Novitas Academy

I’ve seen many reviews on Novitas, the one review I will give. If a student applies himself and puts in effort they can succeed. The Trips can be a great experience, Even during COVID, The boys were able to spent lots of time outdoors camping, fishing, Skiing and exploring what Idaho has to offer safety, I have seen students who apply themselves make great things happen. The opportunity for growth and adventure is amazing for those who chose to take advantage of it.

So first off, I do not recommend that parents send their kid here. Below is my recollection of my experiences at Novitas.nnThis institution is a living hell, and that's being generous. By far this the worst place I have lived and attended school. The teachers don't teach the material well at all. The other guys that I was around had no respect for my property a student had to replace my $450 bike because he decided that the bike looked a great thing to take a sledge hammer to, and yes they let their students have open access to tools that can be used in harmful ways. They were very derogatory in how they acted. These kids also had no respect for an individuals religious views and practices(they destroyed and vandalized my Christian Bibles with satanic things and satanic references, *3* separate times to 3 different Bibles). They constantly were cussing. The administration and staff did little to establish authority and contraband of all types circulated freely. Be prepared to spend $12,000+ per month so that your son(s) can get beat up, bullied, and have relapses of any prior medical conditions.nnthe following text is Novitas's description of what they specialize in:nResidential Treatment Facility, Mental Retardation** and/or Developmental Disabilities.nn**take careful note of the starred section. they have no respect on how they classify us.nn***DON'T SEND YOUR CHILD HERE***nnthe only thing that I liked at Novitas was the riverfront which had excellent fishing oppertunities.

So far so good. I suspect the 1-star ratings are from disaffected youth. I have absolutely no evidence of any kind of abuse or inappropriate interactions with the youth; our son has not complained of any such issues. I can't imagine why they would keep someone's guitar and clothes, unless the boy was whisked away on short notice for violent behavior and they hadn't yet had a chance to work out the return of his belongings. I wish that the academics were more rigorous, but they put therapy first; a boy who wants to excel academically could do so. These boys have bigger problems than not doing their homework or skipping school. Our son has been at Novitas for nine months, and he is thriving; he seems to be making progress in therapy, and really enjoys living there. It's expensive -- very. But what is that, compared to having your child whole again. I gave 4 stars instead of five, because of the cost, and because sometimes communications between the school and parents get garbled. Overall it was the best choice for our son. With reference to another review, I don't find Novitas to be either patriarchal or conservative. Or old-fashioned. We wouldn't have sent our son to a place like that. Choose a religious school if that's what you're looking for.

I made a lot of friends there. honestly it was probably better for me than my other options. there were a lot of issues with the place. the general program was garbage. they would change the media plan every 6 months and the ledger system would change almost every 8 months. the schooling was ok, the teacher were nice and definitely cared. that is all.

Please, do not send your son here. The things you will see in these reviews are true, but because of the way that therapeutic boarding schools market themselves, they can blame anything a student says on their mental impairments like some of the other reviews have done. They only have to please the parent, because the child is not paying for it.