Fornits

Fornits Home for Wayward Web Fora
An open discussion about the troubled parent industry

You know, I want to hate you but you make me laugh so much, I just can't. Your analogies... "If I put a band aid on my kid, do I need to be a licensed physician?" "Can I give my friend advice without being a licensed psychologist?"

I don't doubt that AARC's "licenses are in order" since AARC claims to be a nonprofit charity and outpatient treatment program. I'm sure that charities aren't subjected to the same regulations, laws and standards that something like a hospital would be. The issue that has been raised here is that there is a stark difference between what AARC claims to be and what it really is. The staff at AARC are unauthorized to perform psychosocial intervention, a restricted activity. Just because they didn't mention their job descriptions when they registered themselves as a charity, doesn't mean their licenses are in order.

In regard to the Union Institute... despite the fact that it is listed in "Bear's Guide To College Degrees By Mail & Internet," Vause's Ph.D. is completely useless in Canada and he has absolutely no right to refer to himself as a doctor.

At first glance, the fact that Vause has completed a "Project Demonstrating Excellence" (PDE) through the Union Institute sounds, well.. excellent! Very impressive.
To give you an idea of the high standard of education you can expect to receive through the Union Institute, here are a couple of PDEs that are published on the Internet:

"Beyond Compare: A Personal Reflection on Treatment Approaches with Emotionally Disturbed Adolescents" by Leslie Ann Heizer
http://www.processwork.org/Finalproject ... ompare.pdf

"I realize that a creative writing piece is not the usual format for a final project at the doctoral degree level, and I"m happy that it is possible through Union...
As we're running, Jake says, "When we get him, let's take him down." This is another containment euphemism which describes a maneuver where the adults gently take a child's arms and places him or her face down on the ground until he or she is calm enough to walk. "I'm not containment trained," I inform Jake. "This is my first day, and I was told I couldn't put my hands on a kid without training." "Oh, wonderful," he moans, "welcome to the battlefield. This is a slippery kid who will no way listen to us"... I can hear Eric screeching "child abuse" from the quiet room, and I'm greeted by three kids saying that I'm going to get it because i"m not containment trained. This is a funny dynamic I've noticed before....
I want so much to understand these kids. I should clarify why I'm calling them kids, because they're not, really. The youngest one is eleven. We can take them from age six, but don't usually get anyone younger than ten or eleven. I guess it takes that long for a person to be considered damaged enough for this place, which is really a last ditch effort... I then heard the beginning of Beethoven's fifth symphony in my head, you know, "Da da da dum; (lower now) da da dum..., with prepare to die; the end has come" for vocals..."


Connecting with the Dakini and Guru Archetype within the Self:  by Betty Martin-Finneran
http://docbetty.com/Dissertation/chapter1.htm

My PDE has two components:  a contextual essay and a chapbook of my poetry. What is central to my PDE are the transformative events described in Chapter II, “My Story” and the chapbook of poetry in Part II of this PDE (“Learner’s Chapbook of Poetry”) that was the result.  In addition, I conducted a research project that served as the background support for the contextual essay.  My chapbook, The Friend Ship: A Stormy Journey to the Self, reflects the process of my spiritual emergence.  Metaphorically, my process can be seen in terms of the three phases of the alchemical opus, as shall be described later in Chapter VI, “Contextual Essay:  Discussion” and Chapter VII, “Chapbook Analysis.” 

Dean's PDE, "The Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre: A Treatment Centre for Chemically Dependent Youth and Their Families" sounds quite similar to another PDE entitled, "The Organization and Implementation of Family Involvement in Adolescent Drug-Use Rehabilitation," by Dr. Virgil Miller Newton. I would love to compare the two papers and see how much copying and pasting went on there. Or maybe Dean just wrote a lovely creative writing piece, like Leslie...
"So then I said, "hey Virgil. Let's not get the kids to flap their arms and belt loop each other. Then the program will be good." And Virgil said no, so I said "Ok, then I will start my own treatment centre and I will call it AARC..."

Mr.Chase: "...The AARC facility has a business licence as
opposed to having a professionally accredited licence that would
recognize it as a legitimate treatment facility for children suffering
addictions or extended to those suffering behavioural problems.  Not
all children at the AARC facility are there because of addictions.
Now, because this organization receives $300,000 in yearly grants
from the government, I would think that there would be greater
concern about the types of treatment that were offered, the fact that
it is not a residential treatment centre, the fact that it is not subject
to external inspection because of the overnight monitoring of
children in externally locked, barred bedrooms, where their door
monitor is another junior in a vulnerable position.  It’s the fact that
the facility isn’t licensed..."

Even if parents did have the right to keep their children in a basement or an unlicensed treatment centre for years without court order, it's only fair that they get all of the facts, don't you think? Most parents are under the impression that everything at AARC, from the assessment criteria to the credentials of the staff, is valid and professional. If AARC was completely transparent, I guarantee you that only the most negligent and unconscionable parents would drop their kids off at this place. AARC's business is fixing bad kids. With their useless pieces of paper framed in their offices, they line up these kids in rows like an assembly line and take away their bad personalities, one by one. To AARC, whether a kid is depressed, angry, the victim of abuse, incest, or abusing drugs, the 12 Steps is a panacea that will cure them all. In the end, all of the graduates are the same - happy faces, completely lost inside. A.A. robots, terrified of not only the world, but of themselves. If they learn to adapt to their new personalities, they'll end up like you: loyal followers, devoted to keeping their 'family' intact at any cost. But if one day, they decide that they want out of the cult, it's not so easy to remember how to think, feel, or be normal. I understand that some of you like it in your little family, but not all of us wanted to join you. Vause and his staff had no right to detain us and no matter how many questions you dodge or complaints you dismiss, they are going to be held accountable.

[quote="I am hoping that some of you have had similar experiences and found community colleges, art schools, or even traditional colleges that embraced your non-traditional path. She will need a fairly nurturing and supportive environment as she needs a lot of positive reinforcement. I would be so thankful for any thoughts any of you might share. THANK YOU!!![/quote]

This seems to be the only question in your post. I don't know where you live, but this forum is viewed by people from all over the world - are you really going to ship your kid off to another "supportive environment" suggested by a stranger on a forum? If you seriously want to help your child, I would suggest letting her discover her own path in life, the school she wants to go to, etc... and supporting her on her decision. If you are genuine about wanting to help your daughter, I would also suggest spending quality time with her, rather than talking about her on a forum with people who have been through hell in programs that you seem to regard with a lighthearted attitude.