I don't know what you mean by "works". The program can be beneficial for a struggling teen and the teen's family. Spending that kind of money and sending your kid to a program is a last resort. There is no guarantee that at the end of 14 months (or in our case, 9) you will receive a Stepford-kid. There are some kids who flounder once they are back out in the real world. They return to drug use, get arrested or quit school. However, there is a good chance that your kid will figure out what went wrong at home and what needs to be corrected- both within him or her and with the family dynamics- for life to go a little better. The kid is going to school, not using drugs or drinking, not doing dangerous things with cars, not being physically or verbally abusive to family members and getting therapy. The police aren't on the doorstep.
The staff is dedicated and caring. (Again, with one exception in our case) The facility is nice. The food is good, although the girls got pretty fat while my son was there.
I'm sorry, DJ, but I really don't get what your problem is with this place.
Karen