After reading through the reviews, it's interestin...

After reading through the reviews, it's interesting to me that most of the kids whose reviews were negative decided to write them on fake accounts where they could hide their identity, while those former students who loved their experience wrote with full disclosure of who they were. Just throwing that out there. For full disclosure, I'm writing this on my wife's account so that I don't have to log out of the fifteen google accounts on my computer; my name is Ben Phillips, and I worked at LRA for over three years; I quit a year ago because my own business took off.

I'm very aware of the negative press LRA has gotten, particularly from disgruntled students. I was grateful for the opportunity I had to work there, particularly because of the lives of the young men that I was able to positively impact. I'm not going to deny that sometimes staff made mistakes. When they did, they were reprimanded, and if warranted, they were fired. The management team is excellent, and I can say from experience that they have the best interests of the youth at heart. I met some of the best men and women I know there. As far as the supposed abuse that goes on there, it doesn't exist. There is a system in place which gives students a set of basic rights that they always have, and a set of privileges which they can earn. If they choose to engage in activities which are against the rules, they lose those privileges. It's very much like actual life, which I frequently pointed out to the students I worked with; except that if they choose to break the rules in life outside LRA, they will be arrested, rather than sent to time out, so to speak. I frequently listened to students complain that their "rights" were being stripped because we did not allow them to play video games all day, because they weren't allowed to use vulgar language, or display drug paraphernalia, or watch graphically violent movies (R- rated movies). I saw students complain that the cigarettes and knife they tried to smuggle onto the campus were confiscated, or that they weren't allowed to wear combat boots. Those are the kinds of "rights" that were violated. Of the ones who rebelled against the rules (there were only a handful during my entire time there), and treated them as unfair or as a joke, I have seen several end up in jail shortly after leaving LRA. Of those who were willing to work on their own issues (which was most of them), I have seen many move on to become successful members of society and members of their families; none of those who decided to buy in have had legal problems, as far as I am aware. The system was modified a few years ago to be as physically hands-off as possible while still ensuring the safety of the students and staff. The only time staff intervene physically is when a student is threatening their own or someone else's safety.

The best place for a child is almost always in their own home. If that is not an option, and helping them resolve their issues so that they can return home is your top concern, LRA is one of the best alternatives you will find.