When they started their operation there were no internet and former students were not able to reach the established newspapers, radios and television-stations. There was no reason for them to care about what former students might have to say about their stay at the school. As long as the parents who paid for the stay were happy about having been relieved so they could use their time on holidays and other personal activities everything was fine.
But then the former students found each other on the Internet. They were able to compare and found out that they all had the same negative experiences. They began to publish their testimonies online. Teenagers who were in risk of ending up at the boarding began to care. Numerous petitions aiming at saving teenagers from the boarding school were only. They gained support from people not only in the United States but also in other countries. The trademark “Diamond Ranch Academy” lost its value. It has been something you threaten your child with when the child is a toddler. “Eat up your food or you will end up at Diamond Ranch Academy pulling carts all day long”.
When a boy died at the ranch it became clear that the remote location of the ranch posed a danger to the students. An entire new concept for the school had to be invented. They built a brand new campus where the focus is on sport rather than wilderness and ranching activities.
But the boarding school still has its problems which needed to be fixed. Another boy lost his life at the boarding school only a few months ago. In the long run the school cannot survive if the negative press continues. So they are now in the offensive.
Other schools and programs have been in this situation. Usually the next step is to change the name. The family foundation school did that in 2013. Now they are named The Allynwood Academy. What will the new name of Diamond Ranch Academy be? This attack on former students and their negative experiences will not be a success. They have to move on accepting that the past cannot be buried.