Summer Boot camp for Teens

Summer Boot camp for Teens

Summer boot camp for teens seem like a dream solution for parents. Their child may be leaning towards a life of crime, addicted to an illegal substance or simply out of control. Summer boot camps work, but you must be incredibly selective or you could be putting your child in danger.

The 2007 movie Boot Camp, based on real events, shared the downside to summer boot camps for teens. The movie focused on the harsh disciplinary measures taken to control the teens, including torture.

There are great boot camps for teens, but parents often fail to understand how to weed the good from the bad. Many parents think if they choose a religiously oriented boot camp, their child will be safe from harm. This is not always true.

Summer Boot Camp Nightmares

Tony Haynes was 14 when his mom sent him to America's Buffalo Soldiers Re-enactor's Association's summer boot camp for teens. He'd slashed her tires and gotten caught shoplifting, so she was desperate for help and followed the advice of her son's therapist. When Tony asked to quit the program, a camp counselor forced him to sit on the ground for several hours. In the intense heat, he became severely dehydrated, hallucinated and ate dirt thinking it was water. The program's director felt Haynes was faking. Haynes died from dehydration caused by heat exposure.

In 2007, Love Demonstrated Ministries, a Christian boot camp program, became the subject of an intense investigation. A girl enrolled in the 32-day summer boot camp for teens suffered multiple injuries after being dragged behind a van by staff members as punishment for falling behind on a morning run.

Thirteen-year-old Alex Harris was denied water and forced to run despite his complains of head pain and thirst. At one point, he attempted to stop at a water fountain and was dragged away by counselors at the Hope Youth Ranch, a state funded boot camp. The coroner stated had Alex be given some water, he might have lived.

These deaths are only a handful of deaths that occur in summer boot camps. Many of the deaths involve suffocation when counselors pin down the teens in order to restrain them. It's important to thoroughly research the boot camp before sending your child to one.

Choosing the Best Summer Boot Camp for Teens

Many private boot camps avoid state licensing and inspection requirements by limiting their programs to a few weeks. These programs are exempt from inspections and licenses in many states and should be avoided.

Research state requirements on licensing and inspections of summer boot camps. States with strict laws regulating boot camps generally have safer, effective boot camp programs.

Get a list of all staff members at the boot camp. Look for programs run by those with degrees in juvenile counseling or therapy.

Programs that ask parents to attend mandated therapy sessions are even better. Anasazi is a wilderness boot camp fully staffed by juvenile therapists, psychologists and medical doctors. Parents must attend counseling sessions.

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