Logan River Academy

Logan River Academy is a residential treatment center, or RTC in Logan, Utah, United States. The facility has a capacity of around eighty children, including autism spectrum youth.^[1] The treatment center's address is 1683 US-89, Logan, Utah 84321.

Tuition

The school's tuition is variable, depending on whether private or public money is being used for tuition. However, tuition generally exceeds seven thousand U.S. dollars per month, and children generally stay at the program year-round. General tuition for private parents is eight thousand nine hundred U.S. dollars per month.^[2]

Licensing

In the United States, residential treatment centers must be licensed through their state. Logan River Academy is licensed as a residential treatment center through the Utah State Department of Human Services.^[3]

Accreditation

According to Utah Law, Residential Treatment Centers are required to have an accredited academic program, but are not required to have their residential portions accredited.^[4] However; The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI,)^[5] and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission recommend that each individual aspect of a program be accredited.^[6]

Educational program accreditation

The school's educational program is accredited through AdvancED.^[7] Logan River Academy's most current available accreditation report, done in 2009, states, "The facilities of Logan River Academy are commendable, and the school design is very beneficial to learning and teaching."^[8] The report also notes that the facility's educational programs did not provide adequate curriculum maps nor the desired amount of student achievement data, and that the school should work to reduce a high rate of staff turnover.^[9]

Residential program accreditation

Logan River Academy's residential treatment program is not accredited by an accrediting body. The school does, however, belong to NATSAP, a non-accrediting membership organization that regulates standards on its member organizations. Specifically, they require each of their members to: "be licensed by the appropriate state agency authorized to set and oversee standards of therapeutic and/or behavioral healthcare for youth and adolescents or accredited by a nationally recognized behavioral health accreditation agency, have therapeutic services with oversight by a qualified clinician, and aspire NATSAP Ethical Principles and NATSAP Principles of Good Practice" ^[10] Logan River Academy is also licensed by the state of Utah as a residential treatment center.

Criticism

The school has been subject to a campaign of criticism led by Anonymous, who allege that the school uses a form of solitary confinement on students.^{[11][12][13][14][15][16]} This is denied by the school who say the allegations are "unfounded" and that there is "no basis for the allegations out there".^[17][18] Despite that, many former students have still reported severe abuse and torture by the hands of the schools staff as part of the schools Behavior modification techniques, some have even compared the abuse against students at the school to the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay.^[19] The campaign against the school has used an online petition on change.org as well as campaigning on social media.^[20]

Other groups outside of Anonymous have also criticized the school over a variety of separate issues such as many of the schools employees not being professionally licensed by the state of Utah. ^[21]

Sports

In Winter 2014 Logan River Academy had 2 basketball teams, and they will be sponsoring an indoor soccer team for the spring season.^[22] In 2012, two Logan River Academy students were allowed to try out for a team at the local high school, but the Utah High School Activities Association did not allow them to play for the team.^[23]

References

Coordinates: 41°42′12″N 111°51′17″W / 41.703397°N 111.8547997°W / 41.703397; -111.8547997