Despite the conversation growing about the troubled teen industry within the last few years, it has mostly centred around America. However, these places exist within Canada, too - Venture Academy being the biggest one of them all, with 2 campuses (formerly 3), admitting children from 11-18. My name is Isabelle, and I spent 18 months at Venture Academy (VA) from 2019-2021 where I was abused, neglected and brainwashed - and 3 years out, I am still unpacking the trauma from what happened to me there. Not only were we emotionally abused, but we were refused doctor visits for injuries (with which we were forced to do workouts made for professional athletes), forced on/off medication (whichever one you wanted to do, they forced you to do the opposite), and refused contact with anyone either within or outside of the facility. Isolation during COVID was real to us before COVID was even there, except we were not only isolated physically but were denied any communication to the outside world at all. 

CARF is the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, which gives out accreditations for rehabilitative services. VA is accredited by CARF. Despite not being a real rehabilitative institution and abusing children for monetary gain, we have been struggling to get them to revoke it. VA loves telling people they are an "accredited institution" - using their accreditation to manipulate and convince desperate parents to spend their life savings on the program, despite most of their staff, including the families we were forced to live with, being unqualified to perform any type of therapy. 

Kids are still being admitted today, and nothing has changed. Help save these kids, and help them get the help they actually need by signing this petition.