Therapeutic Boarding Schools in the USA: Narratives of Former Students

Therapeutic boarding schools in the USA are institutions that provide residential treatment and education to teenagers who are labelled as having psychological or behavioural problems (Independent Educational Consultants Association, 2007; Szalavitz, 2006). It is estimated that thousands of young people are currently in therapeutic boarding schools in the USA (Friedman et al., 2006; USGAO, 2008; National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, 2014). My research will focus on the perspectives of adults who attended therapeutic boarding schools in the USA as teenagers, with the aim of understanding their perspectives on the long-term impact of this treatment. Research will take an anti-oppressive approach that critically analyses processes of labelling and marginalisation (LeFrancois and Coppok, 2014; Foster, 2007).

There are anecdotal accounts by staff, students, and parents about the successes of therapeutic boarding schools (Bratter et al., 1997; White River Academy, 2014). Other former students and activist groups have spoken of abuse from staff, systematic deprivation of rights, and consequential post-traumatic stress (Foley, 2016; Family School Truth, 2014; Friedman et al., 2006). Research so far into the schools has been predominately funded and/or authored by therapeutic boarding school practitioners and organisations themselves (Slife, 2012; Szalavitz, 2006). This research has been criticised for utilising self-serving methodological approaches (Whitehead et al., 2007; Bush et al., 2011).

Therapeutic boarding schools are often private facilitates that can operate with little or no independent inspection, with considerable variation in state-by-state policy (Friedman et al., 2006; Miller, 2013). School admission may not require formal assessment of potential students by qualified social care professionals and there is a lack of consensus on what constitutes significant enough psychological or behavioural problems for a teenager to be labelled appropriate for school admission (Szalavitz, 2006; Discovery Academy, 2016). Furthermore, students can be enrolled without their consent at the request of their parents (Help Your Teen Now, 2015).

My research will address themes relating to experiences of labelling and social regulation of adolescent deviancy in the schools (Goffman, 1968; Scheff, 1999; Sharp, 1976). Textual analysis will be conducted of therapeutic boarding schools' public documents as well as grey data produced by ex-service user campaign groups. Analysis of relevant social policy will be undertaken. Narrative interviews will be conducted with students who have previously attended therapeutic boarding schools (Jovchelovitch and Bauer, 2000). Additionally, I will conduct interviews with current and former staff of therapeutic boarding schools. Research participants will be recruited online through discussion forums, social networks, and therapeutic boarding school associations. To protect participants' identities, all interviews will be anonymised.

There have been recent proposals to introduce schools for 'troubled children' to the UK, importing parts of the USA therapeutic boarding school model (Travis, 2016). As such schools may become established in the UK, it is pivotal that therapeutic boarding school models are analysed for their long-term impacts. The PhD will benefit a range of groups including social workers, psychologists, sociologists, policy makers, parents, and young people labelled as having emotional or behavioural difficulties. Results of the study will bring to the fore rarely heard perspectives of former students of therapeutic boarding schools.