Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > The Ridge Creek School / Hidden Lake Academy

Amazing Forum Board censors thread re: Hidden Lake Academy

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Anonymous:
Hey Stewart,
Glad your home.
Were you ever on restriction? For how long? What was it like? I mean what was your day like? Did you eat the same food as the others? Did you have work detail? What kind of work? Could you read, other than school books?
What was your experience with the counseling sessions? Were they helpful?
Were you ever restrained or did you witness any restraints?
Did you ever get to go off campus?
Were your phone calls and mail censored?
What was Wilderness like?
********************************

Well, Ill start out with yes I was on restrictions, for many reason. I knew about a lot of people in "relationships" I had also met a girl and we were hanging out a lot and they said that wasn't OK. A kid in my peer group ran away and they said I knew all about it. They also took my Friend out of bed at like 1 am and made him sleep in some weird room and yelled at him all night because he had heard rumors about kids planning to run away. I did eat the same food, But I wasn't allowed to talk to anyone the entire time I was on restrictions and for the 4 months I was at hidden lake I spent about 2 and a half on restrictions. I did have work detail, from clearing trails to cutting wood, to cleaning the mess hall. I do recall on several accounts half the kids on restrictions were not following the rules while the others we doing everything they were told to do. The group whom were screwing around were taken away and ended up sitting on the lodge while the kids who were working hard were forced to do PT In-cadence on the tennis courts at night in about 40 degree weather with about 4 inches of water in the courts and still raining until the staff was ready to do something else(remind you we were the kids not causing problems during the day and the ones who were sat nice and warm in the lodge studying)

Yes we could read, they had a lot of books and did let you brings books, but the school had to approve of them, lucky at the time I only had one book!

My personal experience with the counseling was both negative and positive... There were many times when they simply screamed at us if they didn't like what we were saying, And if I told them the god honest truth if someone who has been there longer said different then it was to bad for me and what that person said must be true!! Silly Isn't it? But I was put in the spot light a few times concerning my well being because of my history (my did Killed himself just over a year ago) and my peers we're so very supportive, I did really feel like they cared.

I have never been restrained myself. My friend whom was the girl I was "together" with was restrained when I was being detained by the school cuz they wanted me to give them information. She was coming to talk to me and they took her down on the cement road pretty hard... I was very upset when that happened.

I did go off campus 3 times. Once for my peer group forming day, Once on a co-ed off campus to a roller skating places...fun!! lol no, and Once with a group of guys to some movie no one wanted to see. that was okay most of the time. All my phone calls we're either conference calls where a counselor sits in and hangs up if they hear anything they don't like, and the others a staff sat next to you and listend to everything you said.  With the mail, you'd write (same with e-mail) it and they'd read it and if it was OK they'd send it, if not they give it back and say write something else. NO NO NO NO private communication. NO Individual therapy NO Family therapy. And No ability to form a healthy Male Female relationship.

It was funny because Dr B. The owner is so very strict on his drug possibly yet he disposes a large around of mostly empty alcohol bottles into the dumpsters that the kids take the trash... I can do more into detail about the some other time.

Wilderness at ridge Creek was a challenge. Now it is very interesting what happened. Mostly they made us work clean study different hiking and safety and army things Pt training. I did have some fun...but I was also in the group with the "cool staff" who didn't really care, the other groups we're all power tripping army guys who yelled at everyone. Now I was doing extremely well there, I was the "leader" and all that stuff, but the lady whom was the counselor for my team put me on suicide watch because I was doing really good and told me that I should me messing up extra...Thats when I just said Im done and stopped doing anything, I left a week early and was sent to a lock-down for 7 months.

If you like to know anything else, please ask Im more than willing to share. Im feel Ive been silenced and have no one to tell about what happened... To be hounest it is hard for me because of the lost friendship because I was kicked out. We as student really had to stick together to keep our heads up, I Know it sounds like some dumb joke, But it is a lonely and hard place. And sometimes you need a Friend but you can't always talk to that person their... Please feel free to reply or ask any other questions... That place has some problems... Im not sure, I really wish I could do something about it

http://pub57.ezboard.com/fwevebeenthere ... 21&stop=37

Deborah:
Then all the posts regarding HLA disappeared when the Parents forum was removed from the We've Been There board.
Here are the first pages of those threads, salvaged thanks to Google. Second pages, where much good information was shared were not accessible.
********************************

UPSBlah  Registered User  Posts: 1 (7/29/01 2:34 am) Reply  Re: Hidden Lake Academy
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I have graduated from Hidden Lake. I want to help.

Edited by: UPSBlah at: 7/30/01 1:21:38 am
 
FaceKhan  Registered User Posts: 4 (8/7/01 2:57 am) Reply  Re: Hidden Lake Academy
-----------------------------------------------
Hi, remember me from the A&E list. My friend came home from his wildnerness program a month early, supposedly because the last month is a summer school like program and he already had his diploma. He seems ok, I don't think he was hurt, but I sincerely doubt that it was as helpful as he is trying to convince people that it was.

I am not sure what I could do to help you, but I am a good researcher, and I would like to help, anything to get someone out of these Behavior Modification concentration camps. Muck raking, the task of turning manure into useful soil, ie digging up the dirt on these bastards and putting it out for the whole world to see. Good luck with your custody case, and getting your son out. The conference was very successful in many regards, and I think it has helped to build momentum to form a large organization that will be able to take these places down for good.
Slavish discipline makes a slavish temper... If severity carry'd to the highest pitch does prevail, and works a cure upon the present unruly distemper, it often brings in the room of it a worse and more dangerous disease, by breaking the mind; and then, in the place of a disorderly young fellow, you have a low spirited moap'd creature, who, however with his unnatural sobriety he may please silly people, who commend tame unactive children, because they make no noise, nor give them any trouble; yet at last, will probably prove as uncomfortable a thing to his friends, as he will be all his life an useless thing to himself and others... Beating them, and all other sorts of slavish and corporal punishments, are not the discipline fit to be used in the education of those we would have wise, good, and ingenuous men... John Locke, 1692
 
stegman000 Registered User Posts: 1 (9/13/01 4:27 am) Reply   HLA is horrid
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i attended HLA for about 19 out of the 22 months i was supposed to be there... with about 4 of those 19 months spent at various wilderness programs etc etc etc...they finally kicked me out...blah THANK GOD...about "how did he get the cigarette" oh there are many ways... many of the staff members smoke and some will give students cigarettes sometimes... dependant upon how "cool" they are with the student... other times thy leave their smokes in a backpack or unlocked car or something of the like and a student snaffles them as they pass... "dip" or that snuff or whatever you wanna call it is also available as well... in a higher abundancy as well.. Hidden lake did one and only one thing for me... show me that my life was messed up... and i donno if thats all they wanna do... but whatever... i mean since i have been home i havent "fallen into pattern" as they like to say and i live a nice life. although the money drain left my parents kinda strapped for cash. Im working to save my own tuition. ANYTHING and i do mean ANYTHING (short of handing over large sums of money) i can do to help jsut let me know and i am SO there for it...

i am so happy that a parent saw through the "face the school was wearing" (you gotta love those theraputic terms) and actually believed what was going on inside. keep me informed... any former students shoot me an email at stegman000@hotmail.com

BTW... cigarettes and "dip" arent the only things that go on there in terms of the "Drug Agreement" as they call it.. people had smoked pot and taken LSD (acid) on NUMEROUS occasions while i was there... and not always getting caught...
 
Bari Unregistered User (9/14/01 12:03 am)
Reply   There is no good In HLA
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Hidden Lake Academey was one of the most drawn out and horrid expericens of my self. Manipulation of students and thier parents are the main tactic of thier instatution. I attened that "school" for 22 months and was holding a tear back the whole time. I am not a angst filled youth that has nothing more insightful to say besides fuck the system but i will say that fuck thier system. Example... The double standard I understand that students where students there and they should have diffrent responsilbites and held at diffrent standards but the level of leanoncy granted to staff thier for them to get thier job done was some times offense. The blatent lies, and mental manipultaion was obsurd. When in a place like that completly disconnected from any outside world all you want is something rightous or something pure most of all true. So when your parents send you a letter voicing their anger with the school and you dont get it and hear about on your phonecall (moniterd phonecall) you brakedown. Every thing hurt worse. Their. All I learned was to hate. My healing began when I left. Please don't send your children there.
 
stegman000 Registered User Posts: 3 (9/17/01 7:33 am) Reply   Bari
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Bari, what group thing were you in ??  


been there too  Unregistered User (9/5/03 3:56 pm)
Reply  For God's sake don't do this to your child
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Dear parents and friends,
I am an expert with Kids and Teens I am going to explain what this industry is all about. I have studied it and worked in it. I have seen good and bad over 25 years. I have graduate level credentials. What I have seen is disturbing, but not without occasional joy.

BCA is a CEDU environment that has been adapted to serve kids who would otherwise be in the hospital. It is not 30K per month like hospitals, however, it is run by people with no experience or education.

Take the BCA Director, LaTeresa for example. She claimed to have worked at Health and Welfare. She did only as an aide and a driver. Because she was generally not allowed to "work" with clients due to a lack of even an associate degree, she was used for transport of children and secretarial duties as "aids" are employed. She won't tell you what she actually did.

Lori @ NWA has a high school diploma and worked for newspapers

Joanne @ RMA is a Business Major - and if the numbers at RMA have recently dropped into the 30s from as high as 190 several years ago as I have heard, then she is a business failure. Why? Because, like all the rest of them, she is afraid to stand up to management (if you want to call it that) or even her staff.

The only description I can come up with for Pam at Milestones is her own words - a hysterical "I could not care less..."

BCA, NWA, and RMA and Milestones in general use Directors with no clinical experience because neither management nor staff would tolerate clinical ethics. In a cult, you can't criticize or question the system, can you? The methods staff use in their workshops, prophets and Raps are not clinically acceptable because they are abusive in the hands of the untrained - the methods are old pop psychology - Life Spring, Gestalt and Catharsis. (See talkingcure.combologna archives - "what works with teens" for research results on such pop methods.

Yes, BCA has token therapists that can talk up a storm - especially Nicole (right out of college) she's quite a salesmen who will do most anything if it makes her look good.

Listen, ethical clinicians will not use weeks and even months of social isolation and shunning administered by high school level Bonners Ferry Idaho hicks like the staff and "Team Leaders." Let me assure you, the remaining clinicians at BCA and RMA are grounded in profit and self-glorification, not ethical standards, not real professionalism (which involves personal sacrifice for what is right) rather than the CEDU applause for conformity and, if not, then "BUY IN" or get out. Jenny, Mark and Jack were the good ones. But, if you were there, you already know that.

Don't be fooled, BCA is not clinical, (though they use tons of psychotropic drugs to keep kids compliant) nor is it safe, nor is it ethical, nor is it not a school, nor it is it a treatment center. IT IS A CENTER FOR THOUGHT REFORM - just like Amity and the WWASP group as exemplified by Tranquility Bay.

Let me get confrontational - This is important to me. If you are the kind of parents who would knowingly allow cult indoctrinated hicks to isolate, shun, humiliate, mentally torture and brainwash your kids at any facility, then you deserve the histrionic kid you will get back.

And, remember, the kid doesn't deserve to be the scapegoat so you can go on pretending that the real problem is not you and your family system. Look, don't burn your money. Go into family therapy, be a mentor. Spend less time working and more time with your kids. Get rid of your bad behavior so you can teach your child to do the same. These facilities tear kids and families down, so they can take credit for building them back up with testimony, music, dancing and release from the chains of emotional bondage right after the workshop or before the parents get there. That, my friends, is a con and a sham. Welcome to emotional growth. It is best to face that nothing is easy - especially mental health and self-development. It takes good parents who are there for a lifetime - not hick surrogates for 60K a year. Wake em up with Ascent, but don't waste your money on year or two year prison programs for kids who have done nothing - that is "fake" and sick.
BEEN THERE

Sally Unregistered User (9/18/03 8:34 am)
Reply  Hidden Lake Academy
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Been there too, Do you have information on Hidden Lake Academy?
 
been there tooo Unregistered User (9/19/03 5:40 pm) Reply  Hidden Lake
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Info is all over the web
I have heard nothing good. Actually, I would look in the State of Washington - They have protection and ethical standards for minors - The only state I know of. That is why you will find few if any schools there. You will find that most all these schools are in backward states - Idaho, yes even California - because they (the schools) can't be ethical. They, most all, use brainwashing in my experience - see links at

home.comcast.net/~megario....home.html

Ed consultants are a bad idea - don't go there

Deborah:
FaceKhan  Registered User  Posts: 1 (7/1/01 10:14 pm)Reply Anyone been to Alldredge
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A close friend of mine was kidnapped and sent to Alldredge Academy in West Virginia, a descendent of the SUWS program. I have found many disturbing things about this place, and it was almost shut down last week, but it settled with the state and agreed to hire licensed staff. Alldredge is a 3 month wildnerness program. There was a suicide there in february, where a boy (14-I am trying to find the name, I may have the parents name somewhere) tried to cut his arms open, and then the next day was given a rope and tools he used to hang himself with. I am looking for anyone who would be willing to speak to me or send me their written account so that I might have a better chance at convincing his parents to bring him home, as well as convincing the health dept in WV to keep the pressure on this place.

There is a conference on abusive programs this month in Bethesda Maryland outside of Washington DC. trebach.org/conference.html

"One can understand why Kessler said something 'Satanic' takes place in school. The situation is Orwellian in its reversal of the truth: Memorizing is Understanding; Confining the mind is Liberating the mind; Boredom is Fascination. Flowery words are used by educators without restraint. Words like 'insight', 'enlightenment', and 'flourishing of the mind' are used to describe a reality which contradicts them completely"-Bruce Goldberg "Why Schools Fail"
 
FaceKhan Registered User Posts: 7 (8/12/01 12:44 pm) Reply  Re: Anyone been to Alldredge
------------------------------------------------
My friend is home and appears to be mostly the same. Still not sure what really goes on there.

Yesterday I was contacted by someone who spent 3.5 months there and was considered a model student.

He has some quite a few negative things to say. Although this place is nowhere near as bad as CEDU or Teen Help or Straight, it is perpetrating a dangerous fraud where money comes first and safety and the future prospects for the students come last.

Also I found a lte which I had missed from the Gazzette where the Alldredge stories had been published. I can't access the letter in support of the school, because it is in an archive that charges and I can't figure out the url as I did to get this one.

Academy still open despite order-July 19th
Editor:
We are writing in response to a letter written by a parent in support of Alldredge Academy, which appeared on the editorial page on June 25.

It is apparent that this person writes in support of Alldredge without knowing the facts surrounding the circumstances of our son's death there.

It was only five months ago that our beautiful 14-year-old son died at this "therapeutic" wilderness school in Tucker County due to gross neglect under horrendous conditions.

"Therapeutic" is in quotes because the people responsible for our son at this school had no professional credentials to do therapy.

In fact, the owner, founder and "therapist" of Alldredge Academy is a lawyer.

Additionally, this school is not licensed by the state of West Virginia to provide mental health care.

Not only did the officials of Alldredge Academy sell us a bill of goods which was enhanced by an educational consultant, but they lied about the circumstances regarding our son's death.

Despite a closure order issued by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources and an ongoing criminal investigation, Alldredge Academy remains open, putting more children at risk.

Something must be done to tighten laws in this industry.
Paul and Diana Lewis
East Long Meadow, Mass.


Who wants to bet that the educational consultant, they are speaking of is none other than Lon Woodbury, of strugglingteens.com, he has quite a few positive remarks about Alldredge and advertises for them. The same guy who highly recomended Gage's 'equestrian program', stating "the sense of safety at Royal Haven is almost tangible" Perhaps he should tell that to the victims of 121 counts of sexual abuse for which Gage is now in prison, undoubtedly getting a taste of his own patent medicine.
Slavish discipline makes a slavish temper... If severity carry'd to the highest pitch does prevail, and works a cure upon the present unruly distemper, it often brings in the room of it a worse and more dangerous disease, by breaking the mind; and then, in the place of a disorderly young fellow, you have a low spirited moap'd creature, who, however with his unnatural sobriety he may please silly people, who commend tame unactive children, because they make no noise, nor give them any trouble; yet at last, will probably prove as uncomfortable a thing to his friends, as he will be all his life an useless thing to himself and others... Beating them, and all other sorts of slavish and corporal punishments, are not the discipline fit to be used in the education of those we would have wise, good, and ingenuous men... John Locke, 1692
 
pthompson54 Unregistered User (11/6/01 9:49 am)
Reply  I worked at Alldredge Academy
---------------------------------------------
I worked at Alldredge from the first day that it opened to August 2000. When Alldredge first opened its doors, it did have a good "mission" but some where along the way it changed. The attitudes of the owners changed, I'm not sure what they changed to, but they did change.
As a former employee, I have my share of stories, at the beginning the stories where good, but as the year progressed they turned bad.
I am a life long citizen of Tucker County. The other citizens of the county are concerned as well. We are trying to have the Academy shut down for the well being of the students that are still being sent to the academy.
Other former employees of the school are concerned as well. We would how-ever like to get into contact with any students that attended the academy, during the time that we worked there. We would like to see how they are doing and make sure that Alldredge did not make any permanent scares in their lives. So if any of you access this web page, please get into contact with me via e-mail Patricia Thompson former Registrar of the Alldredge Academy @ pthompson54@hotmail.com
Please reply, we can't do this without all of your support!
Thanks!
 
FaceKhan Registered User Posts: 12 (11/9/01 1:25 pm) Reply Re: I worked at Alldredge Academy
-------------------------------------------------
Programs like Alldredge are far too interested in continuosly proving their ideology than in helping the people there. These programs tend to be more about selling the parents piece of mind, while warehousing and often abusing the kids. It is no surpise to hear that the program would be better if it were not for the leadership, the leaders have been involved in unlicensed, inneffective, and dangerous programs for years. The admissions director worked for CEDU among others, which if you read some of the other topics on the board you will see it was closer to a mind-raping cult than a school.
Slavish discipline makes a slavish temper... If severity carry'd to the highest pitch does prevail, and works a cure upon the present unruly distemper, it often brings in the room of it a worse and more dangerous disease, by breaking the mind; and then, in the place of a disorderly young fellow, you have a low spirited moap'd creature, who, however with his unnatural sobriety he may please silly people, who commend tame unactive children, because they make no noise, nor give them any trouble; yet at last, will probably prove as uncomfortable a thing to his friends, as he will be all his life an useless thing to himself and others... Beating them, and all other sorts of slavish and corporal punishments, are not the discipline fit to be used in the education of those we would have wise, good, and ingenuous men... John Locke, 1692
 
Triplefire7 Registered User Posts: 1 (12/14/01 3:47 pm)Reply  Re: Anyone been to Alldredge
-----------------------------------------------
 (This message was left blank)

Edited by: Triplefire7 at: 12/18/01 1:49:20 pm
 
Antigenic  Registered User Posts: 3(12/16/01 3:03 pm)Reply Re: Anyone been to Alldredge
----------------------------------------------
Boy, for someone who was just sending a child away and not actually experiencing what you sent her away to, you sure seem to know a lot about what Alldredge teaches!

You sent your 14 year old daughter off to the wilderness in the middle of a blizard with a bunch of older guys who you'd never met and who you know had a troubled past? And you trust that these aleged professionals would take good care of her because they'd just killed one kid, so you thought they'd be on their best behavior now? All I can say is that you must be insane.

"Meredith dared to take that step"???? Meredith had no choice.

"I was on my way to a hospital for troubled teens to begin my internship for my graduate work in Art Therapy," Oh, how special! I wonder why you wouldn't do that sort of thing for your own kid?

"Our heart aches for the family who lost a child." My heart aches for all of the lost children, all of their families and, more so, for all of the children who've lost their families to these TOUGHLOVE hate groups.

"I cannot imagine, that the same people who gave me back a child, mended and replenished, could have predicted such a tragic event and not reacted immediately." It doesn't take much imagination. This sort of thing has happened before, and it'll happen again, and everyone involved will blame it all on some primal flaw in the child and pretend it's the first time ever, just like they're doing now.

You think Meredit is sincerely greatful? Or do you suppose she's just a little frightened that you'll either lock her out in the snow or have her kidnapped by the same thugs again if she dares deviate from the script?

I wouldn't be so sure of your conviction that you'll never regret your decision. I know lots of Program parents who've had to eat those very same, biter words.
-If there's a worse idea going than locking kids up for victimless crimes, it's probably locking them in close proximity to some tyrannical altruist bent on helping them even if it kills them. Anonymity Anonymous
 
tswopeinnernetnet  Unregistered User (12/16/01 5:41 pm)Reply  Alldredge
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My son attended Alldredge July and August of 2001. He was on a fast track to nowhere. Unless you count jail. It was the best thing that happened to him. And no, he didn't like it at first. However, I'm sure jail would not have improved his behaviour, either. One of his issues was chronic depression, in addition to 2 mild learning disabilities. He had simply given up. Alldredge gave him back his self-esteem. If you look at these wilderness camps, etc., you will find that all of those teens have depression. Along with depression, goes suicidal impulses. When you take your kid to a camp like that, you have to be totally upfront and honest with the folks running it. Information is vital !!! You could be making the wrong decision in the type of environment your child needs, and that decision is ultimately yours based on whatever information you are dealing with. What do you think the statistics are with teens committing suicide while under the care of a Psychologist? You'd be surprised. I found the counselors to be totally in tune with the kids. I observed the interactions between the counselors and the kids, and there was genuine respect and caring on both sides. Alldredge is also very upfront in telling the parents they are "intervention". Almost all of these kids require more time in a therapeutic boarding school. After all, the behaviours exhibited by this kids didn't happen overnight, and will take more than 6 - 8 weeks to produce the necessary results. However, Alldredge is a good "wake up" call for them. My son did not want to leave Alldredge. He wanted to continue the extended stay program, however, I went on the advice of an educational consultant - Georgia Irvin & Assoc. (whose client list includes placing folks like Chelsea Clinton) and he is at Hidden Lake Academy. I signed up for the parent committe for Alldredge because I am impressed by what it does for kids. I don't need somebody with a mouthful of PHd's and titles to turn a kid around, however you DO have licensed professionals at Alldredge. I want someone who understands kids and can turn them around. A bunch of Phds, or whatever means jackshit to me. I just want results. So let's get with the program and investigate the rumours flying around. Sometimes you'll find find someone who was in the program who got "let go" or sometimes you'll find a kid that no one on earth can help. Whatever the reasons, Alldredge is a fine establishment committed to turning kids around. PA mom
 
FaceKhan Registered User Posts: 13
(12/17/01 11:25 pm) Reply Re: Alldredge
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Fact: The Alldredge Facility, Staff and even the nurse there were unlicensed as of June 2001. The only reason they are going through the process of licensing now is because it was a stipulation in their deal with the state to remain open.

Their fraudulent registration as simply a private school was designed primarily to keep them off the state's radar screen.

I have spoken to 2 former highly regarded alldredge 'students' (each was well liked by staff and had specific accolades and school records attributed to them) and have heard from some former staff as well and among other things they have confirmed that there is ongoing fraud, deception, and manipulation of students in the form of placing dangerously disturbed students with students with few or no problems, billing themselves as a school and producing false educational transcripts to cover the lack of any real academic program, particularly in regards to their claim that students can make up years of high school credits in just 1-3 months at the school portion of the program. That there were and continue to be untrained staff. That the staff were aware of and apparently permitted sexual activities among the small number of seriously disturbed students in some groups. That the so-called therapy is little more than new-age hogwash designed to manipulate the students into thinking they recieved therapy. And lastly that the former students and staff feel that what is happening there both then and now is wrong.
It is interesting that you mention July and August of 2001, I wonder if your son knew my best friend while he was there. He was kidnapped and sent there in June 2001 and stayed until the end of July. This is what prompted by research into Alldredge in the first place.

I would just like to mention that Hidden Lake Academy is a concentration camp and your son is undoubtedly suffering there. I am sorry but smart, caring people can be duped too. You obviously have forgotten that the result you are supposed to be looking for is the future well-being of your son and conditioning him into a cult is not the way to do it.
FaceKhan

Registered User Posts: 14 (12/17/01 11:30 pm)
Reply Re: Alldredge
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pub57.ezboard.com/fwevebe...ID=2.topic

Paste that link into your browser if you have to it is the topic related to Hidden Lake Academy on this board. You might find it interesting.

Antigen:
http://betheltruth.org/forum/read.php?f=2&i=14&t=14
Our youth can not understand why society chooses to criminalize a behavior with so little visible ill effect or adverse social impact... These young people have jumped the fence and found no cliff.

Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse
--- End quote ---

Anonymous:
I worked at HLA as an Assistant Counselor/Restrictions Coordinator from Jan2003-Oct2003.

The kids were the only thing keeping me there. I was fired because I wanted to make changes to help the students and that was not appreciated.

The therapeutic and recreation programs are great, and the teachers are great but are being wasted, as the school is not very focused on education.(Therapy comes at the expense of education unfortunately.)

HLA's program may not be for you(or your child), but there are GREAT counselors who dedicate more than time to helping the students. In my opinion, it's the Recreation Dept. that hold things together. And yes, physical training is an important part of Restrictions--you/your child will be required to do push-ups and lots of them! They will be required to complete work assignments and get dirty every now and then--but I remember restrictions as being a good experience for some of the students I supervised.


I sincerely hope that all former students I had the opportunity to work with are doing well and leading good lives!

former AC/Restrictions staff

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