Fornits
Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform => The Ridge Creek School / Hidden Lake Academy => Topic started by: happyday7 on May 08, 2007, 01:36:17 PM
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Does anyone know who the top Ed Consultant for HLA is? If the judge were to allow this lawsuit to proceed, does anyone know if the Educational Consultants will be called to testify in regards to what all they knew when they were still sending children to HLA? I would think that educational consultants would be worried about the reputation of HLA now.
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Jean Hague was one who referred a ton of kids to HLA.
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Does anyone know anything that is going on with the Judge right now? I thought it was past time for him to make his final decision to certify the lawsuit or not. :question:
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Does anyone know who the top Ed Consultant for HLA is? If the judge were to allow this lawsuit to proceed, does anyone know if the Educational Consultants will be called to testify in regards to what all they knew when they were still sending children to HLA? I would think that educational consultants would be worried about the reputation of HLA now.
Many received subpeona in December. The answer is yes.
Prosecuted for knowlingly touting HLA as a TBS...et al..?.Call the Georgia State Prosecutor or Secretary of State , there you may find the answer. Call the Federal Prosecutor for knowingly sending children across State lines, without proper notification and HLA accepting monies from other States for IEPS..for TBS.That would make for an interesting payload.
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Does anyone know anything that is going on with the Judge right now? I thought it was past time for him to make his final decision to certify the lawsuit or not. :question:
There is no 'past time'...Mostly the judge has all the time he wishes.
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Martha Kolbe referred me and a bunch of of other kids there...
(she never met me either... is that kosher?!)
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Martha Kolbe referred me and a bunch of of other kids there...
(she never met me either... is that kosher?!)
No, it's not kosher but, unfortunately, it seems to be standard operating procedure for many of these Ed Cons. I've never understood how a supposed professional could recommend placement or treatment for a child s/he has never met. It seems like this would be the equivalent of medical malpractice.
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Elizabeth Hall in Austin, Tx referred my ex. Never saw my son either. Referred based on "owner's reputation". Appears to be common. More discussion on Ed Cons:
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 138#181138 (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=181138#181138)
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 767#217767 (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=217767#217767)
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 896#250896 (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=250896#250896)
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 878#248878 (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=248878#248878)
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 683#217683 (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=217683#217683)
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... hlight=con (http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?t=17157&highlight=con)
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I don't even remember the name of mine. Of course this could be due to the fact that I never met her, she never contacted me, never came to visit the school, never so much as sent me a post card.
But hey she sure earned her money right? A job well done bitch.
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Look at this information below on the NATSAP website. First of all Billy Pichon is not there anymore. They have moved one of the Directors of Counseling into the Director of Admissions jobs since all admission staff left HLA. Also, they say that the staff chaplain provides ample opportunity for spiritual development. Kids are not all allowed to go to church services. They only let a certain number of students attend church and only if they are chosen to go by the Spiritual advisor. They also say that students participate in all these sports, yet they do not tell you that students on academic restrictions are not allowed to participate in sports or off campus activities. If you have a student at HLA that has learning differences, and is on the academic incomplete list, just know that they will not be allowed to play any team sports or attend any off campus trips etc. It all sounds good, but don't fall for everything you read. Read the posting below on the NATSAP website. :roll:
(Therapeutic Boarding School)
Gender: Coeducational Phone: (800) 394-0640
Ages: 13 to 18
Grades: 7 to 12 Fax: (706) 864-9109
Enrollment: 175 Email: www.hiddenlakeacademy.com (http://www.hiddenlakeacademy.com)
Founded: 1994
Admission Contact: Billy Pichon
Address: 830 Hidden Lake Rd.
Dahlonega, GA 30533 Executive Contact: Leonard Buccellato, Ph.D.
Hidden Lake Academy (HLA), located on a 215-acre campus one hour north of Atlanta, helps young people make significant gains in emotional maturity and academic achievement. Integral to the HLA program is an equal emphasis on the college-preparatory academic curriculum and sudent's therapeutic work. The Hidden Lake Academy staff cooperate to help students develop all aspects of their lives: physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual. The 10:1 student to teacher ratio ensures individual attention and a return to academic success.
Typical students exhibit oppositional-defiant behavior, low self-esteem, depression, ADHD, deteriorating family relationships, and are making poor choices. Students typically graduate Hidden Lake Academy's therapeutic program with a greatly increased ability and motivation to make decisions that will positively impact their lives.
Hidden Lake Academy utilizes a detailed, sequential therapeutic program which allows for a high degree of program accountability. Each group consists of 14 students and is led by 2 Master's-level counselors. Students participate in three group counseling sessions per week (7 hours). In addition to group therapy, an addictions education course, planned and staffed by specialists in this field, is included in each student's experience. A wilderness component-consisting of a series of exciting and challenging experiences including day hikes, adventure trips, rock climbing and rappelling days, a ropes course, and canoeing is carefully integrated into a program. A staff chaplain provides ample opportunities for spiritual development for students of all faiths and coordinates extensive community services projects and numerous off-campus trips. HLA competes in the Atlanta Athletic Conference. Studens participate in basketball, volleyball, baseball, soccer, wrestling, tennis, softball, golf and track. Sports are balanced by strong Drama and Fine Arts Departments.
Individual Psychotherapy Available: Yes
Accreditation, Licensure, Approval: The Georgia Accrediting Commission; Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Professional Affiliations: NATSAP-Full Member; GAIS; GAPSEC;GISA; NAIS; SSATB,
NATSAP National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs | 928.443.9505 | 126 North Marina, Prescott, Arizona 86301 Email
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Martha Kolbe referred me and a bunch of of other kids there...
(she never met me either... is that kosher?!)
No, it's not kosher but, unfortunately, it seems to be standard operating procedure for many of these Ed Cons. I've never understood how a supposed professional could recommend placement or treatment for a child s/he has never met. It seems like this would be the equivalent of medical malpractice.
Has anyone compared these to the requirements? What are EdCons required to do? Are there any guidelines that we can go by? Do they need to meet each child in person before recommending placement?
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Whether they are required to or not is irrellavent. How can they effectively evaluate someone if theyve never met or spoken to them?
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Martha Kolbe referred me and a bunch of of other kids there...
(she never met me either... is that kosher?!)
No, it's not kosher but, unfortunately, it seems to be standard operating procedure for many of these Ed Cons. I've never understood how a supposed professional could recommend placement or treatment for a child s/he has never met. It seems like this would be the equivalent of medical malpractice.
Has anyone compared these to the requirements? What are EdCons required to do? Are there any guidelines that we can go by? Do they need to meet each child in person before recommending placement?
Your questions point out exactly what is wrong with the Troubled Teen Industry. It's a money making racket that has no oversight, accountability, and few, if any, regulation to protect the children.
Ask yourself this question: Would you allow anyone to make a recommendation of any kind for you without first meeting you?
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Guest wrote:
Your questions point out exactly what is wrong with the Troubled Teen Industry. It's a money making racket that has no oversight, accountability, and few, if any, regulation to protect the children.
Some are “For Profit” others are “Non-Profit”. But regardless these places are set up for the sole purpose of keeping kids safe and getting them back on track. Oversight and regulation doesn’t seem to be effective enough to keep the kids safe in the public school sector which is why many parents are trying to avoid state controlled programs and place them in Private Therapeutic Schools.
Ask yourself this question: Would you allow anyone to make a recommendation of any kind for you without first meeting you?
I was initially asking if there were any requirements for how EdCons need to conduct their interviews and it sounds like there may not be any.
Personally I have not used an EdCon so I am not familiar with protocol, but I would expect that they would not need to meet every child they recommend schools to. If he or she conducted the interview over the phone with the parent and then with another professional who knows the child (childs therapist, school advocate etc.), if needed, this may be sufficient to make an accurate assessment.
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Guest wrote: Your questions point out exactly what is wrong with the Troubled Teen Industry. It's a money making racket that has no oversight, accountability, and few, if any, regulation to protect the children.
Some are “For Profit” others are “Non-Profit”. But regardless these places are set up for the sole purpose of keeping kids safe and getting them back on track. Oversight and regulation doesn’t seem to be effective enough to keep the kids safe in the public school sector which is why many parents are trying to avoid state controlled programs and place them in Private Therapeutic Schools.
Ask yourself this question: Would you allow anyone to make a recommendation of any kind for you without first meeting you?
I was initially asking if there were any requirements for how EdCons need to conduct their interviews and it sounds like there may not be any.
Personally I have not used an EdCon so I am not familiar with protocol, but I would expect that they would not need to meet every child they recommend schools to. If he or she conducted the interview over the phone with the parent and then with another professional who knows the child (childs therapist, school advocate etc.), if needed, this may be sufficient to make an accurate assessment.
Oversight and regulation doesn’t seem to be effective enough to keep the kids safe in the public school sector which is why many parents are trying to avoid state controlled programs and place them in Private Therapeutic Schools.
This statement makes no sense at all. It sounds like you're suggesting a majority of parents are trying to take kids out of public schools and put them in Private Therapeutic Schools. Do you have any independent statistics that can back up claims that Private Therapeutic Schools are safer than public schools? My child's own personal experience at HLA was filled with violence - something my child never experienced in public schools.
Sorry, but for an Ed Con not to meet with a child is absolute bullshit. That's like me going to a doctor on your behalf and telling the doctor you have headaches. He comes to the conclusion, solely based on what I tell him, that you have a brain tumor and we schedule you for surgery. Come to find out your headaches are actually caused by a food allergy, but because he had never met you and just took my word for it, you were misdiagnosed and not given the proper treatment or care. Pretty pathetic.
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Guest wrote:
This statement makes no sense at all. It sounds like you're suggesting a majority of parents are trying to take kids out of public schools and put them in Private Therapeutic Schools.
I guess it may be misconstrued as that. I was trying to show that oversight and regulation don’t necessarily equate to safety. The public sector is heavily regulated but the public schools are far from safe, in my opinion.
Do you have any independent statistics that can back up claims that Private Therapeutic Schools are safer than public schools? My child's own personal experience at HLA was filled with violence - something my child never experienced in public schools.
We have started pulling together data to compare a child living in the public sector vs the private sector, Based on the “National Center for Education Statistics” NCES and the “Centers for Disease Control and Prevention” CDC. We have analyzed suicides, homicides in the public sector vs TBS, wilderness etc. Here is what we have pulled together so far:
http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=260816#260816 (http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=260816#260816)
Sorry, but for an Ed Con not to meet with a child is absolute bullshit. That's like me going to a doctor on your behalf and telling the doctor you have headaches. He comes to the conclusion, solely based on what I tell him, that you have a brain tumor and we schedule you for surgery. Come to find out your headaches are actually caused by a food allergy, but because he had never met you and just took my word for it, you were misdiagnosed and not given the proper treatment or care. Pretty pathetic.
See this is where I am confused. So what you are saying is the EdCons have formal training in diagnosing children’s ailments? See I was under the impression they provided a service of finding a school for the child based on the child’s needs. If I called an EdCon I wouldn’t expect them diagnose my child, I would expect them to find a school for me based on information provided to them by myself and the child’s advocate or therapist. I wouldn’t rely on them to tell me my child had ODD, I would assess that locally thru a therapist or Doctor. Having them meet the child would be nice and necessary in some cases, maybe, but I don’t see it in all cases.
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EDUCATIONAL Consultants should not be making placements to THERAPEUTIC facilities. Even with a dx, can they really assess whether the facility will meet their needs or not? Anyone can look on program websites and pick one that claims to treat the dx someone has give their kid.
But, at the very least should meet and know something about the kid they are referring for.
Elizabeth Hall told me that she hoped all would be well and it would be a good placement, so my son could "get on with his education".
Stupid bitch. He was an A/B student with no academic issues and the only "problem" he had was trying to defend himself against two ignorant people, which was consequently dx'd as ODD.
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Personally I have not used an EdCon so I am not familiar with protocol, but I would expect that they would not need to meet every child they recommend schools to. If he or she conducted the interview over the phone with the parent and then with another professional who knows the child (childs therapist, school advocate etc.), if needed, this may be sufficient to make an accurate assessment.
The guest is correct. You wouldnt allow a doctor to make a decsion regarding your health without properly evaluating you. You wouldnt allow a mechanic to overhaul your entire car without really looking at it first. Why would you allow an EdCon to place your child in a program without them ever talking to your child?
Oversight and regulation doesn’t seem to be effective enough to keep the kids safe in the public school sector
Yes, but they are still safer in a public school then in the PTS.
which is why many parents are trying to avoid state controlled programs and place them in Private Therapeutic Schools
Wrong. Most parents don't know the programs they are shipping their kids off to are unlicensed and unregulated. The reason being many of these programs lie to the parents about the situation.
I was trying to show that oversight and regulation don’t necessarily equate to safety. The public sector is heavily regulated but the public schools are far from safe, in my opinion.
But does a lack of regulation and a lack of oversight equate to safety? No of course not, which is why the PTS have been shown to be so unsafe.
So what you are saying is the EdCons have formal training in diagnosing children’s ailments? See I was under the impression they provided a service of finding a school for the child based on the child’s needs
Many are psychologist by training, but the question remains how can they determine what the childs needs are without having ever met the child?
If I called an EdCon I wouldn’t expect them diagnose my child, I would expect them to find a school for me based on information provided to them by myself and the child’s advocate or therapist. I wouldn’t rely on them to tell me my child had ODD, I would assess that locally thru a therapist or Doctor.
Then why do many of these programs (HLA included) accept a recomendation from a EdCon as criteria for being enrolled whether the EdCon has met the child or not?
Having them meet the child would be nice and necessary in some cases, maybe, but I don’t see it in all cases.
So then the question remains. How can an EdCon properly evaluate or determine what a child needs if theyve never even met them?
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42 deaths between 2000-2004. I don't see them listed.
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We have started pulling together data to compare a child living in the public sector vs the private sector, Based on the “National Center for Education Statistics” NCES and the “Centers for Disease Control and Prevention” CDC. We have analyzed suicides, homicides in the public sector vs TBS, wilderness etc. Here is what we have pulled together so far:
http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=260816#260816 (http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=260816#260816)
I, for one, am not buying into any of those statistics. The overwhelming majority of TBS's and Wilderness programs are not regulated and, therefore, are not legally required to report this type of information. TBS's and Wilderness Programs can make up their own data or exclude certain information to make their statistics look better. This data would never past muster with a statistician.
See this is where I am confused. So what you are saying is the EdCons have formal training in diagnosing children’s ailments? See I was under the impression they provided a service of finding a school for the child based on the child’s needs. If I called an EdCon I wouldn’t expect them diagnose my child, I would expect them to find a school for me based on information provided to them by myself and the child’s advocate or therapist. I wouldn’t rely on them to tell me my child had ODD, I would assess that locally thru a therapist or Doctor. Having them meet the child would be nice and necessary in some cases, maybe, but I don’t see it in all cases.
No, I'm not saying Ed Cons should have formal training in diagnosing childrens ailments - this would make them doctors or therapists. They should, however, have training as to how a diagnosis is made, what criteria makes up a diagnosis, and the appropriate placement/treatment for the child based on that diagnosis. Many of the children who were referred to HLA were done so by the parent(s) calling an Ed Con and recommending the child go to HLA without asking or requiring the child to have had an assessment or diagnosis from a licensed therapist or other mental health professional. That is just flat out wrong and there is no defending this practice.
What other industry allows recommendations to be made for children without the child being seen by person making the recommendation? There's are huge moral and ethical dilemmas here, not to mention the legal aspects of this industry.
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EDUCATIONAL Consultants should not be making placements to THERAPEUTIC facilities. Even with a dx, can they really assess whether the facility will meet their needs or not? Anyone can look on program websites and pick one that claims to treat the dx someone has give their kid.
But, at the very least should meet and know something about the kid they are referring for.
Elizabeth Hall told me that she hoped all would be well and it would be a good placement, so my son could "get on with his education".
Stupid bitch. He was an A/B student with no academic issues and the only "problem" he had was trying to defend himself against two ignorant people, which was consequently dx'd as ODD.
So it sounds like we need to define the boundary conditions of EdCons. I didnt know they were not allowed to do this. Does anyone have a definition of what they can and cant do or their qualifications? Should they be required to meet each child and diagnose them? Should they only refer children to non- Theraeutic schools? etc.
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They are yet another unregulated industry. There's no question to what they can get away with right now. The question is should they be allowed?
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I'm partially joking and partly serious when I say:
Why should the educational consultants have real qualifications???
Serioulsy, so they can be educated to send people to a school w/ people w/ mail-away degrees???
Even if they were regulated that is only a piece of the puzzle...
Or if regulated, could the ed cons simply obtain the Farrington University diploma?
So the real solution would be real regulation...better than private school regulation...
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You should not call them Educational Consultants. They should be called ED CONS because they are in the business of conning parents into believing the empty promises they make to you in order to get your child enrolled in a school. ED CONS have been accused of taking kick backs from schools for how many kids they enroll. It is a big $$$ racket. That is my opinion based on my own experience with an ED CON.
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Hopefully one of these days a T.V. news show will start investigating this industry and realize how corrupt it is. Unfortunately there's Dr. Phil and Oprah on T.V. talking about how great they are, but have they ever really been to an unregulated TBS or Wilderness Program and seen what goes on there? I highly doubt it. There have been people who have written to both of them about the Troubled Teen Industry and they've failed to respond or acknowledge their letters. I look forward to the day when a responsible journalist takes on this industry and finally exposes all the fraud and abuse.
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I look forward to the day when a responsible journalist takes on this industry and finally exposes all the fraud and abuse.
And I look forward to sleeping with some of those responsible journalists... :em: :rofl: ::seg::
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42 deaths between 2000-2004. I don't see them listed.
Exactly the point - why aren't those listed?
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42 deaths between 2000-2004. I don't see them listed.
Exactly the point - why aren't those listed?
send them over, if they fit the parameters I will add them in.
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From the research I did today I couldn’t find any requirements saying EdCons cannot recommend schools which provide therapy. It seems to be within their theater of work. I suspect fornits people feel it isn’t right because they don’t want anyone to be recommended to a TBS or wilderness program. But it seems the EdCons are doing their job from what I can see unless someone has more information that I overlooked.
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You mean your parameters.
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You mean your parameters.
Well, my original parameters were TBS and wilderness. We added other parameters per your request and you or anyone are welcome to add names as they become available, just review the matrix and send the ones along that fit and I will add them.
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Please do not lump all people that post on Fornits together. There are a lot of us parents out here that have hired ED CONS and been robbed by them making false promises to us about the schools they recommended our children to. Contrary to what you believe "THE WHO", there are honest, loving parents out here that have found out the truth about the lies and deceit that both ED Cons have promised to us and therapeutic schools have promised us. It is all a big $$$ racket. We are telling the truth about what happened to us. ED CONS can recommend whatever school they want, but are they ethical people with families best interests at heart, I think not. I am speaking from my own experience. It is a $$ racket that takes advantage of familes in crisis.
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Happyday7 wrote:
Please do not lump all people that post on Fornits together
Ha,Ha,Ha,…I haven’t seen that posted before. Sorry, I am laughing because it is actually one of my pet peeves that all schools are lumped together and judged the same way, so I know how you feel, my bad. Sorry you had a bad experience with your EdCon, I do believe it is a money racket like any other business, but they do provide a service for their time and experience from what I can gather. Like any other business there are those that prey on people in need and do them wrong and they should be exposed.
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42 deaths between 2000-2004. I don't see them listed.
Exactly the point - why aren't those listed?
send them over, if they fit the parameters I will add them in.
What are the parameters? Please be specific.
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42 deaths between 2000-2004. I don't see them listed.
Exactly the point - why aren't those listed?
send them over, if they fit the parameters I will add them in.
What are the parameters? Please be specific.
As long as they involve sleeping with journalists, I'm ok with 'em. :rofl:
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What are the parameters? Please be specific.
I am personally tracking TBS and Wilderness safety. Others here have requested that the matrix be expanded to include other areas so I added them in. You will see it is by location and date. The specific parameters are as follows:
http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=258472#258472 (http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=258472#258472)
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What are the parameters? Please be specific.
I am personally tracking TBS and Wilderness safety. Others here have requested that the matrix be expanded to include other areas so I added them in. You will see it is by location and date. The specific parameters are as follows:
http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=258472#258472 (http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?p=258472#258472)
How about if you go to the ISAC web site ( http://isaccorp.org/ (http://isaccorp.org/) ) and include some of those statistics? While you're at it, make sure you update your "statistics" to include the deaths, injuries, and assualts from the past few years. Your statistics aren't looking quote so rosey now, are they?
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There is no "we". Who likes to give the impression that he's someone important and there's more than he and the multiple personalities in his head. He's not serious about this little 'project' of his. The deaths are listed on multiple websites. The research has already been done by myself and others. All he has to do is input it into his little charts.
He's an industry 'spinner'. He'd have the accurate data in his charts if he were really serious.
Where's the chart for heinous physical abuses, avoidable accidents, injuries requiring corrective surgery, sexual abuse by staff, hazing? Put kids in a hotbed of "bait and punish" and hazing increases exponentially. My son was never hazed until he encountered the "parent-choice" private prison industry. He never used flonase or claritin until he endured months on end of the white bread and american cheese diet for ridiculous violations of the "agreements". Uh huh, that's some 'therapy' right there.
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Are you suggesting that the statistics provided on a site with an obvious agenda are more reliable than those provided by the CDC and the National Center for Educational Statistics? Anyone who has taken a statistics or research course can tell you that this information can be manipulated to fit your cause if you are seeking to influence rather than measure or report information. Now, who has a greater motivation to manipulate data the CDC, NCES or or your beloved site listed above?
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Are you suggesting that the statistics provided on a site with an obvious agenda are more reliable than those provided by the CDC and the National Center for Educational Statistics? Anyone who has taken a statistics or research course can tell you that this information can be manipulated to fit your cause if you are seeking to influence rather than measure or report information. Now, who has a greater motivation to manipulate data the CDC, NCES or or your beloved site listed above?
Well, Asswipe, if you had read this thread correctly those are TheWho's statistics - not ours. This is HIS research and those are HIS statistics based on HIS data collection, which HE has compared to the CDC and NCES. But thank you for proving our point that HIS "statistics" are bogus and worthless.
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Oh, and if you're referring to the ISAC web site please take the time to look at the web site; There aren't statistics on there - their information regarding deaths and abuses is based on actual incidents that have been documented and are in the national media.
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From the research I did today I couldn’t find any requirements saying EdCons cannot recommend schools which provide therapy. It seems to be within their theater of work. I suspect fornits people feel it isn’t right because they don’t want anyone to be recommended to a TBS or wilderness program. But it seems the EdCons are doing their job from what I can see unless someone has more information that I overlooked.
Seriously?
You think the problem anyone has with Ed Cons is because they really just don't want ANYONE to be referred to ANY TBS or wilderness EVER?
Thats quite an agenda...
It couldn't POSSIBLY be that the posters here had a personal experience with an Ed Con and /or the specific program said Ed Con referred them (or their child) to that was less than satisfactory?
And, as to the spectrum of an Ed Con's "theater of work" ... you should probably check out the thread on ODD.
I know, irrefutably, that at least a few Ed Cons are "acknowledged" by certain schools, including HLA, for their referrals.
If these people, who are just "doing their job", accept under-the-table commissions from these programs, or "bonus fees" that confused families are strongly "encouraged" to give them BY the programs, then does that not constitute an ITSY BITSY conflict of interest?
Is that not a bit different than just "doing their jobs"?
Is that not a bit more akin to abusing the trust put in them by distraught families, lining their pockets with extra cash from "appreciative" programs, and even intentionally referring children to programs that aren't appropriate for them if those particular programs are more "appreciative" than the other, more apropos placements?
It happens.
I don't know how extensive your "research" on Ed Cons was, but to suggest that they are all wholesome persons practicing an entirely wholesome profession based on.... your day's research(??!)... and then propose the idea that "fornits people" are not against the Ed Cons THEMSELVES, but are against each and every non-traditional program into which these "professionals" refer their clients, is ignorant and more than a little presumptuous.
I hope you are not in the business of solving crimes, because your "suspicions" fall FAR short of the truth and are entirely devoid of insight.
(I apologize if I sound overly harsh... but your blanket statements had to be called on their inaccuracy. However, I will say in your defense that it is extremely unlikely that any Ed Con or program's website would include any of the corrupt and (at least potentially) illegal activities they might engage in. If you know the truth about these kickbacks and such, than its probably because you've personally dealt with one of these profiteering Ed Cons, you are affiliated with a program who "buys" them, or you are one yourself. Additionally, I feel the need to acknowledge that there MUST be some Educational Consultants who ARE honest and "doing their job" with integrity. The last thing I want to do is make my own blanket statements condemning all Ed Cons...)
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You think the problem anyone has with Ed Cons is because they really just don't want ANYONE to be referred to ANY TBS or wilderness EVER?
Thats quite an agenda...
You made some good points, ACM, Guess I broke one of my own rules(beliefs). I am not a big believer in absolutes and don’t like blanket statements either. Seems EdCons take a big hit from everyone here…it was mentioned that they shouldn’t be referring to TBS’s and I couldn’t find anything to back that up…that they should meet the children in person before referring them to a school etc. No one could point me towards where that is stated or defined and it didn’t become apparent during my few hours of research (not very in-depth, I agree), so I made a poorly supported conclusion.
EdCons are in the business to make money, like everyone else, and I can see that there could be a conflict with incentives that could tip the scales towards one school or another or to a placement that the child doesn’t even need. There may be more corrupt ones than good ones, I don’t know. I am not an EdCon nor have I ever used one.
I will take a back seat to this issue and read more from parents and students before giving my opinion on this subject again....sorry.
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When I decided to withdraw my 16 year old from HLA this year I hired an educational consultant-Nancy Burton in Georgia to meet with my 16 year old and help with homeward bound process and to get the transcripts out of HLA. She requested a lot of information and met with me and my child for 90 minutes before making any placement recommendations. She looked at all the progress reports from HLA and talked to her counselors before making a recommendation. The day I withdrew her, we sat together in Dahlonega and talked about coming home and placement in two other boarding schools. I asked her how she selected the schools: one she visited in Utah (Discovery Ranch) had an excellent reputation and another in Vermont (King George Academy) was recommended by the association of educational consultants. We decided to bring my daughter home and she wrote the home contract WITH my daughter to go to a local private school. I must say she did an excellent job and my daughter has been successful in the transition.
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Oh, and if you're referring to the ISAC web site please take the time to look at the web site; There aren't statistics on there - their information regarding deaths and abuses is based on actual incidents that have been documented and are in the national media.
Perhaps you could provide some statistics which show how many parents have sued a non therapeutic American boarding school for neglect or abuse in the last 20 yrs. Or give some numbers on how many kids have died or been grieviously injured at summer camp?
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You think the problem anyone has with Ed Cons is because they really just don't want ANYONE to be referred to ANY TBS or wilderness EVER?
Thats quite an agenda...
You made some good points, ACM, Guess I broke one of my own rules(beliefs). I am not a big believer in absolutes and don’t like blanket statements either. Seems EdCons take a big hit from everyone here…it was mentioned that they shouldn’t be referring to TBS’s and I couldn’t find anything to back that up…that they should meet the children in person before referring them to a school etc. No one could point me towards where that is stated or defined and it didn’t become apparent during my few hours of research (not very in-depth, I agree), so I made a poorly supported conclusion.
EdCons are in the business to make money, like everyone else, and I can see that there could be a conflict with incentives that could tip the scales towards one school or another or to a placement that the child doesn’t even need. There may be more corrupt ones than good ones, I don’t know. I am not an EdCon nor have I ever used one.
I will take a back seat to this issue and read more from parents and students before giving my opinion on this subject again....sorry.
I'm glad you didn't take my post personally. In fact, i should thank you for giving me that opening to share a few of my grievances with the whole Ed Con phenomenon. With any luck at all, someone will learn something from our banter.
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By comparison, Jean Hague was not even close to being considered a large referrer to HLA...
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None of them are anymore.
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I would certainly hope the Educational Consultants would stop referring children to HLA in the shape that it is in now. I would think that they would want to protect their reputation more than that.