Facility profile Utah

Abundant Life Academy

Closed Kanab, Utah

Abundant Life Academy was a therapeutic boarding school in Kanab, Utah. It operated from 2000 to 2014.

About Abundant Life Academy

Earlier location Kanab, UT; formerly shut down in Mexico.source It was purchased by Paul Branning about a year before November 2012; Branning assumed Chairman of the Board.source It opened in 2013. It closed in 2014.source It was located in formerly in Mexico and Utah, later in Caroline County, VA.source It was purchased by Paul Branning.source

Stays lasted 12-18 months.source It cost around $4,500 per month ($55,000 per year).source Graduation only on last day of each month; no tuition refund.source A former student reports being held there Sept 2007 to Aug 2008 (statement dated March 2009).source The program in the Czech Republic.source

It cost $41,250 plus first prorated month, with extras bringing it to over $50,000 per HEAL.source Stays lasted 9 to 18 months per enrollment agreement.source It had a Georgia campus at 236 Leadership Ln, Jesup, GA.source It had a second Mexico campus near Guadalajara.source It had a Kanab, UT campus at 220 N 300 W.source

It had a Nevada campus near Ely (Hidden Canyon Ranch).source It cost $41,250 plus first prorated month (Utah enrollment agreement).source Not marketed as therapeutic; offered no mental health service.source It had a Virginia campus at 20500 Remuda Ln, Milford, VA.source It was located in former Easter Seals and Remuda Ranch building off Passing Road near Sparta, VA.source

Survivor testimony

What people who lived or worked here say happened. Survivors' own words are published with their permission; forum accounts are what was posted publicly and are reported as claims, not findings.

Reported on survivor forums

Timeline

From the records: who ran it and the deals that moved it, its names, and the deaths, incidents, inspection findings, lawsuits and news stories on file. Point at an event, or tap "More about this", for the details.

20002004200520072009201020132014201520002015

  1. 2000

    1. Opened

      Opened in Kanab, Utah

  2. 2004

    1. Incident

      Closure order

      In 2004 Mexican authorities raided the Chapala program for not complying with sanitary regulations; 17 American youths without proper documents were sent back to the U.S.

      Closure order

      In 2004 Mexican authorities raided the Chapala program for not complying with sanitary regulations; 17 American youths without proper documents were sent back to the U.S. and both Mexico programs closed.

      source

  3. 2005

    1. IncidentMay 2005

      Investigation

      In May 2005 child protective services removed 33 teenagers from the Nevada campus after abuse and neglect reports; a jury later found the state lacked...

      Investigation May 2005

      In May 2005 child protective services removed 33 teenagers from the Nevada campus after abuse and neglect reports; a jury later found the state lacked reasonable grounds, and in 2009 a judge ruled the CPS official immune from civil liability.

      source

  4. 2007

    1. IncidentSeptember 2007

      Restraint

      A former student's sworn statement given to HEAL (stay 9/2007 to 8/2008) alleged staff used unnecessary take-downs including choking and slamming a student's head into the ground.

      Restraint September 2007

      source

  5. 2009

    1. IncidentNovember 2009

      Lawsuit

      HEAL said audio of a November 13, 2009 hearing in a lawsuit over abuses and removal of children from the program is available; HEAL said the former judge...

      Lawsuit November 2009

      HEAL said audio of a November 13, 2009 hearing in a lawsuit over abuses and removal of children from the program is available; HEAL said the former judge decided to shut the program down.

      source

  6. 2010

    1. Lawsuit

      ruled

      ruled

      Students and their parents filed claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against a child and family services manager alleging Fourth Amendment violations during a removal from a school facility, as well as Fourteenth Amendment violations of family integrity. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant.

      Outcome: Affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant based on qualified immunity.

      Court
      United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
      Case number
      08-16790
      Status
      Unknown

      All lawsuits on record

  7. 2013

    1. Incident

      Incident

      A 2013 ex-staff review alleges the owner stole money from the school and that paychecks bounced.

      Incident

      source

    2. IncidentNovember 2013

      Injury

      Per a police report, 13 male students were forced into military-style drills in a swamp in 35-degree weather in November 2013 and many got sick.

      Injury November 2013

      source

  8. 2014

    1. IncidentApril 2014

      Criminal charge

      Per an October 2014 news report, prosecutors charged three life coaches and a program director at Abundant Life Academy with beating a 14-year-old boy who was...

      Criminal charge April 2014

      Per an October 2014 news report, prosecutors charged three life coaches and a program director at Abundant Life Academy with beating a 14-year-old boy who was trying to escape in April 2014; the beating was caught on camera. (HEAL, HEAL RESPONDS TO THE ENVOY GROUP MARKETING EXECUTIVE DAVID BOLTHOUSE'S ANTI-HEAL WEBSITE

      source

    2. Incident

      Criminal charge

      Four staff members were charged with misdemeanor assault and battery and assault by mob for an alleged continuous assault on a student on Feb.

      Criminal charge

      Four staff members were charged with misdemeanor assault and battery and assault by mob for an alleged continuous assault on a student on Feb. 14, 2014.

      source

    3. IncidentApril 2014

      Runaway

      Four male students ran away at night in April 2014 after breaking a window and taking a utility vehicle; the school did not notify law enforcement.

      Runaway April 2014

      source

    4. IncidentJune 2014

      Investigation

      The Caroline County Sheriff's Office investigated three separate incidents involving students that led to charges against staff, per a June 2014 news report.

      Investigation June 2014

      source

    5. IncidentJuly 2014

      Criminal charge

      A former program director was charged with 13 counts of felony child endangerment over a November 2013 incident in which 13 male students were forced to do...

      Criminal charge July 2014

      A former program director was charged with 13 counts of felony child endangerment over a November 2013 incident in which 13 male students were forced to do military-style drills in a swamp in cold weather as punishment.

      source

    6. IncidentAugust 2014

      Criminal charge

      A former program director entered an Alford plea to misdemeanor sexual battery in 2014 and received a suspended 12-month sentence, a sex offender evaluation...

      Criminal charge August 2014

      A former program director entered an Alford plea to misdemeanor sexual battery in 2014 and received a suspended 12-month sentence, a sex offender evaluation and supervised probation.

      source

    7. IncidentNovember 2014

      Criminal charge

      Four former staff members were convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery over a continuous assault on a 14-year-old student (Nov 2014).

      Criminal charge November 2014

      source

    8. IncidentDecember 2014

      Closure order

      The final Virginia program closed in December 2014 after four life coaches were convicted of simple assault and violent beatings were caught on camera.

      Closure order December 2014

      source

    9. Closed

      Closed

  9. 2015

    1. IncidentFebruary 2015

      License action

      Caroline County supervisors unanimously revoked the school's special-exception permit in Feb.

      License action February 2015

      Caroline County supervisors unanimously revoked the school's special-exception permit in Feb. 2015 for non-compliance, including failure to report criminal incidents to the Sheriff.

      source

Lawsuits

  • ruled 2010 | Unknown | United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit | 08-16790 Names this facility

    Outcome: Affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant based on qualified immunity.

    Students and their parents filed claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against a child and family services manager alleging Fourth Amendment violations during a removal from a school facility, as well as Fourteenth Amendment violations of family integrity. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant. On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed, holding that the defendant was entitled to qualified immunity because the contours of the constitutional rights at issue were not clearly established at the time of the actions.

Every case in the lawsuit directory

Incidents on record

  1. 2004 Closure order

    In 2004 Mexican authorities raided the Chapala program for not complying with sanitary regulations; 17 American youths without proper documents were sent back to the U.S. and both Mexico programs closed.source

  2. Closure order

    HEAL stated the program had been closed by Mexican authorities for child abuse.source

  3. May 2005 Investigation

    In May 2005 child protective services removed 33 teenagers from the Nevada campus after abuse and neglect reports; a jury later found the state lacked reasonable grounds, and in 2009 a judge ruled the CPS official immune from civil liability.source

  4. September 2007 Restraint

    A former student's sworn statement given to HEAL (stay 9/2007 to 8/2008) alleged staff used unnecessary take-downs including choking and slamming a student's head into the ground.source

  5. Incident

    A former student's statement to HEAL alleged students tried to commit suicide at the program.source

  6. November 2009 Lawsuit

    HEAL said audio of a November 13, 2009 hearing in a lawsuit over abuses and removal of children from the program is available; HEAL said the former judge decided to shut the program down.source

  7. 2013 Incident

    A 2013 ex-staff review alleges the owner stole money from the school and that paychecks bounced.source

  8. November 2013 Injury

    Per a police report, 13 male students were forced into military-style drills in a swamp in 35-degree weather in November 2013 and many got sick.source

  9. April 2014 Criminal charge

    Per an October 2014 news report, prosecutors charged three life coaches and a program director at Abundant Life Academy with beating a 14-year-old boy who was trying to escape in April 2014; the beating was caught on camera. (HEAL, HEAL RESPONDS TO THE ENVOY GROUP MARKETING EXECUTIVE DAVID BOLTHOUSE'S ANTI-HEAL WEBSITEsource 1, source 2, source 3

  10. 2014 Criminal charge

    Four staff members were charged with misdemeanor assault and battery and assault by mob for an alleged continuous assault on a student on Feb. 14, 2014.source

  11. April 2014 Runaway

    Four male students ran away at night in April 2014 after breaking a window and taking a utility vehicle; the school did not notify law enforcement.source

  12. June 2014 Investigation

    The Caroline County Sheriff's Office investigated three separate incidents involving students that led to charges against staff, per a June 2014 news report.source

  13. July 2014 Criminal charge

    A former program director was charged with 13 counts of felony child endangerment over a November 2013 incident in which 13 male students were forced to do military-style drills in a swamp in cold weather as punishment.source

  14. August 2014 Criminal charge

    A former program director entered an Alford plea to misdemeanor sexual battery in 2014 and received a suspended 12-month sentence, a sex offender evaluation and supervised probation.source

  15. November 2014 Criminal charge

    Four former staff members were convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery over a continuous assault on a 14-year-old student (Nov 2014).source

  16. December 2014 Closure order

    The final Virginia program closed in December 2014 after four life coaches were convicted of simple assault and violent beatings were caught on camera.source

  17. February 2015 License action

    Caroline County supervisors unanimously revoked the school's special-exception permit in Feb. 2015 for non-compliance, including failure to report criminal incidents to the Sheriff.source

  18. Lawsuit

    HEAL stated the state of Utah filed suit against the program and repeatedly took children out of it.source

  19. Closure order

    HEAL stated the owners were chased out of Mexico for violating child abuse laws there.source

  20. Abuse

    A former student's statement alleged phone calls were supervised and cut off if a student criticized the program.source

  21. Criminal charge

    HEAL said the only conviction it could find for a Craig Rogers was possession with intent to distribute narcotics, and asked whether it is the same man.source

Staff

Administration

Notable staff

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Documents

Documents on file (13)
Woodbury Reports Mentions (2)
Merged from: Remuda East (4)
Merged from: SunHawk Academy (7)

From the Unsilenced archive

92 documents about Abundant Life Academy that Unsilenced collected and Kids Over Profits does not hold a copy of. They open on Unsilenced's Google Drive. Their folders: Abundant Life Academy, Abundant Life Academy.

Documents (92)

Wiki entries

Materials and links

External links

A program's own website is linked as an archived snapshot, so the page reads as it did when it was captured.

Survivor posts and discussion

Advertising and marketing listings

Reference and research

2 of these from SCIAD NET.

Other links

Record updated . Generated from the Kids Over Profits facility database. Suggest a correction