My son is currently at Aspen Ranch

[Covergaard]

They are going to discuss it at the wikipedia convention in Taipai, but it seems that the American version is not going to have anything about AR on it, but all other wikipedia-versions are going to have a translated version of this page on them:

http://www.secretprisonsforteens.dk/US/AspenRanch.htm

It seems that it have something to do with differences in culture. Most other countries have ratified the UN Convention of a child, which does not allow parents to lock up a child in a private prison without approval and supervision of the authorities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convention ... of_a_Child

En.Wikipedia seems to contain a narrow american view on things. Perhaps it should be renamed to us.wikipedia. And as it is common in your country, this kind of "school" is an absolutely no-speak item. So no page on Aspen Ranch are to be found on en.wikipedia.

[TheWho]

Covergaard wrote:

And as it is common in your country, this kind of "school" is an absolutely no-speak item.

Actually, my experience has shown it to be just the opposite.  Residential programs and wilderness are spoken of openly here in the US on talk shows, parent magazines and a series called “Brat Camp” was aired in the US over recent years.  It takes awhile for information to get out to the public sometimes.

So no page on Aspen Ranch are to be found on en.wikipedia.

Look halfway down under “Residential Programs”, you might have missed it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspen_Education_Group

Here is a direct link to the Aspen Ranch home page
http://www.aspenranch.com/

or just google the phrase “Aspen Ranch”

[Anonymous]

Aspen is actually running a brain-washing facility for the Religous Right. True story. Seriously though, has anyone noticed if they(Aspen) pay someone to make comments on this site on the weekend or is it strictly 9-5 M-F? You can notice that they are now using Guest profiles more frequently, mixing it up a bit. This site has obviously got their attention. "The Who" is most likely working in Cerritos California puling down 60 g's a year just to respond to crap said on this site. I applaud the rebels who post here for their small victory over a corporate giant.

[Deborah]

Aspen is actually running a brain-washing facility for the Religous Right. True story. Seriously though, has anyone noticed if they(Aspen) pay someone to make comments on this site on the weekend or is it strictly 9-5 M-F? You can notice that they are now using Guest profiles more frequently, mixing it up a bit. This site has obviously got their attention. "The Who" is most likely working in Cerritos California puling down 60 g's a year just to respond to crap said on this site. I applaud the rebels who post here for their small victory over a corporate giant.

 :wink:

[Anonymous]

Aspen is actually running a brain-washing facility for the Religous Right. True story.

Oh lordy - better go put on your tin-foil hat!

I suppose you also woke up naked in the desert next to a burnt circle of sand...with a sore ass.

"True story"?  Prove it, dickwad.  This morning I feel like being pissed at you jerkoffs.  AR has saved our daughter's life, and is doing great work for many others.  There's no brainwashing, no religious indoctrination at all (in fact, periodically our daughter's therapist offers to take her "team" to church...but only if they WANT to go, and to a fairly casual non-Mormon church.

They have patients/students  that range from "troubled teens" with arrest records, kids with drug problems, girls who have become "cutters", kids who have suffered mental breakdowns due to trauma  - I have not met one parent (and we go to "parent week" activities quarterly and make other, sometimes unnanounced, visits at other times) who just wanted to lock-up their child - and in most cases the parent/child relationship improves dramatically after the child has been there a few months.

Yes, there are rules; yes, there is security (a kid can't just run off); yes, there can be "level drops", but only for serious rulebreaking.

We also know a couple program "graduates" who we keep in contact with, and the parents have had nothing but praise for AR.  There ARE things we think could be improved - in school, science labs are not available except through specialized mail-order kits, or through the local college (40-some miles away).  It's worked out OK, but it would be better if they had something set up on-site.  The food is pretty "institutional", but it's healthy stuff and they are bringing in more variety.  And periodically the team therapist or another staff member will take a group of upper-level kids out to a restaurant as a treat.

You also all completely miss one of the key things about AR - the use of equine assisted psychotherapy.  EAP has a well-established background and it is truly amazing how some of these "asphalt and sidewalk" kids develop wonderful relationships with the horses, which parallels well with human relationships.  It's fascinating to see how the kids generally pick a horse as "theirs" (they all seem to gravitate to one primary horse) that has the same personality as themselves, and they quickly learn how it is to deal with themselves.  The equine staff are our favorite people on the ranch, and a couple I'm sure will be lifelong friends.

The kids who really "get into" the horsemanship aspect are provided with weekend seminars in Salt Lake City or St. George in horse training, specialized care, etc...all at no fee to the parents.  Our daughter has a certification now in training, which has already gotten her a 2-week job locally for her summer visit home, and may result in a permanent position while she goes to college.

Yeah, it's a load of brainwashing and mistreatment.

You naysayers are simply fools who have NO idea what you're talking about.  A bunch of lemmings, just following the group.

FWIW we also know many local therapists who think highly of AR and also laugh at the negative notions.  Several have visited the place as well.

But it's always entertaining discussing these things with people who have no clue.  However, if ONE person wakes up and realizes the negative crap is a load of...well, crap...maybe another child can be helped.

[TheWho]

Oh lordy - better go put on your tin-foil hat!

Ha,Ha,Ha,  thats funny!!

Thank you guest, it is refreshing to listen to an honest perspective and account of how these programs help kids.  Your description will probably help many other parents to make the right decision for their child.

[Anonymous]

I guess that answers my question. Elliot does employ people on the weekend as well. They are deffinitely scared. Although I will say, most of these kids are better off in a behavior-modification program then with their neurotic parents who are more concerned with money and plastic surgery then raising their own children. Shame. It's just a convient way for the parents to dump their problems off in someone else's lap. If these kids do go home they regress after only a month or two, because their parents don't want to change.
Of course there is no sense in trying to address a parent on this site as they are too busy to raise their own children, let alone check an obscure website (My apologies to the one or two truly concerned parents who are doing a thorough investigation before they enroll their child in a program). This is clearly a rant site.
Which brings us to my main point, check out the anger of the previous "Guest" (The Who), they are obviously enraged that we can see through their attempt to mask their employer, right down to the city and state they work in (did I get the salary right too?). This site is going from obscure to mainstream, congratulations concerned citizens!

[Anonymous]

most of these kids are better off in a behavior-modification program then with their neurotic parents who are more concerned with money and plastic surgery then raising their own children.

Well, our daughter is close to graduation, so I thought I'd see what other bullshit is floating around here.

That quote is another laugher.  You don't need a tinfoil hat, you need a friggin' straightjacket.  If you were able to attend any of the parent weeks, you would find a mix of folks...most of whom are not wealthy...who are working hard as hell to keep their kid's *alive* - and the AR program is only part of it.  There's a tremendous amount of aftercare information and discussion, both with parents and entire families.

I've encountered I think one slightly neurotic mom, but she was the exception rather than the rule.  There have been no upper-crust "Lance and Buffy" types at all, just normal parents struggling with kids who have a variety of issues.  NOT ONE *wanted* their child to be there - for most it seems to be the last resort; personally, I wish it wasn't and people could get their kids in much sooner.  I wish we had.

But to me, the important thing is the place has...without a single doubt...saved our daughter's life.  TO sum up some of the other things:  She's graduating from high school a year EARLY, and home-district had her do testing (plus she had a great SAT score) so it's no fluke, and she gets a DUAL diploma from Utah and our home state.  She's happy, healthy - recently had another home visit that was totally without issues.  She has direction in her life, and although she will have on going therapy for some time due to the trauma that triggered her particular problems, she understands it and is dealing with it from a healthy perspective.

A side benefit is she already has a part-time job (while she goes to college) working for a horse trainer...which is good, because the downside (if you can call it that) is she/we are in the process of buying a horse!  But, since she's no looking into equine-related veterinary medicine, that's really a benefit.

I'm truly sorry a lot of you just do not understand the program, but it seems you're just going off the slanted "Brat Camp" stories, and piling on based on crap posted by people with NO facts, who've never been there, and have never spoken to a student or parent who has.

In fact, I wonder how many of the crap-flingers are even parents?

Regardless, I'll try to remember to come back in a few months and post an update on how she's doing.  If things go awry, I am not afraid to post that either.  However, based on what I've seen, on what her local therapist has said, what the local school people plus some adult mentors have observed I don't anticipate anything other than normal 17-year old daughter stuff.

I sincerely hope these posts help someone and help cut through the lies and unqualified judgments.

[Anonymous]

:wstupid:
Let's just hope your kid comes home safe.  You might try the therepy they have there yourself, since your so gung ho about it!

[Covergaard]

I'm truly sorry a lot of you just do not understand the program, but it seems you're just going off the slanted "Brat Camp" stories, and piling on based on crap posted by people with NO facts, who've never been there, and have never spoken to a student or parent who has.

In fact, I wonder how many of the crap-flingers are even parents?

We think we understand the program and yes I am a proud parent. Just last Saturday our police was fighting 8-12 years drunks on the beach and my daughter was NOT among them. (We have no lower limit for alcohol consumption in Denmark because we want to lower the number of people killed due to DUI. We are now talking of 73 deaths during the entire year of 2006 out of 5,000,000 people, so we are close.)

But could you not try to get your daughter to demonstrate PCS on you and exactly how long does they wrist the arm.?

I have found this video-clip from another Aspen facility (AAA). Please listen to the sound from the narrator.

[TheWho]

most of these kids are better off in a behavior-modification program then with their neurotic parents who are more concerned with money and plastic surgery then raising their own children.

Well, our daughter is close to graduation, so I thought I'd see what other bullshit is floating around here.

That quote is another laugher.  You don't need a tinfoil hat, you need a friggin' straightjacket.  If you were able to attend any of the parent weeks, you would find a mix of folks...most of whom are not wealthy...who are working hard as hell to keep their kid's *alive* - and the AR program is only part of it.  There's a tremendous amount of aftercare information and discussion, both with parents and entire families.

I've encountered I think one slightly neurotic mom, but she was the exception rather than the rule.  There have been no upper-crust "Lance and Buffy" types at all, just normal parents struggling with kids who have a variety of issues.  NOT ONE *wanted* their child to be there - for most it seems to be the last resort; personally, I wish it wasn't and people could get their kids in much sooner.  I wish we had.

But to me, the important thing is the place has...without a single doubt...saved our daughter's life.  TO sum up some of the other things:  She's graduating from high school a year EARLY, and home-district had her do testing (plus she had a great SAT score) so it's no fluke, and she gets a DUAL diploma from Utah and our home state.  She's happy, healthy - recently had another home visit that was totally without issues.  She has direction in her life, and although she will have on going therapy for some time due to the trauma that triggered her particular problems, she understands it and is dealing with it from a healthy perspective.

A side benefit is she already has a part-time job (while she goes to college) working for a horse trainer...which is good, because the downside (if you can call it that) is she/we are in the process of buying a horse!  But, since she's no looking into equine-related veterinary medicine, that's really a benefit.

I'm truly sorry a lot of you just do not understand the program, but it seems you're just going off the slanted "Brat Camp" stories, and piling on based on crap posted by people with NO facts, who've never been there, and have never spoken to a student or parent who has.

In fact, I wonder how many of the crap-flingers are even parents?

Regardless, I'll try to remember to come back in a few months and post an update on how she's doing.  If things go awry, I am not afraid to post that either.  However, based on what I've seen, on what her local therapist has said, what the local school people plus some adult mentors have observed I don't anticipate anything other than normal 17-year old daughter stuff.

I sincerely hope these posts help someone and help cut through the lies and unqualified judgments.

Your experience is in line with most parents and kids who finished (as well as my own).  Good luck and congrats to yourself and child.  
The problem with the TV shows about these places is many of the kids want to be the ones acting out the most so they can get more air time and attention from the crew.  So it is difficult to decifer what is real and what isnt.

[Anonymous]

[Oz girl]

I find the idea that parents get excited about their kid finisihng school a year earlier when they also have an apparently long history of wild behaviour oxmoronic.

I am sure any kid could shave a yr or 2 off school if they attended a place without any holidays whatsoever. it does not mean a higher standard of education just a more condensed one.

But why would you push for your "out of control" kid going to university a year early. Afterall first year is often spent in the tavern or on the university lawn amassing vital non academic life experiences  :wink:
If a kids debauched past is such a concern then perhaps waiting a yr or 2 for college is a good thing

[Anonymous]

I brought my son home because, as I stated in the first place, I was not really happy about Aspen Ranch.  My son was not being tortured there, but he was in a behavior modification type program that was a one size fits all.  I thought I was spending all this money sending my son to the "best Doctors and Therapist" and he would get specialized one on one help, and it was a bunch of bull.  Aspen is just a money making cattle ranch.  His therapist was trying and there were some people trying but overall, it was like just rope in a bunch of rich drug doing kids and will take your parents money and we will keep you here and teach you a lesson and you won't ever want to do drugs again because you won't want to come back here.  My son didn't do drugs, he really was not a bad kid, the whole pissing on the picture was just a prank, he had some anger issues, but he was diagnosed with high functioning autism, anxiety disorder, OCD not ODD that is what all the kids are labeled at Aspen. He also has a verbal I.Q. of over 140 that was being wasted at a place that does not really care about academics. Anyway I am rambling.



The reason it took this long to write back is because I have been very busy I have 3 other kids,

and just keeping my son on the right meds and at his therapist appointments and he is studing for the ACT's etc.  I just have not had time to let everyone know that I pulled him out.



I will say that I spent from 9 a.m. till 9 p.m. sometimes wondering around every part of Aspen Ranch ,came there without letting anyone know and they were fine with it.  So if you have a really out of control situation it is not bad for a few months, I have to admit just the shock of him being away and seeing all that I think gave him alot to think about.  I have asked him if he felt violated or abused in any way and he did not.



Anyway, if you  have any more questions I will be happy to answer.  Sorry about the punctuation, I am to tired for paragraphs!



KK:)

bump

[Anonymous]

"our society also buys parents off their normal work for a period so they can be at school watching over their child"

That's a wonderful system.  However, it's completely irrelevant here as we do not have that option, unfortunately.

Yes you do have a choice, it may not be easy or convenient but it's for your child and well worth the sacrifices...  

I can speak pretty well for my child - I just spent another 5 days with her, mostly off-campus on a "Utah visit".  She could say whatever she wanted, go shopping, go to movies...and her main topic was how she wants to get back home, but would never have been able to without the Ranch.

 

I'm not surprised by your daughters reaction, even in the most abusive programs you will find this reaction common among kids still in the program or a few years out of the program.
Despite what you may believe your daughter was not free to tell you whatever she wanted to. Here's why

• She would face accusations of manipulation if she was to say anything bad about the program. No doubt you would have talked to staff about any accusation and they would deny it, tell you not to believe her manipulations, and she would be dropped a few levels lengthening her stay.
• The nature of the program is one of thought reform. It uses many of the tactic types of thought reform as defined by Margaret Singer:
  [li] TACTIC 1. The individual is prepared for thought reform through increased suggestibility and/or "softening up," specifically through hypnotic or other suggestibility-increasing techniques such as: A. Extended audio, visual, verbal, or tactile fixation drills; B. Excessive exact repetition of routine activities; C. Decreased sleep; D. Nutritional restriction.
  
  
• TACTIC 2[/b]. Using rewards and punishments, efforts are made to establish considerable control over a person's social environment, time, and sources of social support. Social isolation is promoted. Contact with family and friends is abridged, as is contact with persons who do not share group-approved attitudes. Economic and other dependence on the group is fostered. (In the forerunner to coercive persuasion, brainwashing, this was rather easy to achieve through simple imprisonment.)
  
  
• TACTIC 3[/b]. Disconfirming information and nonsupporting opinions are prohibited in group communication. Rules exist about permissible topics to discuss with outsiders. Communication is highly controlled. An "in-group" language is usually constructed.
  
  
• TACTIC 4[/b]. Frequent and intense attempts are made to cause a person to re-evaluate the most central aspects of his or her experience of self and prior conduct in negative ways. Efforts are designed to destabilize and undermine the subject's basic consciousness, reality awareness, world view, emotional control, and defense mechanisms as well as getting them to reinterpret their life's history, and adopt a new version of causality.
  
  
• TACTIC 5[/b]. Intense and frequent attempts are made to undermine a person's confidence in himself and his judgment, creating a sense of powerlessness.
  
  
• TACTIC 6[/b]. Nonphysical punishments are used such as intense humiliation, loss of privilege, social isolation, social status changes, intense guilt, anxiety, manipulation and other techniques for creating strong aversive emotional arousals, etc.
  
  
• TACTIC 7[/b]. Certain secular psychological threats [force] are used or are present: That failure to adopt the approved attitude, belief, or consequent behavior will lead to severe punishment or dire consequence, (e.g. physical or mental illness, the reappearance of a prior physical illness, drug dependence, economic collapse, social failure, divorce, disintegration, failure to find a mate, etc.).

[/li]
[li]Aspen has most likely had enough time to break her, as such she will no longer question the program in a way that could bring any consequences upon herself. This is called survival mode and is present in victims of different types of abuse.
To make it she must fake it and fake it long enough with the right reinforcement:

• parental approval,
• allowed to be part of the group,
• rewards for accepting the group's identity and beliefs,
• etc

[/li][/list]
she will believe it with, and with great fervor.
This is obviously demonstrated in what your daughter said about returning home but only because of the ranch

• It's not uncommon for victims to become attached to their abuser. It's called Stockholm's syndrome and is a documented fact. Even though you had time alone with her Stockholm's syndrome would have prevented her from seeking escape.

We spent a couple hours on the computer looking at horse boarding, since she's planning on buying a horse when she leaves (one of the ranch equine therapists came in for several hours on an off-day just so we could ride with our daughter).

She's in an accelerated high school program that's (check it out yourself) highly rated by public and private colleges, ranking with high-dollar prep schools...and is again pulling almost straight-A's.  One residential staff person - one of the supposedly "abusive" people if you look at other sites - asked us to come by her new job to say hi - and she wants to come to our daughter's graduation.  Another staff person brought some puppies to the team for them to play with for a couple days; another bought a Christmas tree and decorations, and took the whole team out for dinner and to a non-denominational church Christmas eve.

She is apart of the group now, a trusty, who is now afforded privileges not offered to those outside of the group. This is a two fold thing however, a velvet glove over an iron fist. These privileges reward here for accepting the group think and philosophy, however it also increases her dependence on the group. If she's not lock step with the program those privileges will turn into antagonistic weapons of manipulation to get her back in line with the group's think.    

Sure, there are a couple staff people she doesn't like, but that's life.  All her teachers she adores, and she's getting great reports.  Her home district did some testing and found her to be far above her "normal" level - about a grade ahead when she SHOULD be a grade behind because of her trauma and troubles.

Will her school credits transfer to any school are only a certain few? Did she pick the university with or without the programs input? I believe that your daughter SHOULD NOT have been held back, having "trauma" does not make one stupid. Not knowing the AEG's schools I'm not sure if they go the self teaching route like most programs do. If you have a link to some info please provide it.

So play with your BS meters and other ignorant crap all you want - it's not a prison, it's not abusive, and it's saved at least ONE life for sure.  We have parents with problems coming to us, and we recommend they check it out along with other programs, as the "ranch" might not be a good fit for some kids.  But we do not hesitate to recommend it, or even to talk to the other kids about it and answer question straight-up.

We are lucky to have her there under a state/school district sponsored program...we could never afford it out-of-pocket, but if I HAD to, I'd find a way...and when she graduates, I willl  find some way to support it afterwards - you have NO idea what it means to a parent when you watch your daughter go from a broken shell to a growing teenager.  She has a long way to go yet, but knows it and is handling it fine.  The telling comment to me was "I like it here - I don't want to LIVE here forever - but I like it."  That and the fact she's alive.

Every program parent says this, even Straight,INC parents. I suggest you read the postings of survivors in regards to their parents, I believe you will find it to be quiet reflective.. Nothing short of a video of the abuse will ever make you believe differently, so oh well.....

It certainly would be nice if we had programs as they apparently do in some countries where parents can take time off and work with their kids in need, but I'm not sure that's enough in the therapeutic sense - parents are NOT therapists...we sure aren't.

Neither is the the staff that runs most of the therapy sessions

Anyway, we're thankful and so is she.  And in all the "meters" and sarcastic "donut" lines, I haven't read a single fact...or educated, knowledgable opinion...that is counter to anything I've related.

Really?

So if you have hard facts...or even an intelligent opinion...I'd be willing to listen and discuss it.  But the bullshit meters and other 8th-grade crap just makes the naysayers look exceedingly incapable of expressing anything intelligent.  You think anyone with an ounce of brains forms an opinion about a program on the basis of a graphic swiped from another site?

Tell me what made you pick AEG as the program to send your child too? website, ed-con, parent... Certainly not brains or expert opinions regarding programs

I'm not saying to take everything I say as gospel...but I AM giving some examples and opinions with actual content.

And I wonder how many of the goofballs are even parents?  Or kids who have been through a program?

My guess?  Zero.

Don't be silly this is fornits :lol:

I respect the European poster who lives with a different system.. That at least has some basis in reality.  But the hit-and-run trolls have said nothing at all so far.

 :roll: