Several lawsuits filed on behalf of former students also have named Agape and Circle of Hope. That . In November, a man who is reportedly a former Agap employee was charged with 215 counts of possession of child pornography. I'm not trying to reach for the moon on this stuff, said Richard Fiene, a research psychologist who spent decades directing public welfare and child services agencies in Pennsylvania, but Id like to see kids in safe environments where they cant be restrained and someone can't put a knee in their back and hold them to the floor where they can't breathe. In 1991, Todd Bindley, then 13, moved in. Francis said that Robert Graves, a Cedar County sheriffs deputy who had worked at Agap, sat in on a meeting Francis had with a social worker who was looking into abuse allegations at the school. Meanwhile, the husband-and-wife founders of Circle of Hope, Boyd and Stephanie Householder, face a combined 99 charges that include child abuse and neglect, sex crimes and other counts. Five more alleged victims have filed civil lawsuits against Agape Boarding School of Stockton, Missouri, and the Baptist church that supervises the Christian boarding school, bringing the total number of cases alleging negligence and abuse to 19. Full Gala Taping. Breshears spotted a baseball bat poking out of an equipment bag. Lawmakers held hearings and introduced a bill that would give the state some oversight. It was renewed on Dec. 7. Former students of Agape from Alabama, Texas, and Michigan have filed two civil lawsuits against the Boarding School for multiple charges that include physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. Former Calallen ISD teacher Joseph Sandoval sentenced to 35 years in prison for sexual abuse . One night, he got into an argument with his mom and stepdad that turned physical, and they accused him of being possessed. That's because Agap is a religious school, which makes it exempt from the state rules governing secular boarding schools and childrens homes. Indeed, the version of the school students describe, community members say, is starkly different from the Agap the town has come to know. I dont want another kid to have to go through what I went through, Schrag said. Circle of Hope Girls' Ranch, a nearby Christian boarding school for girls, was shut down in 2020. Youre going to be dead or in prison three months after you turn 18.. . Facebook Page. Woody Harrelson Spreads Anti-Vax Conspiracies During SNL Monologue Staff called it the intake or restraint room. In September 2021, he charged five Agap staff members with a total of 13 counts of third-degree assault, the lowest degree of felony. Clemensen said the decision to close "is voluntary and solely due to the lack of financial resources to continue caring for the boys.". ", "Today, the many victims who have come forth can rest assured that no more children will be hurt at Agape Boarding School," Bucklin said in a text. W But in some states that have tried to close this oversight gap in recent years, like Montana, lawmakers have met with resistance. Agape Ranch will establish a safe environment of 24 homes where foster children can receive the support they need in order to mature in all aspects of their lives. Boarding schools fleeing abuse claims in other states find 'Promised Land' in Missouri . They would put you down, says Breshears. The Republican-sponsored measure requires religious boarding schools to register with the state, pass a health department inspection and ensure that staff meet minimum standards. After Schrag, then 14, refused to answer their questions, he said, one of the employees knocked him to the ground, and then others held him facedown, pressing a knee into his back and head. DSS added . He remembers verbal abuse, such as being told, the world didnt want you and says withholding food was a punishment., Staff members would slam you on the ground, slam you into walls, pick you up by the collar and just slam you around. In August, Sandoval was charged with arranging the kidnapping of an emancipated teen in Fresno, California, on behalf of the boys estranged mother, and then having him driven, handcuffed, 27 hours to Agap. The Agap case is just the latest scandal to emerge from the billion-dollar troubled-teen industry, a loosely regulated network of therapeutic boarding schools, residential treatment centers, religious academies, and wilderness camps set up to help teenagers with drug addiction and behavioral problems. He liked Metallica and Garbage Pail Kids cards, and had a tendency to cause trouble. He likes to get in peoples heads.. 2022 maintained by Gibler Shaw Enterprises. 5151 Flynn Parkway Suite 106 Corpus Christi, TX 78411. The Thrive program will provide housing and mentorship for young adults during their college or trade school career. For a time, Breshears stayed out of trouble. TOUGH-LOVE SCHOOLS CAN BE traced back to the 1950s, when a secular group called Synanon pioneered an approach to curing heroin addiction with isolation, humiliation, and sleep deprivation. Agape Ranch is dedicated to making a difference within their community and building capacity within the team. The campus is also home to Agape Baptist Church. Yet the delays have frustrated state lawmakers. When I first got there, I just stayed on the low, trying to do my best, hoping to get out, he says. Regretfully, child abuse and neglect have continued to rise and the work of Agape Ranch is needed now more than ever. Address . There wasnt really any training, said James Clidence, a pastor who worked as a teacher at Agap from 2012 to 2015. Once in the car, Bindley says, they took him to their home. New court filings reveal some of the most brutal allegations of abuse at Agape Boarding School so far, including former students' account that two staffers sexually assaulted him. Francis lied, he said, because Robert Graves a Cedar County sheriffs deputy who is on the board of Agaps church and has worked at the school was present for the interview. Robert Larsson, 89, a preacher and the founder of Pinehaven, gave folksy presentations about how his school improved the lives of children, who spent their days at the ranch wrangling calves, shoveling manure and learning Bible verses. The newly appointed attorney general, Andrew Bailey, had said he planned to continue pursuing closure. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Interested in learning more about the 2023 Legacy Gala? And that's what it's all about.. Closing Agap wouldnt be so easy, but throughout 2021 and 2022, the lawsuits began. Mr. Lewis, CAP, has been credentialed as a certified alcohol and drug counselor for 20 years. Children said pastors and staff members at both facilities choked and punched them, kept them in solitary confinement, handcuffed them to beds and forced them to box each other. Colton Schrag remembers the night at the Agap Boarding School when, he says, a staff member punched him in the face. "If you're using the Bible or God to justify any of these things, that is sacrilegious.". Its about getting these kids to a place in their life where they have to look to God for help, he says. More than 60% of the children in our county are being placed outside of our county due to the lack of foster homes in our community. The school follows a fundamentalist Baptist belief system, according to a 2002 St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, and displayed a photo of the radio evangelist Lester Roloff, who died in a plane crash in 1982. On Jan. 11, 2023, Agap Boarding School announced it will close its doors, a decision former director Bryan Clemensen says is due to a lack of financial resources. Schmitt was elected to the U.S. Senate last year and sworn in this month. By then, Circle of Hope had shut down after the state removed dozens of its students. The action galvanized Agap alumni, as well, and they began telling their stories to local media and on podcasts. IN THE MONTHS AFTER HIS ARRIVAL, Breshears feelings about Agap changed. But hes not complaining. Thanks to the generous support of The Frazier Family Foundation, Gala sponsors, Gala attendees, and the community, $369,402 was raised in support of the next two homes at The Ranch during the 2021 Legacy Gala: A Matter of Time! Passing under the majestic cross affixed to its towering arched entryway, Breshears gazed over a beautiful campus. UPDATE (Feb. 12, 2021, 2:33 p.m. (As of publication, one defendants case was dismissed, three pleaded guilty to misdemeanors, and one is awaiting a hearing this month.) For example, when many foster children age out of the system, they have lived in an average of 12 foster homes. I can at least try to show others that you dont have to keep it inside. He grabbed the bat, charged toward the front of the cafeteria, and shattered a plate-glass window. 3 KCPD officers shot; standoff continues into Wednesday morning. They were marched downstairs, where things escalated, until, Breshears alleges, he was lying facedown with a staffer sitting on his legs and two others digging their kneecaps into his pressure points. Earlier this year, Smock, the schools longtime physician, was charged with 12 felony sexual-molestation crimes against those in his care. Youre dirtbags, youre hoodlums. Seven former students said staff members had assaulted them. The next home at The Ranch is for youth aging-out of foster care and the need is urgent. Plaintiff was allegedly physically, sexually, and emotionally abused while under the care and supervision of . I was sheltered, Breshears says. W hen Andrew Breshears arrived at the Agap Boarding School in 2018, he was a sandy-haired 12-year-old who weighed less than 100 . Another describes a staffer holding a pocket knife to his throat. It appeared to be a vast improvement over his previous digs. Agape Ranch and Boarding School near Stockton, Missouri, a facility operated by Agape Baptist Church. Trending We need people who will financially contribute and volunteer at the event to help give these . Since it claims to be a Christian organization, is not regulated by the state because of a religious exemption. It now has 12. The program markets itself as a Christian school that turns around rebellious boys. Schrags parents said they were unaware of any abuse occurring at the facility; the school had promised close supervision and to redirect his anger in positive ways. The reasoning for the exemptions varies, but states generally take a hands-off approach to oversight of privately funded schools, and officials fear stoking the anger of conservative voters. Agape's doctor is charged with child sex crimes and five employees are accused of assault, though Missouri's attorney general thinks many more workers should have been charged.. By 14, Breshears says, he was fully in staffers crosshairs. Thats where someone went too far. In November, Schrag joined close to two dozen men and women protesting outside Agap, holding signs that read Torture Is Not Treatment and Lies Wont Protect You Anymore.. If you resisted any, they would start kneeing you, hitting you, just mashing your face into the tile or concrete, wherever it was.. Tripadvisor names the world's top 25 beaches, three in the U.S. CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat". Colton Schrag, who spent years at Agape Boarding School in southwest Missouri, where dozens of former students have described experiencing abuse, testifies during a committee hearing on Feb. 10, 2021. The only thing it would have done, Smith said of her bill, is require these adolescent facilities to have oversight by our Department of Public Health and Human Services, just like a senior citizen home or a barbershop.. Located just outside Stockton, Agape is the second unlicensed Christian boarding school in the state to be investigated for allegations of abuse. An investigation into the school began after The Star reported on the abuse allegations last year. All Rights reserved. The school states on its website that its staff are trained in proper restraining tactics, which are only used if a child is a threat to others and last for just a few minutes. 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