Selinsgrove council declines to reimburse REC for group therapy, wages, food

Sep. 7—SELINSGROVE — The cost of group therapy, wages and food were among the $90,058 in receipts for the spring after-school drop-in program, submitted for reimbursement by the Regional Engagement Center (REC) to the Selinsgrove Borough Council.

None of those items qualify for grants from the borough-administered Gelnett Trust Fund under municipal guidelines, council members Scott Frost and Bobbie Owens said. Both said they were surprised to see bills submitted for therapy from the nonprofit center.

The council voted unanimously on Tuesday for a $216 reimbursement for the drop-in program to cover recreational art and program supplies, far less than the $15,000 requested by REC President Kelly Feiler.

Borough solicitor Robert Cravitz cautioned council members from commenting on what was billed to the REC as $2,550 in weekly group therapy sessions from January to May by Connections Relations Therapy, of Selinsgrove.

The drop-in youth center is open to students in grades 3 to 12 for 15 hours each weekday during the school year, when classes are in session, and is closed during the summer and on weekends.

When asked about the group therapy sessions Wednesday, Feiler declined to immediately answer specific questions from The Daily Item, asking instead, "Do you have a problem with that?"

After consulting with REC staff and board members, Feiler and her father, Marvin Rudnitsky, the REC's board chairman, responded Thursday in an email to several questions from The Daily Item, including more about the therapy sessions and the center's sustainability.

Mental health check-ins

Feiler and Rudnitsky said the "group therapy," listed in the Connections Relations Therapy billing was "mental health check-ins and activities."

"The Susquehanna Valley United Way Teen Impact Council and Behavioral and Mental Health Roundtable recognize that the PAYS data requires immediate attention to the spike in behavioral and mental health issues, recommending early and community-based intervention," Feiler and Rudnitsky explained in the email. "Youth suicide prevention is a serious matter. It is recommended to have early intervention, such as QPR, by community groups like the REC."

Parental consent is received from children 13 and younger who attend the sessions at the REC, while consent is not required for children 14 and older, they said. Written approval is received from parents/guardians and a private medical professional who may be treating the child, they said.

A portion of the Connections Relational Therapy was paid for with a "specific grant," said Feiler and Rudnitsky, maintaining that it is appropriate to submit the invoices to the borough because the service is within the scope of the Gelnett Trust's purpose in promoting the health, education and welfare of Selinsgrove residents.

"The $15,000 Gelnett grant request (for the spring drop-in program) is 15 percent of the total cost of the program," they said.

$7,211 reimbursed

Also Tuesday, the borough council reimbursed $7,211 for the REC's summer camp program, less than the $30,000 requested. In all, Feiler submitted receipts of $83,073 for the summer camp that served 47 children, including wages, food and administrative costs.

Feiler turned in a stack of receipts for both programs for consideration of the Gelnett grant by the council last week which were compiled by borough Treasurer Sheri Badman for review Friday by the finance committee and Cravitz. Following the meeting, the committee composed of Owens, Frost and Shane Hendricks deemed a total of $7,428 in expenses was reimbursable.

"Disappointment and a gut punch" is how Rudnitsky reacted to the council's decision Tuesday to reimburse a fraction of the $45,000 requested.

President says reduced funding jeopardizes REC

Shortly after the council vote Tuesday, Feiler posted online that the reduced public funding would put both programs at risk of closing.

To ensure the center's sustainability, they said in the email response, the REC board has worked in the past year with a Bucknell University business management class to "study the REC and its needs."

The students aided in improving the website, suggesting more fundraising committee meetings and holding more donor events.

Assistance from the Gelnett Trust is needed to support the REC, Rudnitsky said, disagreeing with council members who say there are restrictions in what expenses it can cover.

"The council has complete discretion in dispersing borough funds received from the trust" and has done so in the past, said Rudnitsky.

Frost said that is misinformation.

"Of all people he should know better," Frost said, referring to Rudnitsky who served as borough solicitor in the 1980s and as a borough council member for nine years until April when he resigned due to the controversy over public funding of the REC.

Unlike entities such as the Selinsgrove swimming pool, which is located on borough-owned property, Frost said, the nonprofit REC is not a municipal obligation and there are limitations on what the borough can fund for its operations.

The Gelnett Trust application spells that out, he said.

"If we had unlimited use of the funds, we could pay ourselves," Frost said, referring to the unpaid council members. "We'll continue to do what we need and should have been doing with these funds."