Elevations RTC
Location
Syracuse
,
Davis County
,
Utah
84075
Information
Former nameIsland View Residential Treatment Center
School typeFor-Profit

Insurance Accepted

No Financial Aid Accepted, Residential Treatment Center, Secured/Locked Facility
Religious affiliation(s)Non-Denominational
Founded1994; rebranded in 2014
FoundersW. Dean Belnap, Lorin A. Broadbent, Jared U. Balmer, Steven Dale Lancaster, and W. Kimball DeLaMare
StatusOpen
OversightUtah Department of Health and Human Services
NCES School IDA0109535[1]
DeanRyan Mortensen[2]
Teaching staff8.8 (on an FTE basis)[1]
Age range13 to 18
International studentsStudent and Exchange Visitor Program approved to accept foreign students
Student to teacher ratio6.0 [1]
Classes offeredSocial Studies, Mathematics, English, Science, Music and Art[3]
Campus typeSecured/Locked
AccreditationsJoint Commission (JCAHO) Cognia/AdvancED (Academic)
Tuition$192,000 annually[4]
Feeder schoolsblueFire Wilderness, Wingate Wilderness, Viewpoint Center, and other Family Help & Wellness Programs
Feeder toThe Approach Transition House and other Family Help & Wellness Programs
AffiliationNational Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP)[5]
AlumniMisha Osherovich;[6]
Provider CompanyFamily Help & Wellness (d/b/a Wilderness Training & Consulting, LLC and f/k/a Aspen Education Group)
Resident PserofileADD/ADHD, Adoption/Attachment Issues, Anxiety, ASD, Bipolar, Depression, Divorce Issues, Grief, Learning Disability, Low Self-Esteem, OCD, Substance Abuse, Trauma
Websitehttps://www.elevationsrtc.com/

Elevations RTC is a residential treatment center in Syracuse, Utah, for teens ages 13–18.[7] The facility was formerly known as Island View Residential Treatment Center until 2014, when it was acquired by Syracuse RTC, LLC, which does business as Elevations RTC.[8] The Elevations campus is shared with Seven Stars and ViewPoint Center.[9]

History

Syracuse campus

The Syracuse campus opened in 1994 as the Island View Residential Treatment Center.[10] Its founders were W. Dean Belnap, MD, Lorin Broadbent, DSW, Jared Balmer, PhD, and W. Kimball DeLaMare, LCSW.[11] They had been associated previously with other similar treatment programs.[12]

In 2004, Aspen Education Group acquired Island View.[13] CRC Health Group, a company owned by Bain Capital,[14] purchased Aspen Education for $300 million in 2006.[15] Aspen and CRC Health Group owned and operated the Syracuse campus until 2014.

Rebranding and acquisition

In April 2014, Syracuse RTC, LLC acquired Island View and changed the name to Elevations RTC and absorbed most of its employees.[16]

Elevations describes itself as a "residential treatment center that works with students of all genders".[17] The facility today caters to a large population of transgender and gender non-conforming teens, partially caused by the lack of other treatment centers that accept transgender students in their programs.[18] Island View and Elevations have been accused of acting as de facto conversion therapy centers. [19]

Elevations belongs to the National Association for Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP), a membership program and trade organization.[20]

Elevations also has a co-ed transitional living program called The Approach for students ages 15 to 19 who have completed the therapeutic program at Elevations.[21][22]

Partnership with Family Help and Wellness

Elevations is partnered with Family Help & Wellness.[23] It provides management, financial, and marketing support to Elevations’ ownership team.[23]

Family Help & Wellness is owned by private equity investors[24] Trinity Hunt Partners who first invested in 2014.[25]

Family Help grew by taking over defunct facilities from other troubled teen companies.[26] The company's founder Dupell [23] was the executive vice president and CFO of Aspen Education from 1999 until 2004.[16] Dupell also served as the CEO of Family Help until 2017.[27]

Programming

The program at Elevations includes individual, family, and group therapy, an educational program, and recreation activities.[7] The Elevations School is accredited by Cognia.[28] Most classes at Elevations meet college entrance requirements.[29]

Elevations utilizes a level system consisting of five tiers.[29][30] Students in higher levels have additional privileges.[29][30]

The base level is the Orientation Phase and the status is referred to as "Community Break", which is designed for students who have violated rules and are significantly disrupting the community.[30] While on Community Break, students may not communicate with peers and at night may be required to sleep in the hallway. Students may be on Community Break for considerable lengths of time, often with other restrictions or sanctions.[30]

The facility utilizes a de-escalation or time-out room for kids who are overstimulated and need to regulate away from the community.[16] Teens can be restrained by staff.[31]

Front of a building at Elevations

Phone use at Elevations is restricted.[29][30] Students are permitted to write letters to family.[29][30]

Tuition at Elevations costs approximately $16,000 per month.[4] According to Elevations, the average stay is eight to ten months, although students often stay there much longer.[29] Insurance companies have denied coverage on the grounds that long-term care at Elevations is not medically necessary.[32][33][34]

Elevations provides parents a list of common appeals new students say to return home.[35][36][29] Common statements include "I feel unsafe, they treat us like we are in prison, the faculty are trying to brainwash us, and they lied to you about what this place is, it is nothing like they said."[36][29] Parents are told these statements are either exaggerations or lies[35][37] and to avoid such "parenting traps".[36][29][38][39]

The therapeutic methods used at Elevations RTC were also used at Island View RTC. When asked by the Huffington Post about numerous allegations of abuse, a representative from parent company Family Health and Wellness addressed the claim in a statement, "Our treatment team employs a variety of therapeutic methods to help these teens, all of which are in compliance with state regulations and in line with our accreditation".[16]

Controversy

Allegations of abuse and mistreatment

Former residents at Island View have alleged experiencing some form of physical, sexual, or psychological abuse at the Syracuse facility.[16][31] They describe staff tormenting and abusing them, and leaving the program with more trauma than they came in with.[16] Former residents have also reported that sedatives were given at Island View to quell disobedience.[40][31][41]

The Utah Department of Human Services Office of Licensing investigated a 2020 incident in which a student’s head was hit by a staffer’s head and again by the ground while the staff restrained the teen.[31] Following the incident, Elevations terminated the staff member, the student returned home, and an employee reported an abuse allegation to Child Protective Services.[31][41]

In 2014, the Utah Department of Human Services detailed students' claims that staff at Elevations were mistreating them, including using restraint on them too often when unwarranted and belittling them.[16]

Around the time the facility was renamed Elevations RTC, Island View was involved with several lawsuits, including a highly publicized one with Dr. Phil,[42][43][44][45] which were subsequently dismissed.[46][47][48][49][50][51] The lawsuit which included Dr. Phil alleged that a teenage girl's arm was broken and its main nerve severely damaged during an incident with staff at Island View after Dr. Phil had offered to pay for the girl's treatment there following a 2013 appearance on his TV show.[52][53]

Several former residents of the center claimed in 2012 that they had received inadequate medical care during their time there, and that they had been subjected to solitary confinement and other harsh physical and psychological treatment.[54]

In 2007, the disappearance of a then 15-year-old resident, Emily Graeber, made headlines after she escaped from the facility. Emily stayed on a Southwest airlines flight that was headed to Utah. Instead of deplaning in Utah, the teen remained onboard during its connecting flight to San Francisco, where she hid for 18 days in the suburb of San Leandro.[55][56] She was punished for running away by being put in isolation for 58 days, which included not being allowed to speak or even make eye contact with the other residents, as well as being forced to urinate on herself.[16] Her dramatic disappearance and continued outspoken activism has played a major role in exposing alleged abuses at Island View, Elevations, and the troubled teen industry as a whole.[57][58][59][60]

In 2004, a 16-year-old boy hung himself in a bathroom at Island View.[61][62][63] Island View was required to submit a plan of corrective action.[61] The staff were unsuccessful in reviving him.[61]

In 2002, a former resident filed a $135 million lawsuit against her father in part for having her admitted to Island View where she says she was traumatized.[64]

The local police department responded to 219 emergency calls at the facility's address between January 2005 and October 2020.[31] Some of the calls have been related to abuse, sex offenses, or suicide attempts. In approximately 88% of those calls, the investigating department indicated nothing more was needed than a visit to the site. Only 14 calls, roughly 6%, resulted in arrests.[31]

Activism

Former Island View and Elevations resident Misha Osherovich attended a rally held by Paris Hilton in protest of alleged abuse at Provo Canyon School and programs for at-risk youth, where they spoke out about the abuse allegations. Osherovich also about their experience at Island View to the Salt Lake Tribune.[65] Osherovich has likened what the facility did to conversion therapy.[19] The American Bar Association with Osherovich, Hilton, Oregon State Senator Sara Gelser, and others, explored youth being funneled into prison-like "behavior modification" centers under the guise of treatment and conversion therapy.[66]

More recently, in 2023, another survivor of Island View, Kayla Muzquiz, joined Senator Jeff Merkley, Senator John Cornyn, Representatives Ro Khanna and Earl “Buddy” Carter, Paris Hilton, Jessica Jackson, and other survivors of abuse in residential treatment facilities to introduce the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act. [67] [68] Muzquiz spoke about her traumatic experience at Island View.[67] [68]

Program origins

Jared Balmer,[69] Kimball Delamare,[70] Lorin Broadbent, and W. Dean Belnap founded Island View.[71] Balmer later expanded the campus and opened Aspen Institute for Behavioral Assessment (now Viewpoint Center).[72] In addition, Balmer, Delamare, and Broadbent opened the now-closed Oakley School, a therapeutic boarding school, in 1998.[73][74] Delamare and Balmer were also founding members of the National Association for Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP), Delamare being NATSAP's first president.[75]

Prior to Island View, Kimball Delamare was the director of KIDS of Salt Lake, an offshoot of Straight Inc., which was investigated[76] and ultimately had its license revoked.[77] Delamare also worked as a director of the Rivendell Psychiatric Hospital, which Balmer cofounded and was the subject of multiple allegations, including from one former resident and journalist, Lyn Duff.[78][79]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Search for Public Schools - Evevations Academy (A0109535)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "Our Experienced Team - Elevations RTC". elevationsrtc.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Elevations – Curriculum". elevationsrtc.com. Elevations RTC. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Berkeley Unified School District Approval of Master Contract for Residential Treatment Centers for 2020–2021 SY". agendaonline.net/. Berkeley Unified School District. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Accreditation & Expertise at Elevations RTC". elevationsrtc.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  6. ↑ Fuchs, David (February 15, 2021). "Actor, advocate Misha Osherovich on how the 'troubled-teen' industry affects families". KUER News. Archived from the original on February 20, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  7. 1 2 "Elevations RTC homepage". Elevations RTC. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
  8. ↑ Asset Purchase Agreement by and among Turn-About Ranch, Inc., Island View Residential Treatment Center, Copper Canyon Academy, LLC, Aspen Institute for Behavioral Assessment, LLC, Aspen Education Group, Inc. and Lake Montezuma RTC, LLC, Escalante RTC, LLC, Syracuse RTC, LLC, Syracuse Institute, LLC, Wilderness Training & Consulting, LLC, March 7, 2014
  9. ↑ "Residential Treatment". Discover Seven Stars. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
  10. ↑ "ISLAND VIEW RTC Visit Reports". Archived from the original on 2022-03-16. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  11. ↑ Arave, Lynn (August 30, 1994). "COMPLEX FOR TROUBLED ADOLESCENTS NEARLY DONE". Deseret News. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  12. ↑ Carter, Mike (November 7, 1989). "apnews.com". Associated Press. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Aspen Education Group Acquires Island View & Oakley School". Woodbury Reports, Inc. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  14. ↑ CRC Heath Group. Form 10-k filed April 2013 (Report). Securities and Exchange Commission.
  15. ↑ Jonny Bonner (December 17, 2009). "Parents Say Dr. Phil Exploited Troubled Teen". Courthouse News Service. Archived from the original on February 9, 2014. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Murdock, Sebastian (August 23, 2016). "The Troubled Teen Industry Has Been A Disaster For Decades". HuffPost. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Why All Gender Inclusive? Elevations RTC". elevationsrtc.com. Elevations RTC. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Elevations RTC – A New Beginning for Troubled Teens". Entrepreneur Mindz. March 2020. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  19. 1 2 Reddish, David (April 14, 2022). "Dr. Phil should be very afraid of Misha Osherovich's new series". Queerty. Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  20. ↑ "Elevations NATSAP". natsap.org. Archived from the original on 3 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  21. ↑ "Transitions - Elevations". elevationsrtc.com. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  22. ↑ "The Approach Home". theapproachhome.com. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  23. 1 2 3 "Tim Dupell Partner Letter – Elevations RTC". elevationsrtc.com. Elevations RTC. Archived from the original on February 19, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  24. ↑ O'Grady, Eileen (February 2022). "The Kids Are Not Alright: How Private Equity Profits Off of Behavioral Health Services for Vulnerable and At-Risk Youth" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  25. ↑ Sormani, Angela (March 31, 2014). "Trinity Hunt Partners Makes Growth Investment in Family Help & Wellness". Archived from the original on May 1, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  26. ↑ "Rollups: Private Equity Eyes Youth Treatment Centers as a Takeover Target". 17 February 2022. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  27. ↑ "Family Help & Wellness Announces Growth, Addition to Management Team". All Kinds of Therapy. September 14, 2016. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  28. ↑ "Cognia – Institution Summary". advanc-ed.org/. Cognia. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
  29. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Elevations RTC Parent Manual. Elevations RTC. 2020.
  30. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Elevations RTC Student Manual. Elevations RTC. 2020.
  31. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Fuchs, David (December 17, 2020). "Utah Has Seen Abuse In 'Troubled Teen' Programs For Decades. Now, Momentum Slowly Builds For Change". KUER 90.1. Archived from the original on December 18, 2020. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
  32. ↑ Meyers v. Kaiser Found. Health Plan, Inc., 807 Fed. Appx. 651 (United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit March 26, 2020).
  33. ↑ T.A. VS. BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD Et. Al
  34. ↑ "Premera Beats Suit Over Teenager's $160,000 Mental Health Bill". archive.md. 2021-08-22. Archived from the original on 2021-08-22. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  35. 1 2 Gillan, Eileen (October 14, 2020). "My Daughter Was a Victim of the 'Troubled Teen' Industry & It Haunts Me to This Day". CafeMom. Archived from the original on February 5, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  36. 1 2 3 Elevations RTC (2020). Stages of Treatment & Common Resident Statements. New Parent Orientation. Elevations RTC.
  37. ↑ Youth in Congregate Care: Far from Home, Far from Safe. The Troubled Teen Industry, a Multi-series Webinar Event. American Bar Association. Archived from the original on 2022-11-04. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  38. ↑ Island View Parent Manual. Island View. 2004.
  39. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions". www.islandview-rtc.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  40. ↑ Rosen, Kenneth (2021). Troubled. New York: Little A. p. 143. ISBN 978-1-5420-0788-7.
  41. 1 2 "Critical Incident Report for Restraint Injury". Archived from the original on 5 June 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  42. ↑ Reavy, Pat (January 29, 2014). "Family sues Dr. Phil, Utah treatment center". Deseret News. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  43. ↑ "Teen sex, Dr. Phil and Utah collide in federal lawsuit". Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  44. ↑ "Parents Say Dr. Phil Exploited Troubled Teen". Courthouse News Service. January 30, 2014. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  45. ↑ "Dr. Phil Accused of 'Slavery,' 'Abuse,' 'False Imprisonment' of Underage Sex-Seeker in Explosive New Suit". The Wrap. January 30, 2014. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  46. ↑ Nuszen v. Nuszen et al, 4:2015mc00864 (Texas Southern District Court March 30, 2015).
  47. ↑ "Hinman v. Island View Academy et al". Justia Dockets & Filings. Archived from the original on 2023-01-12. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  48. ↑ Myers et al v. Dr. Phil Organization et al, 1:14-cv-00007, Reply Memorandum of Defendants CRC Health Group, Aspen Education Group, Island View Residential Treatment Center, and Ryan Mortenson (Utah District Court August 13, 2014).
  49. ↑ Hinman v. Island View Academy et al, 1:2014cv00015 (Utah District Court February 18, 2014 url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rPPSDy2m4KBPuaKtpwLUCNIccwHzN1_b/view).
  50. ↑ "Hinman v. Island View Academy et al, No. 1:2014cv00015 – Document 28 (D. Utah 2015)". Justia Law. Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  51. ↑ "Island View Residential Treatment Center Review - Treatment Centers & Rest Homes - Information & Placement in Syracuse, UT - BBB Business Review - BBB serving Utah". Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  52. ↑ Bonner, Jonny (January 30, 2014). "Parents Say Dr. Phil Exploited Troubled Teen". Courthouse News Service. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  53. ↑ "Myers et al v. Dr. Phil Organization et al, No. 1:2014cv00007 - Document 77 (D. Utah 2015)". Justia Law. Archived from the original on January 15, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  54. ↑ "Dark side of a Bain success". Salon. July 18, 2012. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  55. ↑ Palmer, Rebecca (November 9, 2007). "Police search for missing Missouri teen". Deseret News. Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  56. ↑ Winslow, Ben, Girl who disappeared on Utah flight is found alive Archived 2023-01-12 at the Wayback MachineDeseret News, Nov 20, 2007,
  57. ↑ "Ep.12: Emily Graeber - Second Nature & Island View by Inside The Program". Anchor. Archived from the original on 2022-01-31. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  58. ↑ "Utah Has Seen Abuse In 'Troubled Teen' Programs For Decades. Now, Momentum Slowly Builds For Change". KUER. 2020-12-17. Archived from the original on 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  59. ↑ "- CHILD ABUSE AND DECEPTIVE MARKETING BY RESIDENTIAL PROGRAMS FOR TEENS". www.govinfo.gov. Archived from the original on 2022-01-31. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  60. ↑ Levine, Art (2017-08-15). Mental Health Inc: How Corruption, Lax Oversight and Failed Reforms Endanger Our Most Vulnerable Citizens. Abrams. ISBN 978-1-4683-1531-8. Archived from the original on 2023-03-19. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  61. 1 2 3 "Teen facility targets suicide prevention". Deseret News. July 30, 2004. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  62. ↑ "Advocate and National Treasure, Emily Graeber, and peers; on how the 'troubled-teen' industry has been a disaster for decades". Huffington Post. August 23, 2016. Archived from the original on August 24, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
  63. ↑ Stewart, Kirsten (October 13, 2007). "Four recent Utah deaths in treatment programs". Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  64. ↑ Yeung, Bernice (December 18, 2002). "Girl, Interrupted". SF Weekly. Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  65. ↑ Fuchs, David (February 15, 2021). "Actor, advocate Misha Osherovich on how the 'troubled-teen' industry affects families". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  66. ↑ Youth in Congregate Care: Far from Home, Far from Safe. The Troubled Teen Industry, a Multi-series Webinar Event. American Bar Association. Archived from the original on 2022-11-05. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  67. 1 2 Merkeley, Jeff. "Merkley, Senate Colleagues, Paris Hilton, and Advocates on the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act". youtube.com. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  68. 1 2 Morton, Joseph (April 28, 2023). "Paris Hilton and Texas Sen. John Cornyn target abusive 'troubled teen' programs". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  69. ↑ "Jared Balmer Linkedin". May 2022.
  70. ↑ "Kimball Delamare Linkedin". May 2022.
  71. ↑ Arave, Lynn (August 1994). "COMPLEX FOR TROUBLED ADOLESCENTS NEARLY DONE". Archived from the original on 2022-02-24.
  72. ↑ "Struggling Teens New Perspectives: Aspen Institute for Behavioral Assessment". December 2006. Archived from the original on 2022-02-24.
  73. ↑ Toomer-Cook, Jennifer (October 1998). "Private School in Oakley Aims To Be Different". Archived from the original on 2022-02-24.
  74. ↑ Stednitz, Larry (September 20, 2005). "Oakley School Visit Report".
  75. ↑ "A Brief History of the National Association ofTherapeutic Schools and Programs, Reprinted and Updated". November 2001. Archived from the original on 2023-01-12. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  76. ↑ Carter, Mike (November 1989). "Tough Treatment For Problem Juveniles Under Investigation". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2021-02-25.
  77. ↑ "KIDS OF GREATER SALT LAKE LOSES ITS LICENSE, WILL LEAVE THE AREA, STATE OFFICIALS SAY". June 1990. Archived from the original on 2022-01-19.
  78. ↑ "Managing partners Archived 2022-10-01 at the Wayback Machine", Waypoint Academy. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  79. ↑ Mirken, Bruce (March 4, 1993). "One Gay Kid's Travels It's Been Rough, But It's a Story with a Happy Ending". Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved 5 June 2022.

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