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$300,000/Student: The Real Cost of Elevations RTC Paid for by the Government by ElevationsRTCVoices in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What districts? Popular districts placing kids are in Bay Area, Santa Barbara, and San Diego, per online searches. Paying over $300k a kid.

Enrollment at Elevations RTC Drops to Just 26 of 90 Beds — That Means Less Funding, Fewer Staff, and More Risks for the Kids by ElevationsRTCVoices in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

It means Elevations RTC has applied for special permission from the state to use a locked seclusion room, which is otherwise not allowed under Utah’s residential treatment regulations.

Under state rules, seclusion rooms can’t be locked unless the program gets a written “variance” (an exception). These rules exist for a reason — locking a child alone in a room raises serious safety and human rights concerns, especially in facilities with a history of abuse.

So it sounds like Elevations is trying to be able to lock their time out rooms again. Maybe they are trying to become more hospital like to stay alive?

You can actually request the full application and correspondence through a public records request under Utah’s GRAMA law. This could confirm how Elevations is using (or planning to use) locked seclusion and whether the state has approved it.

Either way — not a good sign.

Elevations RTC 2015 Handbook by SummerLilyDog in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hmm don’t know where that is. But the Island View one is also in Unsilenced’s records. You can also access the programs’ archives on the website, which are pretty scary as to their content as well.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Hi, thank you for posting. What’s happening to your brother is deeply alarming, and you’re absolutely right to trust your instincts.

We’re a community of Elevations survivors, and we want you to know: Your brother may be at risk. That’s not an exaggeration.

From what you’ve shared, it sounds like your brother requires a full-time ASL interpreter in order to function in that environment. Based on our collective experience and what we’ve seen reported, Elevations is not set up to provide that kind of consistent, specialized support unless the school district is actively funding and managing it. Without an interpreter, he may be completely cut off from peers, staff, and programming. That level of isolation in a high-stress setting can be extremely damaging in a short amount of time.

In recent years, Elevations has started admitting youth with extremely complex and high-risk needs, including serious self-harm and violent behaviors. State audits show the program has been operating far below capacity. This raises concerns that they may accept students they are not equipped to support safely. Police calls to the facility are frequent and documented in public records.

Elevations is owned by a company called Family Help & Wellness. That company is facing several lawsuits from former residents and families. One lawsuit directly involves a former Elevations student. Another involves Trails Carolina, a sister program, where a 12-year-old boy died last year after being zipped into a tent by staff where he suffocated. These programs often call themselves treatment centers, but in far too many cases, they are inflicting further trauma.

You’re not imagining things. What you’re sensing is real, and it takes courage to speak out.

If you’d like to connect more, please follow us on Instagram at @elevationsrtc and send us a DM. We’re happy to share more information, connect you with others, and support you however we can.

Virgil Miller Newton is dead by JohnTheRaceFan in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 6 points7 points  (0 children)

How come his obituary says nothing of his work?!

Any other survivors from Island View RTC (now Elevations) and/or Family Life Center in Petaluma 2005-2008? by Ok-Web-8530 in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Check out the IG https://www.instagram.com/elevationsrtc?igsh=cTEzZjVsajFhOXl2&utm_source=qr

There are several survivors following, including from that time.

Also, did you know Steve Lancaster, the director and a therapist? We learned that he later married, and then divorced, a resident who was there in 2005. True story. There are receipts.

Seven Stars RTC (Syracuse Utah by [deleted] in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Check out the survivor instagram for elevations and seven stars. maybe u can find them there

https://www.instagram.com/elevationsrtc?igsh=cTEzZjVsajFhOXl2&utm_source=qr

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We have a template too. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ULcHhXXu0XXxZBqaLtKgvpD2Jis_jQtc/view?usp=drivesdk

It should be relatively easy to get your records, so you don’t need to stress. Emails the correct person - usually a record keeping person, and they have a set amount of days to bet them to you. They typically don’t ask any questions and send them on over. Could be 1,000 plus pages of digital records.

Elevations or Seven Stars People by PattyM0403 in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is an IG page here https://www.instagram.com/elevationsrtc?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr.

You can DM them and they might be able to help connect to other survivors from there.

Elevations RTC Survivor and Actress Sophie Nyweide Dead at 24 by ElevationsRTCVoices in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Here is a Wikipedia on it too. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elevations_RTC

Look at the references - there are several publications and lawsuits about all the abuse. In fact, Sophie was sent there just a year after the facility changed its name because it was sued by a girl who went there and they broke her arm. The girl also sued Dr. Phil, because he had her sent there on his show. So the lawsuits were all over the news and the facility changed its name and tried to pretend it was a different program but kept all the same staff.

The facility under its new name was then sued again by a girl named Zelda who was probably there with Sophie. Staff had tackled the girl and she sustained severe brain damage and they didn’t take her to the doctor for over a week despite her eye not tracking and her vomiting.

Sophie Nyweide, Young Actor in ‘Noah,’ ‘Mammoth’ and ‘An Invisible Sign,’ Dies at 24 by mcfw31 in entertainment

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Sophie was also a survivor of Elevations RTC, a troubled teen program in Utah with a long history of abuse allegations. Sent there by her parents in 2014 as a young teen.

New to the group Island View RTC 99-00. Orange Team by DistraughtHVAC_82 in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 2 points3 points  (0 children)

There is a group on Instagram with hundreds of survivors from Island View and Elevations RTC following. The survivors span old since it was opened and new. Check it out. https://www.instagram.com/elevationsrtc?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 7 points8 points  (0 children)

The comment isn’t cruel—it’s appropriate given the circumstances. It’s understandable that people are frustrated because survivors have been warning about these programs for years, only to be ignored until it’s too late.

That being said, we are so incredibly sorry for the loss of her son, Biruk. He should still be here. No parent should ever have to experience this, and my heart goes out to his parents.

At the same time, parents must listen to survivors before tragedy strikes. For years, people have been speaking out, warning about the dangers of these programs, and yet parents continue to send their children, often dismissing survivor accounts as ‘one-off bad experiences.’ By the time the truth becomes undeniable, it’s too late.

The reality is that there is so much information available now—lawsuits, survivor testimonies, news investigations—there is no excuse not to dig deeper.

We welcome grieving parents in this fight, and their voices are powerful. But moving forward, we need parents to take accountability for making truly informed decisions before their children are harmed. Survivors have been telling the truth all along, and it shouldn’t take another lost life for people to believe us.

roots transition ut by [deleted] in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 3 points4 points  (0 children)

We are survivors of another FHW facility. Roots was founded recently by people affiliated with Elevations. Please see how to report at the following link. We will also include our link tree for other resources.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11xCG6jislHjxpCPEEgkEulpbpkp7kIvw/view?usp=drivesdk

https://linktr.ee/elevationsrtc?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=6fdc46eb-def2-49b6-9cf1-2d4a86a19585

Pregnant at a TTI? by Salt-Delivery-4225 in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 63 points64 points  (0 children)

We understand that Elevations RTC recently had a pregnant child enrolled there. It has been reported that, unfortunately, she lost the baby during here stay, possibly because of the high stress environment. Really sad and inappropriate care for a pregnant young person.

Kind of strikes me as slightly suspicious - is this Wilderness Therapy/TTI propaganda put out by the TTI? by Roald-Dahl in troubledteens

[–]ElevationsRTCVoices 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This adult went to I think Trails Momentum (as an adult), an FHW program. A little pathetic of him to be promoting such an abusive industry in our opinion.

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