Rancho Valmora
Valmora, NM

Letter Of Actions By Rancho Valmora

Unfortunately, I am writing to inform you of a serious situation we recently discovered at Rancho Valmora. In early April, our clinical staff noticed that one of the boys' groups was acting unusual-secretive, sneaky, and uncomfortable. The group was encouraged to "come clean" with what was bothering them, and after considerable therapeutic intervention we discovered from the boys that a staff member had encouraged some of them to verbally harass and physically assault other boys in the group and that he himself had verbally and physically abused three of the youths. He intimidated them into silence with threats of loss of privileges and extended time away from home.

We took immediate action. First, we moved all of the boys into one area and increased staff supervision. Second, we placed the accused staff member on leave and informed him that he was not permitted on Rancho Valmora property. Next, our licensed clinical psychologist and I interviewed each of the boys individually to determine what happened and to reassure them that we were doing everything possible to ensure their safety. We also contacted their parents. We notified state licensing authorities, and we contacted the police who launched a criminal investigation.

The accused staff member has now been arrested and charged with multiple counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and child abuse.

Since then, I have held a ranch wide assembly with all of our students, staff and employees, from the counselors to the kitchen staff to the receptionists, to strongly communicate that such conduct will not be tolerated and that it is the responsibility of every adult to ensure the safety of the youths in our care. Staff were reminded that they are required to immediately report any suspicious or inappropriate staff behavior or suspected abuse of children to their supervisors, to the authorities or directly to me and that failure to do so is grounds for immediate termination. We have spent days reviewing all of our safety procedures and we have retained an independent consulting firm to do the same and to advise us of any additional steps we need to take.

In addition, we met with each group in the program to make certain that they are safe and that no other incidents of this nature have occurred. We also reinforced to them that we take all reports of unacceptable or abusive staff or youth behavior seriously. Thankfully, no other reports of abusive staff behavior were reported by any of the youths.

We cherish the youths in our care and we take extraordinary efforts to ensure their safety. When they start the program, our new student orientation teaches them to report any concerns they may have about their care and treatment or about staff interactions. In fact, we have a grievance system in place where they can submit their concerns to me by way of locked boxes around the ranch. We investigate and respond to any concerns promptly.

We complete criminal background and reference checks on all of our employees. Employees are closely supervised and monitored, even throughout the night. Our clinical psychologist routinely asks youths during their therapy sessions how they are treated by their peers and staff. She immediately reports any concerns to me. All of our instructors complete extensive training in proper conduct with youths, in how to recognize warning signs of inappropriate conduct, and in their responsibility to ensure the safety of youths in their care.

We employed an individual who, we later determined, had no business in a position of trust with minors. His work history, his references, his criminal background check, and his screening interview did not forewarn us that he would intimidate or assault youths. He has been arrested. His interactions were limited to one group and no other reports of abusive staff behavior have been disclosed by any staff or youths.

This situation weighs heavily on our hearts and souls. Please rest assured that we place the safety of your children above all else and that we have taken immediate and thorough action to prevent such a situation from happening again.

Please don't hesitate to call me if there are any questions I may answer for you.

Sincerely,

Dale Parker, MA
Director, Rancho Valmora, Inc.