Info on Moonridge Academy or Kolob Canyon RTC?

[Anonymous]

I congradulate you on taking what a good RTC had to offer you and make the best of it. It takes hard work for you and your parents to accomplish what the both of you now have and it will continue to take hard work. What I have learned in life is that you get what you put in to it. If you work hard at your job, school, or anything else you usually get good results.
     People need to take inventory of their lives and don't expect everything to come on a silver platter. RTC's are here for those who need the help, they're are no garantees that an RTC will work but in a lot of cases they do and were here when all else has failed.
           As I've said before, ask for referals, do your home WORK! befere placing your child and spending your hard earned money on an RTC. Like everything else in life, there is good and bad in every proffession.
          I am partial to RTC's because of my association with them but in my oppinion GOD in my life is what did it for me and many others I know.

[Nihilanthic]

I'm sure a RTC could be good, but only if a setting such as one is helpful at all. That is - isolated from home, and more likely than not from the world itself, usually without your choice in the matter.

In those SPECIFIC SETTINGS, sure, they can work, but when they bring in LGATs, extended confinement, and the fact that the years you are in one is the years you grow up, people can get overly attached and influenced by them.

Thats not a good thing!

Getting the most of any situation is a good thing, but a RTC is not always the best, or necesary setting to be in. I'd say there must be much stricter regulation and oversight of them, and especially on evaluating the efficacy and NECESSITY of RTC placement. I'd wager the vast majority of children in them dont need it and would do better at home growing up normally.

I have never seen the slightest scientific proof of the religious theories of heaven and hell, of future life for individuals, or of a personal God.
--Thomas Edison, American inventor

[Anonymous]

I agree with you, not all kids need to be placed in an RTC. I'll also say that most kids can be taught better behavior right at home but the home life needs to change. When both parents need to work to support their family it makes it hard. It is my opinion that when a child has been making bad choices over a long period of time they have a hard time turning their life around on their own.
       I personally have witnessed many positive changes in kids lives due to an RTC. The lenght of stay at an RTC depends on three things, the program, the childs willingness to work the program, the parents commitment to their child and the program and their willingness to change also.

[Anonymous]

I am sorry, but the majority of staff at RTC are minimum wage workers without college degrees who are just hired to keep an eye on the kids. There is a huge turnover in staff for these institutions, as their jobs are stressful.  "Love" is often in short supply.  Executive Directors of programs do not need to have any background in mental health - just enough investment $$ to make money.  Check out the "professional" staff also for any program - the state licensing board for any state have the info on them.  However, nothing prevents RTCs from listing professional staff on their website who are no longer (or never were) affiliated with them, or have minimal contact.

Caveat emptor (buyer beware).

[Anonymous]

Like I said before, do your homework before you place a kid in an RTC. I know for a fact that there are a lot of schools that are in this business because they want to help. In the school I'm associated with most of our staff are college students studying in this field.
      Not all people are in this business for the money. Not every kid in an RTC will graduate but if you can touch one life you have done a wonderful thing.

[Anonymous]

Most of the programs exist to make money. Few are non-profit.   Websites can lie as can recruiters for these schools.  Any place where students can be held for several months without any contact with the outside, makes me suspicious. As a parent, one must ask if this makes any sense for the child and for the family. As a parent, one must always listen to your gut feelings.

Follow the lead of the previous post - ask, ask, ask, and research schools carefully.  Also, talk to other parents whose kids have gone through the programs. Any reputable school will give you several people to contact.  Even if they all liked the school overall, most will be honest enough to also tell you what they liked least.  This was the best source of honest information we got for specific programs.  Find a good Educational Consultant the same way, ask many questions, and check out references of people who have used the Ed Con in the past.

[Anonymous]

Yes- family and friends are viewed as the enemies!  threats!  this program is not wholistic and skill building- it if for profit and one-size fits all or fail.  graduation rates are in the single digits and profits are in 5-digits- seriously question references about the girls that the program does not work for before sending your beloved to the wolves of moonridge.

[Anonymous]

:nworthy: I hired a highly respected agency, that makes no profit from the schools it recommends for these young girls. I did my research before I sent my daughter to Moonridge. I visited the school in person and read all the rules, levels and expectations of my daughter and of myself, should my daughter attend Moonridge. I spent well over $10,000.00 just doing the necessary research, before sending my daughter to this incredible school. Moonridge has rules and structure. It has been a great experience for us. Parents can't always fix or change the things that happen in our childrens lives and if the parents are in that position and need help, I applaud them for seeking it out. Our children need us to be their advocates. We need to stand tall and admit we are not perfect and we need others help sometimes. This is not being a bad or uncaring parent. I am totally involved with my daughter and her care. In the early stages when I couldn't write to my daughter we always had therapy sessions over the phone and I always had consisitent contact with the staff. I always knew what my daughter was doing and how she was doing. They have these rules for a reason. Most of the girls are not ready to have a healthy relationship with their parents and they need time to settle in to the new rules and structure before complicating things by dealing with parents who may or may not be able to support the child with their emotional needs. Many parents are going thru divorce or their spouses have died, some even are stuck in court battles that are confusing and scary for children to have to deal with. Everyone has their own reason for raising their children the way they see fit. No one should be judged because they have asked for help. It's the families that ignore the pain and suffering, that cause the most damage to their children and to society as a whole. I recommend that you research the RTC's and hire an expert in the field before sending youre child anywhere. But in the right situation and with the right people assiting the family, children can be healed and loved even away from their own homes. Unfortunatley, it is sometimes necessary for them to be away from the enviornment that has caused them so much pain in the first place. Some things are caused by individuals that should go to jail, in other cases it is caused by sad things that happen to children during their young lives, that no parent could have forseen or prevented. So, please don't judge. Do your homework and figure it out for your selves and your own families situation. Good Luck and God Bless. Thank You Moonridge, as well as their dedicated staff for being there. You are all the best!

[OverLordd]

Its people like the anon aboove me (2005-06-21 21:14:00 post incase I dont get this out before some one else posts) that think some times we should rid our selfs of the anon postings. Now sir, im sorry I have to do this, but you have to learn your lesson.

Moonridge has rules and structure. It has been a great experience for us. Parents can't always fix or change the things that happen in our childrens lives and if the parents are in that position and need help, I applaud them for seeking it out.

The home should have rules and structure, your home should never get out of your own control, are you working to much to accually be a parent to your child? Are you working to much to teach you child how to act? Parents are the people that make or break the family, and issues that you cause need to be delt with at home, you don't need to split up your family in the name of rules and order.

Our children need us to be their advocates. We need to stand tall and admit we are not perfect and we need others help sometimes.

Indeed children do need their parents to be advocates, yet you have failed in this regaurd, you do not advocate for your child sending him /her away to a school, you do not advocate for your child in giving some one else full time custody. You advocate for your child in defending them, guiding them, helping them when they fall, all the help you need should be your spouse. Come on, its two adults raising one child, its not that hard.

This is not being a bad or uncaring parent. I am totally involved with my daughter and her care.

this is where your wrong, it is being a bad parent, you sent you child away, figure that out, you gave her/him into the hands of people with questionable morals, and motives. You completely failed you child as you guided her to the place where you felt this was nessasary. A phone call, or a weekend at a hotel, or a letter is not parenting, its visits, you gave up your abilty to be called a parent a long time ago.

No one should be judged because they have asked for help. It's the families that ignore the pain and suffering, that cause the most damage to their children and to society as a whole.

No, you are wrong, you need to be judged for your failure to your child, you need to be judged for your failure to the next generation, you need to be in said camp getting emotionally abused, not your daughter. Its the families that give love and support, whole families that love one another and help guid one another with a gentle hand, that is what you have kept from your daughter, that is why you have failed to give.

children can be healed and loved even away from their own homes.

No they can't all it causes once the brain washing breaks, is hate, pain, misery, and social issues.

 So, please don't judge.

Some one must judge, you will be found wanting or not, but some one has to do it, other wise there is no justice.

[Anonymous]

"Healed and loved" away from their own homes?

Loved by whom?

Certainly not by the staff.  You cannot love someone you don't know, and you cannot love hundreds of kids wholesale.  You can *say* you can, but when you say that you're lying.  You might want to help, you might like children, you might be concerned---but all that is not love.  So if the staff says they "love" the kids, they're either lying, or they don't know what the hell love is.  Either way that's scary as hell.

By the parents?  Yeah, you love someone so much you cut them off from all contact with you for weeks or months, putting them in a situation where they cannot even pick up a phone and call you.  That's not love.  That's withdrawal of "love" as punishment.

You can lie to yourself all you want--and you're obviously very good at that.  You can get other parents to lie to themselves with you and "support" you in lying to yourself.

Yes, I sure as hell do judge you.  You're lying to yourself, you emotionally neglected your child, and when you sent her somewhere that cut off contact with you, you subjected her to emotional abuse and who knows what all else kind of damage.  *You* sure don't.  Because she couldn't call you and tell you if there was something very wrong, and no matter how you lie to yourself, you can't tell what they do to your kid away from any security cameras.  Even if she could have called and told you, you probably wouldn't have believed her.

Lady, you deserve to be judged as much as the mom of the kid that comes to school with welts on his back deserves to be judged.

And after your daughter has been out five years or so and the brainwashing has worn off, *she* will judge you.

Don't kid yourself that you can avoid your grown child's opinion of what kind of parent you've been.

Timoclea

[OverLordd]

Hey anon boy you gunna respond or what?

[Anonymous]

apparently this idiot does'nt know what their talking about. I'm sorry for even responding to someone like you. What are you doing to help the many kids that are in trouble? Wait, I know, you spend your time on chat lines judging things you obviously know nothing about. Who are you to judge, you don't know these people or their situations. Go do something productive with your life instead of bashing people. Maybe you should pay a visit to Moonridge Academy and see what really goes on before passing judgement. Look forward to hearing from you.

[Anonymous]

Wow are you wrong.
As a graduate of Kolob I am apalled by what you had to say. First off it took my parents loving me to send me away and keep me there. And for you to say that its bad parenting is just....i cant think of a good word but my parents are great parents who love and care for me. If they didnt love me they wouldnt have sent me away. They would have let me keep going in my self destructive ways. and yes my parents did have rules at home but we didnt obey them. they had to work to support us as it is a very expensive world to live in especially living in the nyc metro area both of my parents had to work in order to give us what they didnt have. it is not bad parenting to seek outside help. i dont know if u have kids overlordd but trust me i know me and my sister were hell to raise. between the drugs and the drinking and the sneaking out and running away my parents had no choice. they couldnt watch us 24 hours a day. even though my mother worked at night to be home during the day she couldnt always watch us and then if she was we would lie cheat and steal to get what we wanted. to the person who sent their child to moonridge i agree with you. sometimes you do need outside help. and also i know from experience it is good to get away from the things that started the prolems in the first place. I know i couldnt have recovered if i had still been in my school or environment. i went to school with heavy drug users whose parents all had money to give them and didnt care what they did. so every day when i went in the bathroom i could find at least 3 people snorting coke and who would offer me some. but overlordd i guess i could have just stayed there right? it was my parents fault? well u need to check your facts first because my parents sent me to an rtc because they loved me and because they were good parents andfor you to say anything different is just wrong on your part.

[Anonymous]

If you are comfortable with sending your 11-14 year old daughter to a place where they may not allow her to have any contact with her parents for 2 months, then I recommend Moonridge.  I just read a book about religious cults and how they indoctrinate their followers...not too dissimilar.

Still, a parent might prefer a cult or one of these RTC to a child killing herself.  They just need to know what to expect.

[Anonymous]

On 2005-07-30 23:11:00, Anonymous wrote:

"If you are comfortable with sending your 11-14 year old daughter to a place where they may not allow her to have any contact with her parents for 2 months, then I recommend Moonridge.  I just read a book about religious cults and how they indoctrinate their followers...not too dissimilar.



Still, a parent might prefer a cult or one of these RTC to a child killing herself.  They just need to know what to expect.

 "

These treatment cults (Moonridge, WWASPS, CEDU, Straight, etc.) may often lead a kid to suicide. Kids who have been through these places often experience some very difficult psychological disorders (such as PTSD, dissociative disorder, anxiety disorders, depression) as a result of their time in the treatment cult.

Why put your child in this kind of risk? Keep her at home, do your job as a parent, and find a new way to help your child. Instead of paying some facility/cult to raise your child for you, be a parent, find a way out of the mess, and be there for your kid.