NORWICH – About $23,500 of New York taxpayers’ money could be paid out in any given year for good behavior exhibited by the individuals confined at Valley Ridge Center for Intensive Treatment in Norwich.
A policy in place since the Valley Ridge CIT opened in 2002 on Upper Ravine Road compensates detainees who successfully attend and participate in behavior management classes. Classes are held weekdays year round, and with six of them offered each day, at 25 cents each, a person committed at Valley Ridge could potentially earn up to $1.50 per day.
Not all of them do, however. The classes address anger management, relapse, empathy and other behavioral skills. “You have to remember that these are difficult skills. Many of the consumers function at a high school level,” said Valley Ridge’s Deputy Director of Administration Nick Andrews.
According to CIT Director Charles Kearley, the stipend is “a motivation factor” that enables the individuals - called consumers - “to buy-in” to their treatment programs.
“We need active participation from the consumer to make this all work,” he said. “They need to agree to and actively participate in the classes. This (the pay) reinforces them to guide their own development.”
Earnings may be spent on food and beverages, cigarettes and clothing items available at the CIT’s commissary. Kearley said staff often help consumers shop on the Internet also.
The 23-acre campus located on the hill above state Rt. 12 behind Lowe’s is operated by the New York State Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD). It serves about 60, mostly 18-35 year-old males who have mental retardation or developmental disabilities. Consumers are committed to Valley Ridge by the courts after being found incompetent to stand trial or not criminally responsible for their actions due to mental retardation. Others seek services as an alternative to incarceration (probation) or as a condition of parole. Many have not been formally charged with criminal behaviors, but demonstrate such dangerous or violent actions that they require a specialized, secure residential setting.
If participants successfully improve, they may move out of Valley Ridge and onto a less restrictive treatment facility. On average, about eight consumers per year leave Norwich, the director said.
Members of the community who serve on Valley Ridge’s Board of Visitors learned more about the monetary reward system during a meeting last week. Stephen Bernardi, the board’s newly appointed president, said the practice was “well spent taxpayer money.”
The five-member board meets three times a year to discuss the facility and its programs, to review periodic status reports from the New York State Office of Mental Health, and to discuss any complaints filed by consumers. A recent visit by the DOH resulted in “a few minor deficiencies,” Kearley said.
Consumers lodge about 30 complaints during any four-month period, and about three are discussed during executive sessions following the meetings. Most have to do with tripping or pushing, Bernardi said.
“If one catches my eye, I will call Chuck (Kearley) right a way. But 99 percent of the time it’s something unfounded or minor in nature,” Bernardi said.
Members of the board discussed the state’s budget deficit and Governor David Paterson’s call for cut-backs from all government programs. Valley Ridge maintained programming and staffing despite an 11 percent cut last year.
“Everything is up for cut-backs this year, and for our budget, that is a concern. We are looking at everything as a way to save money,” Kearley said. The director pointed to video-conferencing in place of meetings in Albany and less over time.
But while the focus is on cuts, the director confirmed that layoffs are not being discussed. Direct care positions at the CIT are considered “essential,” he said.
“The paranoia is starting to get rampant, but our direct care staff are essential,” he said. Valley Ridge employs 250. There are six direct care positions currently open.
A building project planned for the CIT is stalled in Albany, however. Officials had hoped to break ground last spring for a 14,000 square foot addition onto the east side of the facility.
The following employees were recognized at Valley Ridge’s 5th Annual Employee Recognition ceremonies in early December: Dawn Skillin of Norwich, Lex Supensky of Norwich, and Dwain Thompson of New Berlin.
Two new members were recently appointed to fill long-standing vacancies on the Board of Visitors, Lee Wilhelm and Dr. Albert B. Kochersperger, both of Norwich. The two join past President Irad Ingraham of New Berlin and Thomas Whittaker and Bernardi, of Norwich.