Hmmm. I would argue to the contrary. I would say most students I have seen over the years either love Hyde, or appreciate what its teaching them.
Anyway, aside from anecdotal evidence and your personal vendetta, do you have any numbers to back this up? And what is your standard.
I know countless stories of people who "failed" while they were at Hyde, only to really "get it" sometime later.
Parents, read these boards and educate yourselves. Educating yourself about such an important decision is critical. But also know that angry people come out in droves under the cloak of anonymity on the web, whereas the contented and happy just don't care about these sort of boards.
By all means, you should go to the school and talk with the students. Ask about 2-4. Ask about the horrific abuses.
What you will find in most cases is that there is always another side to the story, that they Hyde philosophy is (by and large) compelling and tremendously successful.
At least it was for me (in which case, maybe I am the one who misperceives)."
Please excuse my assumptions, but I can only believe you did NOT go to Hyde if you imply that the failure rate at Hyde is low or that many kids will "get it" later in life, or that most "love" Hyde. I was there and I know this is not true! It is almost a joke how many kids started with me but did not graduate, and of the ones who did graduate a high percentage went back to their old ways within a short time of leaving Hyde. This is why so many experts question the success of these programs.
The only analogy I can think of are criminals who go to jail. In this very structured environment these criminals remain on good behavior. They don't have a choice while being incarcerated, but once let out a high percentage are repeat offenders. It cannot be proven that jail is a deterrent just like it cannot be proven that putting teens in a specialized boarding school like Hyde will make any difference whatsoever other than while they are in the school.
Many of the kids who I knew that graduated were accepted to colleges as Hyde prides itself on, but they never stepped foot on any of those campuses. After these "successful" students graduated, they slowly slipped back into the destructive ways that got them to Hyde! I might be considered one of those "successes" of Hyde, but the reality is, Hyde did not change me and I did not change myself while at Hyde. The changes in me happened partly because of what I was exposed to at Hyde and partly because I got older and grew up on my own. My parents apologized for sending me to Hyde. They realize this mistake, and although we spent some good times together at family weekends and FLC's, the hypocrasy that existed at Hyde was actually a learning experience for my entire family.
I see people on this board talking about 2-4. Yes, I saw people being punished for having sex, (sometimes an older student with a minor), saw drugs being brought into the school, saw violence, and more. I even witnessed staff doing illegal acts. This should tell you what kind of school Hyde is if they accept such troubled kids who EVEN under careful watch are breaking these kinds of rules. This is NOT a "mainstream school" for character building! Most of the kids at Hyde, (there are a SMALL number who do not fit into this description)have severe problems and the parents have been failures up to this point.
Of all the people in my graduating class, (very small compared to what we started out with) I would say there are only a handful who were true sucessess, and of those I would say that most would have matured and grown on their own eventually without spending $32,000 per year.
Hyde is a good place, (compared to some of the other specialty boarding schools) for parents who are at the end of their rope but if you are expecting for your child to transform themselves and truly become a person of character, you aren't going to get this. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree and the good character develops at home not Hyde, and certainly not all the negative influences at Hyde. Instead it would be healthier and less costly to invest this same money in local counseling for both you and your teen. These kids need to be in a safe environment getting the love they so desperately need from their parents.
