harbor oaks boarding school
(aka wolf creek academy)
mars hill, nc
Staff List and
Background Information
HEAL SPECIAL REPORT:
harbor oaks boarding school'S
ENROLLMENT AGREEMENT REVIEW |
HEAL has found
multiple problems with Harbor Oaks Boarding School's enrollment
agreement including apparent unconscionable terms and
contradictory terms leaving us to believe that Harbor Oaks
Boarding School is running a money-making scam on families in need of
assistance. We will be alternating between purple
background and/or words for HEAL critiques and questions and
a light pink with red words
for the words of Harbor Oaks Boarding School in their
enrollment agreement
(as was downloaded from harboroaksboardingschool.com on October
8th, 2010). HEAL will not repeatedly
link to the enrollment agreement in full throughout this review,
and, we advise readers to scroll back and/or open the enrollment
agreement in a new window while reviewing our work for accuracy
or if additional contextualization is preferred. This is
an independent review and if you are in need of legal assistance
or advice, please
consult with an attorney. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 1)
"Place of Birth"
"Place of Birth"
"Social Security
Number"
"Race"
"Referred by"
"Address" |
HEAL includes the
above to highlight that this program requires the place of birth
and social security number of "students"/children entering the
program. It is only a mild concern as the purposes for
requesting such information are not made explicit in the forms.
We recommend parents
ask Harbor Oaks why they wish to know who referred them to the
program and if referrers receive any kind of incentive or
compensation for such referrals. If so, this is a serious
ethical concern and parents should investigate thoroughly to
insure that they are not being scammed. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 2)
"FAMILY INFORMATION"
"Mother"
"DOB"
"SS#"
"Father"
"DOB"
"SS#"
"Stepmother"
"DOB"
"SS#"
"Stepfather"
"DOB"
"SS#" |
It is invasive and
inappropriate for a program to request the date of birth and
social security number for all parents and step-parents
(including those not financially responsible for the child).
This is a serious concern and families should be very cautious
when filling out forms that request unnecessary personal
identification information. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 3)
"I, ___________, the
legal guardian of the above captioned child, do herewith
transfer temporary physical care, custody and control of
_____________ to Harbor Oaks Boarding School residing at 41
Beauty Spot Cove Road, Mars Hill, North Carolina, 28754."
"This instrument
authorized the Harbor Oaks Staff to obtain any medical, dental,
psychological, or psychiatric treatment for ________________, as
deemed necessary by professionals in that field and to enroll
him/her in school."
"This custody
agreement shall remain in effect until such time as this
stipulation is suspended by order of a court of competent
jurisdiction, or until this parties to this agreement feel that
said custody arrangement is no longer in the best interest and
welfare of my child."
"I,
______________, affix my signature to this authorization because
I feel the intent of said authorization is in the best interest
and welfare of my child."
"...Second Party
agrees to place Child for a minimum of six (6) months in the
Program." |
HEAL's main concern
in the above listed quotes from the contract is the fact that
the program appears to end up with equal say or predominant say
in regards to the child's length of stay in the program and that
parental authority appears to be overrode by the authority
acquired by the program to determine subjectively, and, in a
manner that is most likely to benefit the program. This is
a serious concern as many programs in this industry do use
threats of false reports to authorities suggesting a parent is
not acting in the best interest of their child by removing them
from such programs to intimidate parents into keeping children
in the program and by virtue extort additional fees from the
families by using such threats.
The above portion
of the agreement also included blanks where the tuition fees
would be in the agreement. HEAL is yet unable to confirm
the current monthly rates of "tuition" at this program.
A six month
minimum for "therapeutic" or "lockdown" services is excessive
and goes against what is suggested by legitimate mental health
professionals. For alternatives to institutionalization
and parenting tips, see
www.heal-online.org/parent.htm. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 4)
"THIS AGREEMENT,
made and entered into this _______day of __________, 20___, by
and between Harbor Oaks Boarding School, a Nonprofit
Corporation, engaged in the care and rehabilitation of minor
children on a Christian basis in a Christ-centered boarding
school (hereinafter called the "FACILITY" or "FIRST PARTY")."
"Second party
voluntarily and unconditionally, without coercion or force,
temporarily conveys the care, custody and control of said minor
Child to the Facility, expressly appointing the Facility as
lawful attorney for said Second party and in said Second Party's
name, place and stead for and to serve in loco parentis (in
place of Second Party) of said Child for his (her) care,
custody/safety, education and training (both secular and
religious) and for all other responsibilities, real or legal,
including all necessities which the facility deems essential for
said Child. This grant of temporary custody and control
shall commence upon signing of the Agreement by the last party
hereto and shall terminate as hereinafter provided. This
agreement does not replace the parental custody or rights in any
way."
"Harbor Oaks or
its Facilities are not liable for the said Child's destruction
of any property on or off campus. Financial
responsibility, if any, will be that of the Second Party."
"Harbor Oaks is
not liable or responsible for said Child's personal property
either being lost or destroyed, including items, which were left
by said child upon exit of program."
"Second party
agrees not to interfere with the temporary custody or management
of said Child in any way and shall not encourage or permit
anyone else to do so."
"Second Party
further acknowledges that said Second Party understands that
Second Party's cooperation with the facility, not only in the
financial support but also in the personal participation in the
Facility's program, is essential to the success of the attempt
by both the Second Party and the Facility to rehabilitate said
minor." (segment ends on page 5 of agreement) |
This program does
not appear to be licensed as a mental health or behavioral
health program in North Carolina. The extended provider
list was not available through the North Carolina government
websites at the time of writing this review. However, at
www.nccarelink.gov, a
search for behavioral health programs does not include Harbor
Oaks Boarding School nor Wolf Creek Academy. These
programs are also not listed as "Children's Homes" through the
NCcarelink.gov website. These programs are also not listed
as "Children's Special Health Program[s]". These programs
also do not appear to be licensed as schools or
alternative/charter educational institutions. This program
claims to be a registered non-profit corporation. However,
search results return no result for
Harbor Oaks Boarding School nor
Wolf Creek Academy. Based on these findings, HEAL
believes Harbor Oaks/Wolf Creek is not licensed to provide
educational nor therapeutic services in North Carolina and that
they are not even licensed as a registered non-profit as their
application claims. This is a serious concern. For
more information regarding the issues of licensing and/or
improper licensing of such programs, please see
www.heal-online.org/warn.htm.
The second, fifth,
and sixth segments quoted above appear to contradict each other.
The program claims that they will not override parental
authority in the second, but, then demand absolute support,
cooperation, and obedience from parents. Since these terms
appear to be contradictory, it suggests unconscionability and/or
an illusory contract/agreement.
It is a concern
that in the fourth segment this program refuses to accept any
responsibility for any harm they cause to the child or his/her
property, while in the third segment the program is demanding
the family accept responsibility for incidents that may be
erroneously attributed to acts or omissions of children while
under the supervision of the program who should take
responsibility for their own inability to manage the children in
their care. This is a serious concern and suggests
hypocrisy is the way of this program. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 5)
"Visiting privileges
and other Second Party/Child contact will be at the discretion
of the Facility, and Second Party agrees to be bound by such
decisions of the Facility."
"At least (30)
days prior to the termination date, (six month anniversary), the
Facility will set a time to meet with the Second Party to
discuss either a renewal of the Agreement or discharge of said
Child."
"(Child to sign
in agreement with parent at time of Admission)"
"I, _________,
have read the above mentioned agreement signed by my parent(s),
legal guardian(s) or person(s) having legal custody of me and,
by joining I with them, consent to all of the terms and
conditions of the same." |
It is a serious
concern that this program denies contact between children and
their families during any point of their treatment at the
program. This is a warning sign of an abusive facility.
Please see
www.heal-online.org/warn.htm for important information and
questions you should ask any program you consider for your
family. It
is a concern that the program renews the contract at intervals
of 6 months each time. This is puts families in an awkward
position and may lend itself to further exploitation of children
and extortion of family resources. It is a serious
concern.
Children (minors) cannot be held to contracts and by having them
sign a contract so that such can be used to convince them they
have already waived their rights is unconscionable and is a
serious concern for anyone who cares about children's welfare
and rights. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 6)
"Visitation
privileges will be granted based upon student's behavior and
level privileges. Parent agrees to abide by visitation
policies."
"PHONE CALLS may
be made to the student weekly (as agreed upon by the parent and
house parent for a convenient time schedule). This will be
in accordance with the Level status. Level three students
have more phone privileges than Level one and two students.
All phone calls will be two-way monitored by the Staff.
Any agreed changes to this must be annotated in an Amendment to
Contract with signature from Second Party and Representative of
Facility."
"MAIL - Incoming
and outgoing mail will be read by Staff prior to distribution
to/from students. Parents will provide an authorized
mailing list to Harbor Oaks no later than two weeks after
placement. Any agreed changes to this must be annotated in
an Amendment to Contract with signatures from Second Party and
Representative of Facility." |
It is a serious
concern that this program denies contact between children and
their parents and is indicative of an abusive program.
Please see
www.heal-online.org/warn.htm for additional information.
It is a serious
concern that all phone calls are monitored by staff. This
reduces the opportunity for children to honestly report
mistreatment, abuse, or other violations to their families or
proper authorities. Programs that control children to this
extent are doing a disservice to the children and their
families. It is a serious concern and indicative of an
abusive program.
It is also a
serious concern that this program admits to violating the law
and the legal rights of minors in the program by reading all
incoming and outgoing mail. This is a violation of the
law. This was decided in the case of
Milonas and
Rice v. Provo Canyon School. A program that openly
admits to one legal violation likely commits many others.
It is recommended that families do not enroll children in
programs that openly violate the rights of children or other
child abuse/welfare laws. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 7)
"Parent(s)/Guardian(s)
and student hereby agrees to legal Christian arbitration in a
legal disagreement with the Facility or its employees,
volunteers, representatives, and agents. A legal Christian
arbitrator to be determined by mutual agreement of the parties
will conduct such legal Christian arbitration."
"(I or We),
authorize members of the Facility's accrediting organization, to
review my child's __________, records as part of the annual
accreditation requirement of the state of North Carolina." |
It is a concern that
this program would demand a mutually agreed upon arbitrator that
will likely be located and primarily selected by the program.
This is a serious concern as many faith-based services appear to
cover up the wrong-doing of those claiming to work in the same
or similar field and may leave families without real justice or
fairness in arbitration.
It is also a
concern that this program suggests it is accredited by the state
of North Carolina when HEAL can find no evidence that this
program is registered or licensed with any North Carolina
agency. At best, it suggests deception in advertising. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 8)
"Media
Authorization"
"I hereby give
further authorization for my Child to be:"
"Photographed or
Video taped for training, publishing and video productions"
"Publish personal
story and photographs of the Child"
"Allow interviews
by television, newspaper and radio media" |
It is inappropriate
to exploit children and their family problems for personal gain
by using the children for program promotions. This is a
serious concern and shows a lack of morals and ethics in the way
this program operates. They shouldn't ask for it, they
should wait until families or graduates offer to commend the
program and then work out the most appropriate and respectful
manner to do such for supporting the program. This is a
concern as children may not understand their rights to privacy
and/or compensation for the use of their name/likeness/work for
financial gain as is suggested by the program's literature and
materials. |
Enrollment
Agreement (Page 10)
"List an issues,
which led you to the decision to place your child in a
residential care facility:"
"Does your child
have any tattoos or body piercing?" |
HEAL suggests you
ask to see all of the paperwork and verify the licensing,
accreditation, and professional qualifications for all
individuals working at Harbor Oaks Boarding School and/or Wolf
Creek Academy. We can find no evidence that this program
is effectively licensed or accredited and this is a serious
concern.
We included the
question regarding tattoos or body piercing because many
cult-like programs will not accept children who have expressed
themselves to the point of tattoos and body-piercings.
This is a concern because it shows an inability to accept all
children and work with children to understand the children's
points of view. And, that is necessary, if a true and
lasting positive change is going to be achieved for the
individual children and their families.
Based on this
review, we believe Harbor Oaks Boarding School/Wolf Creek
Academy ought to be avoided. |
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