Diamond Ranch Academy was a

therapeutic boarding school Therapeutic boarding school is an institution where students reside on campus and are provided with both educational and therapeutic services. These institutions first began to emerge in the late 1960s. Description A therapeutic boarding school ...

just outside the town of

Hurricane, Utah Hurricane ( ) is a city in Washington County, Utah, United States. Its population was 20,036 as of the 2020 United States Census estimates. The Hurricane valley makes up the easternmost part of the St. George metropolitan area and is near Zi ...

, United States. It admitted adolescents, 12–18, with various issues, including anger management issues and major depressive disorder. Diamond Ranch Academy was founded in

Idaho Falls Idaho Falls is the List of cities in Idaho, fourth most populous city in Idaho and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, Bonneville County. It is the state's most populous city outside the Boise metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United St ...

in 1999 by Rob Dias and later moved to southern

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, where it occupied a

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

.DIAMOND RANCH ACADEMY New Perspectives
, ''Woodbury Reports'' website, July 30, 2004 It closed in August 2023 after a decision by Utah officials not to renew the school's license. Its education programs were

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

by the

Northwest Accreditation Commission The Northwest Accreditation Commission (NWAC), formerly named the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, is a non-governmental organization that provides accreditation to educational institutions in the Northwestern United States. The C ...

The Joint Commission The Joint Commission is a United States-based nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c) organization that accredits more than 22,000 US health care organizations and programs. The international branch accredits medical services from around the world. A majori ...

, and its courses generally lasted between ten and twelve months. Activities included various

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

s, including interscholastic competition, as well as caring for farm animals. Diamond Ranch Academy charged a tuition fee of $12,000 per month. Some students who required

special education Special education (also known as special-needs education, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, and SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual di ...

services had their tuition fees covered by school districts in California and Washington. In 2022 a student died at the school after a period of illness, and the

Utah Department of Health The Utah Department of Health is the Government of Utah's body responsible for public health. It is headquartered in the Cannon Health Building in Salt Lake City. Services In July 2014 the Utah Department of Health issued its first permits for h ...

subsequently issued an extreme level citation to Diamond Ranch Academy for failure to provide and seek necessary medical care for a client.

History

When Diamond Ranch Academy first opened in 1999, it was a working ranch in Idaho. Students were expected to take part in a

cattle drive Droving is the practice of walking livestock over long distances. It is a type of herding, often associated with cattle, in which case it is a cattle drive (particularly in the US). Droving stock to market—usually on foot and often with the ...

. During the first 2–6 weeks at Diamond Ranch Academy there was no educational component. Students would take part in a wilderness component to the program. Afterwards the student would receive "continuing education packets" that had been developed by

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

. Enrollees aged 12 to 17 were housed in groups based on age and gender on four separate areas of the ranch. Students who had reached the age of 18 before completing the program were housed in a fifth area.Judith E. Bessette
Visit Report: Diamond Ranch Academy
, ''Woodbury Reports'' website, April 28, 2010 Diamond Ranch Academy had three locations where they ran their programs: Timber Creek Ranch, near the town of

Salmon, Idaho Salmon is a city in Lemhi County, Idaho. The population was 3,119 at the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Lemhi County. History The Lewis and Clark Expedition crossed the Continental Divide at Lemhi Pass, to the southeast of Sal ...

; the Swan Valley Ranch near

Jackson Hole Jackson Hole (originally called Jackson's Hole by mountain men) is a valley between the Gros Ventre Range, Gros Ventre and Teton Range, Teton mountain ranges in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the border with Idaho, in Teton County, Wyoming, T ...

, Wyoming; and the Pitchfork Ranch in Southern

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

.In 2001, they moved to a campus outside of the town of Hurricane, Utah. In 2012, a new campus was opened at a site about from

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

. In December 2022 a 17-year-old girl, Taylor Goodridge, collapsed and died from sepsis caused by

acute peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and covering of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One pa ...

while attending the school, which resulted in media attention.Kingkade, Tyler. (April 22, 2023)
Teen vomited on multiple days before dying of infection at Utah boarding school, state finds
", NBC News. Retrieved April 22, 2023. The State of Utah Department of Human Services found in a subsequent investigation that she had been ill since October 2022, reporting back pain, difficulty breathing, and difficulty sleeping because of the pain. Goodridge was found to have vomited at least 14 times in the 12-day period prior to her death. Goodridge's parents have since filed a civil lawsuit against the school, claiming that she "begged for help" multiple times before she died without being provided medical care. Between December 2022 and March 2023, Diamond Ranch Academy was suspended from taking on new students by the State of

Utah Department of Human Services The Utah Department of Health is the Government of Utah's body responsible for public health. It is headquartered in the Cannon Health Building in Salt Lake City. Services In July 2014 the Utah Department of Health issued its first permits for h ...

while the student's death was investigated. In February 2023 Sky News published an article discussing Goodridge's death. It included claims by a previous client who alleged that she had suffered partial facial paralysis after being restrained by staff on the campus. Goodridge's death was the third recorded fatality of a student at Diamond Ranch Academy. On July 11, 2023, the Utah Department of Human Services declined Diamond Ranch Academy's request for license renewal in the capacity of a

Residential Treatment Center A residential treatment center (RTC), sometimes called a drug rehabilitation, rehab, is a live-in health care provider#Medical nursing home, health care facility providing therapy for substance use disorders, mental illness, or other behavioral pr ...

and Therapeutic Boarding School. Diamond Ranch Academy officially closed on August 14, 2023. In 2024, staff members and administrators from Diamond Ranch Academy were listed on a license application for RAFA Academy, a boarding school at the old Diamond Ranch Academy campus.

School structure

Diamond Ranch Academy used a

token economy A token economy is a system of contingency management based on the systematic reinforcement of target behavior. The reinforcers are symbols or tokens that can be exchanged for other reinforcers. A token economy is based on the principles of o ...

system as part of its program. Students earn credits by completing school work, the reward being extra benefits and activities.

Notable staff

* Chad Ryan Huntsman

Former headteachers

* Cory Henwood * Bo Iverson

Oversight

* State of Utah Department of Human Services * National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs

References

External links

Official siteDiamond Ranch Academy Reviews
{{Troubled teen industry Private high schools in Utah Private middle schools in Utah Therapeutic boarding schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 1999 Schools in Washington County, Utah 1999 establishments in Idaho Behavior modification All pages needing cleanup Schools needing cleanup Troubled teen programs