Facility profile Utah

Old West Academy

Formerly Majestic Ranch Academy

Also known as Majestic Youth Academy

Closed Randolph, Utah

Old West Academy was a therapeutic boarding school in Randolph, Utah, operated by World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS). It operated from 1986 to 2019.

About Old West Academy

It was a rebrand of Majestic Ranch Academy.source It was affiliated with WWASP.source

It cost $3,490 per month ($41,880 per year).source It was marketing by Teen Paths, a WWASP subsidiary.source

Also drawn on: Old West Academy.

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.

19862002200320042007201919862019

  1. 1986

    1. Opened

      Opened in Randolph, Utah

  2. 2002

    1. Incident

      Criminal charge

      In 2002 Director Wayne Winder was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual abuse, child abuse and dealing in material harmful to a minor after reports he...

      Criminal charge

      In 2002 Director Wayne Winder was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual abuse, child abuse and dealing in material harmful to a minor after reports he had sexually abused children at the facility.

      source

  3. 2003

    1. In the newsMay 25, 2003

      Provo Canyon School Closure

      2 articles in The Salt Lake Tribune and Dissident Voice, 2003 to 2006.

      Provo Canyon School Closure May 25, 2003

      Following the arrest of director Narvin Lichfield and an exodus of students prompted by Costa Rican officials, the Academy at Dundee Ranch faced closure. The facility was part of the World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools network, which faced various allegations including false imprisonment...

  4. 2004

    1. Incident

      Criminal charge

      Court records show a 2004 conviction of a counselor at WWASPS' Majestic Ranch Academy in Utah for child abuse by neglect.

      Criminal charge

      source

  5. 2007

    1. New name

      Renamed Old West Academy

      It had been Majestic Ranch Academy.

  6. 2019

    1. Closed

      Closed

As Majestic Ranch Academy

1986 to 2007 | WWASPS

Incidents on record

  1. 2002 Criminal charge

    In 2002 Director Wayne Winder was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual abuse, child abuse and dealing in material harmful to a minor after reports he had sexually abused children at the facility.source

  2. 2004 Criminal charge

    Court records show a 2004 conviction of a counselor at WWASPS' Majestic Ranch Academy in Utah for child abuse by neglect.source

News coverage

  • Dissident Voice Apr 20, 2006 Expose

    Allegations of Abuse in Residential Treatment Programs for Teens

    The article reports allegations that several privately operated residential treatment programs for adolescents employ coercive discipline, physical and chemical restraints, and isolation, resulting in reported trauma among former participants. It also describes corporate ties, political contributions, and legal actions related to these facilities.

  • The Salt Lake Tribune May 25, 2003 Corporate

    Overview of World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools Amid Costa Rica Facility Closure archived copy

    Following the arrest of director Narvin Lichfield and an exodus of students prompted by Costa Rican officials, the Academy at Dundee Ranch faced closure. The facility was part of the World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools network, which faced various allegations including false imprisonment, misrepresentation, and physical restraint.

As Old West Academy

2007 to 2019

News coverage

  • The Salt Lake Tribune Jul 16, 2007 Expose

    Loophole in state law has allowed some in teen-help industry to go unlicensed

    The article reports that Majestic Ranch, a Utah boarding school for troubled teens, operated without a required license for 18 months due to a loophole in state law. Regulators eventually granted a probationary license after minor changes to the employee handbook, but the case highlights broader oversight gaps affecting other teen‑help programs. The piece also notes that an adoption agency, Focus on Children, operated unlicensed for 2½ years before receiving a license.

  • Reason Jun 27, 2007 Expose

    Mitt Romney's Campaign Connections to Abusive Adolescent Treatment Programs

    The article examines the connections between presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign fundraisers and residential treatment programs facing widespread allegations of abuse. Founders Robert Lichfield of the World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS) and Mel Sembler of Straight Inc. faced numerous lawsuits and investigations regarding allegations of physical restraint, food and sleep deprivation, and psychological abuse.

Lawsuits

  • Wood, et al. v. World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools, Inc., et al. Unknown | Fifth Judicial District Court, Washington County, Utah | 120500380 Names this facility

    William Chase Wood and several hundred other former students and their parents sued the World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS), founder Robert Lichfield, his business partners and dozens of affiliated programs, marketing and billing companies in Utah's Fifth Judicial District Court in Washington County. The document on file is the plaintiffs' 228-page first amended complaint, submitted July 24, 2013, which refers to claim sheets filed in the case on December 17, 2012 in opposition to a WWASPS motion to dismiss. It alleges that students placed at WWASPS programs in Utah, other states, Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Samoa and the Czech Republic from the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s were beaten, restrained, locked in isolation and small boxes or cages, denied food and medical care, sexually abused and forced to work without pay. It alleges the programs operated as a single enterprise that deceived parents and concealed the abuse, and brings negligence, fraud, contract, conspiracy and emotional distress claims. The document does not show how the case ended.

Every case in the lawsuit directory

Incidents on record

  1. Abuse

    A staff member was reportedly fired after reporting child abuse at the school to police; survivors report staff beating children, food deprivation and children forced to sit naked in the snow.source

  2. Sexual abuse

    Many survivors report rampant molestation and other sexual abuse of residents by staff.source

Staff

Administration

Notable staff

  • Wayne Winder

    Director, Personnel Director and Daily Living Coordinator (2001-2012, r/troubledteens wiki)source

    Elsewhere in the industry

    • Majestic Ranch Director, Personnel Director, 2001-2020

  • Tammy Johnson

    Director (2002, r/troubledteens wiki)source

    Elsewhere in the industry

    • Majestic Ranch Director, 2007-2020

  • Annie Fagnant

    Former Staff (before 2006, r/troubledteens wiki)source

    Elsewhere in the industry

    • Elevate Academy Boys Residential Care Manager, Program Manager, 2006-2020
    • Heritage Schools, Inc. Boys Residential Care Manager

Connections on the network map

The companies, people and programs our research map ties to this program. Open it on the network map.

Ownership

  • WWASPS

Documents

From the Unsilenced archive

141 documents about Old West Academy that Unsilenced collected and Kids Over Profits does not hold a copy of. They open on Unsilenced's Google Drive. Their whole folder: Majestic Ranch.

Documents (140)
Program Documents (1)

Wiki entries

Materials and links

Reference and research

2 of these from SCIAD NET.

Archived pages

From SCIAD NET.

Other links

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