Sick Leave
- Worker’s Compensation
- Colorado State Employee’s Assistance Plan
Our Career Development focus. When you succeed and grow, we succeed and grow, and our clients reap the benefit. We provide an allowance for professional development for each our team members, offer formal and informal professional development programs and no-cost clinical supervision to meet educational and licensure requirements.