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PARENT TESTIMONIALS
"The search for a school for my struggling teen lasted years. Being a parent and professional educator raised the bar high until I found Waterfall Canyon. My search for a place with state-of-the-art therapy; teachers who are skilled in working with learning issues with love; a program that serves a teen's need for hands-on learning and community connection; and a real "down-home" family environment in which relationship is crucial to growth and development. But most important of all, my 16 year old really likes school and working on her issues. What's more, they really like parents to visit and be involved! I never believed this could happen." ~ Dr. Joyce Block, California
"Waterfall Canyon gets it all right: Behavioral, Emotional, Educational and Medication management. It is a gut-wrenching feeling to send your child far away from home. Waterfall Canyon understands the emotional decision that the parents have to make. They know we are not giving up as parents. Exactly the opposite, we want to save and reclaim our children. WCA uses a holistic approach to treat all aspects of your child’s life. Some schools and programs are good at special education, some are good at behavioral therapy, some handle psychiatric problems well and some treat children with loving care.
But, Waterfall Canyon is the only program/school that we have experienced that does it all extremely well. They treat our daughter as the wonderful person that she is despite her multiple issues. The students live in a home setting with loving, caring staff. While many schools are ill equipped to handle outbursts, Waterfall Canyon actually understands that students will sometimes have “melt- downs”. The child is not treated like an outcast. The child is never reverted to a lower level once he/she has advanced to a level and has earned the accompanying privileges.
Many of these students have been turned off to education and have lost self-confidence. WCA develops a tailored curriculum for each student with the first priority of getting the child to succeed as a learner and then to enjoy learning again. The staff in both the house and the school are wonderful and caring. Each child is assigned an advocate who develops a one-on-one relationship with the child. Advocates assist teens with day-to- day problems, take them shopping, and form a unique therapeutic bond. The WCA therapists are outstanding, dedicated, responsive individuals who are well versed in the special techniques and therapies employed throughout the program. They lead individual and small group sessions with students and conduct in-depth family therapy sessions by phone on a weekly basis. The therapists and WCA staff members conduct parent seminars throughout the year. These seminars become wonderful opportunities for learning and exploring new parenting techniques but also provide a chance for parents to share their concerns and questions in a very caring environment. The WCA website blog allows parents an ongoing glimpse into the school and home activities.
After visiting other therapeutic programs it was very easy to see that one of the greatest differences about WCA is that our child lives in a loving HOME setting as a member of a FAMILY! Our daughter has been part of the WCA program for a year and we are talking about transition plans for her return to our home. Thanks to the efforts of every member of the WCA staff we are looking forward to her return with great hope!" ~ Walsh Family, Illinois
"Our daughter had been kept at home for years due to repeated problems in schools. She had become depressed due to her isolation and had not achieved any educational goals. This led to poor relations between our family members due to her unwillingness to take steps towards a more productive future. She was 17 years old and had no education to speak of and more diagnosis than seemed plausible. Prior to entering Waterfall Canyon, we were told that if she worked hard, she could complete her entire high school education in two years as well as completing the social program. We were totally skeptical, but didn't like the sound of other larger, more restrictive programs, and liked the responsiveness and enthusiasm of Waterfall regarding our application.
Our daughter was in heaven (the honeymoon period) for the first 6 months, then the reality that she couldn't come home set in and she had some emotional times. But through it all, the competent, caring staff at Waterfall worked with her and were consistent within the program guidelines. The teaching staff were amazing, and truly cared about educating her, as well as keeping her excited and positive about learning. She recently graduated with her high school diploma and completed the social program as well (even though this part she was very resistant to). Now, she has entered an independent living program (near our home town) where she is doing so well that they are telling us that she will be able to live independently (with support from the program) within the year and that she is performing extremely well at her 15 hours per week job. She is currently looking for work with more responsibility and may enroll in a class at the local junior college in the fall.
Who would have thought that our daughter, who every professional that reviewed her case as a child said should be given over to the state for care, would achieve all this??? Thank you, Waterfall!!!" ~Myers Family, California
"WCA was the right choice for my son. When he entered WCA in the fall of 2008 he was angry, depressed and dependent. He was 15 years old and his world was falling apart. Over the next 2 years he made amazing progress in all three of these areas. Finally, it was determined that it was time to graduate from WCA and transition home. My son left WCA in the fall of 2010.
I think the primary reason why he thrived at WCA was because the people at WCA treated him with love and respect and at the same time they encouraged him to try to better himself. When people unconditionally care about you, it sets the stage for a beneficial therapeutic outcome, and that is exactly what happened with my son. Now, every summer, he voluntarily goes back to WCA and spends two weeks to be with his friends.
During Spring Break 2012, when my family went to Park City to go skiing, my son decided to forgo skiing and spend another week with his "other family" at WCA. His life, as well as the life of my family, has forever changed for the better because of WCA and for that I will always be very grateful." ~Dr. Thomas L. Anderson, Missouri
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