Complaint Review: Madonna Heights Residential Facility Division Of St Chirstopher Ottile - Dix Hills New York

 My name is kerina. Before attending madonna heights I was attending an even worse behavioral school by the name of st. Christopher's. (I don't suggest sending a child there either) but after a year at St christopher's it was suggested I attend madonna heights instead. St. christopher's is located in Yonkers NY and the crime rate was unbelievable. I was sent to St christopher's for smoking weed and skipping school. I wasn't violent. I was skipping school because I was constantly jumped and didn't feel safe at school.

Anyway, let's fast forward to the topic at hand. When I was sent to madonna heights I was there for a little over a year. Not everyone was there for the same reason but we all got treated the same as if we were and had to live amunst each other even if it situations were not the same. For example some kids were there for mental health, some kids were there for violence, some for trauma.... Some to just finish school.. so why group all of that together as if it's one thing? It's not.

So now we're getting girls together that are not there for the same reason and what do you think happens? The girls that are there for violent offences are going to pick out the weakest links and beat them down. You're creating the viscous cycle at hand. This is in no way is a therapeutic facility. I was personally jumped in stairwells and on my unit (stars) there was one occasion where I was jumped for a few minutes before a staff member who was inches away even called a code. The staff stirs most of to the kids up to fight amunst themselves.

Even if you don't fight back and are not the aggressor in any altercation you are immediately stripped of your former color and doct down to red where you are restricted only to your unit and can not eat or socialize amunst your peers. Oh and don't forget you can't see your family or visit home for a month! ... . The staff tries to break you any way they can. some are nice but not nice enough to step up too the plate when they know things are wrong in fear of being terminated.

One time in particular I was carrying out my daily chores. I was sweeping the kitchen and dining area when I accidentally swept over a staff members foot who was wearing sandals. When I tell you this woman gave me the look of death.. I'll never forget it! She then proceeded to tell me that in her culture that if I swept over here foot that means I pretty much cursed her engagement and she just so happened to get engaged like a week prior to this... Well.. she demands I kiss her crusty foot. I laughed. I thought she was joking. But she wasn't. This slowly crept into an argument. I wasn't going to allow this woman to degrade me over her superstitions. It was an accident you're supposed to set an example.

After that the same staff member complained to me to a group of girls on my unit which later gave me even more hell and tried to dock me down my color to keep me from going home. Besides that... to address the sexual assault accusations I've been hearing.. I believe it. I didn't have an experience at this location with direct contact with it BUT Ive heard a lot from former peers that have giving me such in depth stories it's hard not to believe...BUT I still don't think it's acceptable for former male staff members to not only remember my name 11 years later and seek me out on fb to privately message me?? A little unbelievable if you ask me. The staff projects racism more than the kids do.

Another incident happened coming up the stairs to our unit... The girls where singing nicki manaj ..I happened to know the words just like everyone else so I sang along but because that same staff member that instisted I kiss her feet turned to me and said "what do you think your black now?" .. preceded to laugh and then turn the girls on me that were just singing with me and having a good time to make fun of me and call me a "wigger". All for singing a song I actually enjoyed too. It amazed me that even after 16 I noticed how unbelievably immature and unprofessional the staff is. But.. why not one more before I go? .. if that's not enough for you... This happened in the shower room.

We had a few girls on our unit with bad depression.. some took a bit longer to get in the shower. One girl in particular was having a very hard time adjusting and didn't feel comfortable showing with some of the other girls. I understand. A lot of girls that go there end up formulating relationships with the other girls and some try to intimidate the new comers that they have the ability to turn any straight girl out.. to try and have sex with them. This girl's happened to be very intimated because another girl had already threatened her. When she finally got in the shower one of the staff members then checked under her stall to make sure she got under the hot water and not only announced that but then made fun of her and got the whole shower room of girls to chant "wash that smelly a*s" the girl was terrified and crying...While I do believe there needs to be structure for our troubled youth I also believe this place is not it.

There is no therapeutic gain by staying there. Accountability needs to be taken. Unfortunately if you can't tell already the staff has no priority other than making money. If they did none of this would be able to happen in this facility. I only hope more awareness is brought to not only this facility but the others as well. These are just a few examples I could give. I don't really think I need much more though.

Again, YOU grow up.

Hey how about YOU grow the hell up lady. You're just as guilty as goodman just by supporting his actions. Denial is unhealthy so may the Gods have mercy on your soul while the angels weep for you. Enjoy.

It is still a bad place. Now the girls have heroin inside. The did a few thousand dollars of damage to the building last week. 

Connie is always saying to people to grow a set of b****. It is time for her to grow a set, swallow her ego and admit that this sanctuary s*** does not work at all. Stop trying to blame everyone else. It is the program that does not work. 

Lady, if you only had a clue. Rosemary Stien and Connie should be held criminally liable for allowing the violence that occurs on a daily basis. Connie created the mess, then some how was promoted, she should be sent to jail. For her it is all about her ego. They only kiss your a** because of all the money you give them, and if you came around and actually see what really goes on you would run the other way. Kids have destryed rooms and furniture, broken almost every window, today one tried to choke one of the staff. She is in the hospital, who is going to pay her bills. YOU? They have wepons and drugs in the building, and what do they do, nothing. Kids have homemade weapons, they do not do a thing. We have girls that go awol prostitue, get high and come back, and then try to bring someone with them to the pimp. The last girl doing this was only 14 and wound up with 2 venereal diseases. And they let her walk around and glorify it to the other girls. She was a drug addict and needed more help than we could have ever given her. They just keep them for the money.The new principal is a joke. When there was a riot going on that 2 staff went to the hospital for, one in an ambulance, she was in her office on the computer like nothing was happening, she knew what was going on. Then at night they continue to do the same thing, trash the units, empty all of the kitchen cabinets on the floor, spill the contents of the refridgerator, walk off the unit and just walk around doing destruction to whatever they can get their hands on. They have there gangs inside and are constantly trying to get people to fight. They are not reporting everything to the state and to the justice center. And it is ALL Connie's fault. SHe still runs the dictatorship, and that is all it is. Her way or the highway. Mindy Lee still hides in her office and is still a rude and stuck up person. She should not have ever been promoted. She never had anyones respect and never will, nor will Connie. And the only people they can blame for that are themselves. The way they have treated people in the past and present will never win anyone over. The place needs a whole new administration from the top on down. It also needs a new school secreatary and CSE secreatary. They have there own agenda and this is also allowed to continue. Same thing with the office manager. So, I challenge you to call Rosemary and tell her the auxillary would like to come and talk to all of the staff, school, childcare, and anyone else who works there. Tell her it is for the needs of the building so you have a better idea of what to raise money for, then just ask people what goes on, and you will see. Do this because when I am called in I will tell you I am the one who wrote this. I do fear retaliation, because it is what they do, but if you listen to everyone I will do it.  

I have been a member of the Madonna Heights Ladies Auxiliary for over 20 years and have never seen evidence of the complaints registered.  The girls are not drugged - they function much the same as any other high school.

The staff is caring, dedicated and trained.  Rosemary Stein would never hire anyone without these qualities.  Connie runs a fair but firm school and Laura is constantly working to raise funds to enrich the girl's lives.

I have never seen any evidence of molestation during my encounters with the residents.  Any punishment is for good cause and is levied fairly.  Love is showered on the girls and they seem to flourish.

If you are in doubt whether my report is accurate, visit the residence yourself and you will walk away knowing how well these girls are treated.  Madonna Heights fills a niche in our society and is doing a fine job of it!!!!!

Well, now that my experience at Madonna Heights is told, like everyone else got to share theirs, I'm definitely not surprised that this Madonna Heights employee still makes assumptions about me.  Typical Madonna Heights employee carelessness and the comment made by this one, is a perfect example of the carelessness. 

And just for the record, I don't dwell on what happened to me or my friends in that school.  I'm just simply sharing my experience just like all the others.   

I was a resident at madonna heights.  As far as I'm concerned it was one of the best things that happened to me.  Life is all about growing up and taking responsibilities for your actions, learning how to cope with the inevitable and madonna heights did just that.  I walked away as a better person altogether.  Did I make stupid choices after I left? Sure I did but don't we all?  we are faced with so many choices but we tend to stick with the ones we know best. You cant possibly blame madonna heights or anyone for that matter for the wrong doing in your life. I'm not saying mh is perfect or how they run it or who they hire. There is good and bad everywhere,  in and outside of us.  I work in healthcare now and I can tell you from all of my experience the employees are over worked and underpaid. I get told all of the time I can't do this I can't do that you cant handle this etc.  the bottom line is this in life you can take the positive out of everything that has every happened to you or you can sit there and mope.  Everyone ALWAYS has a choice, and has tools to help them cope with whatever life throws at them. However you act or react is all dependent upon you and well only reflect on you.  

After yesterday administration needs to take a good look at themselves. They need to put a stop to the drugs and violence.

Tracy,

    Grow the hell up. You should not have hide behind Barry and use him to your advantage to get out of class and trouble.

It is all over, he was found not guilty. Move on with your life. 

 Anyone who has been a victim of madonna heights (all of us!) go inline and file a criminal complaint with the DA's office. I was through nassua county courts and spoke with the DA's office today they told me to file a complaint. Go to nassuada.org and go to criminal complaints and file a complaint. I would think it is the same for suffolk county court as well. If you were staff and saw abuse you can also file and it would noy only be helpful but, very much appreciated.This place needs to be held accountable for their crimes! This place needs to be shut down for good so no other person gets hurt!

Tracy,

    Grow up already. 

How do you reward poor leadership? How do you reward dictatorship? How do you reward f@#ing up a whole program? YOU PROMOTE THE B*!!!!  And put another dictator in charge of the program. It is time to change the whole management in the front. They never gave any respect, but always demanded it. They will never have it. Connie, Suzanne, Andrea, Mindy Lee, you all suck at being a person. Nobody will ever have any respect for any of you. And it is all because of the way you have treated everyone, speaking down to everyone and putting yourselves on a pedestal. 

madonna heights should be burned to the ground immediately I was there 05-06 and that place is a complete joke they send girls there that have legal issues and drug problems and most lupbeat more f**ked up than when they went in, take it from me I went in there for cutting school and smoking weed I left there when I was 17 now I'm 25 I've been shooting heroin for 4 years I've over dosed 20 times and I can't stay out of jail....gooooo Madonna heights!!!

 My how times have changed. I've worked ther for 8 years and it is horrible. Ever since *indy Lee took over the school it has gone down hill. There is no consequences for the girls. They have tried to  implement this Sanctury *ull*hit throughout the program and from the top to the bottom they are so far from it! The top people are always hiding in their offices. The principal always claims to be at"BOSES".. Don't get me started on the RTF program.....they allow children to get high, store drugs on the grounds and to remain in program!!! The place truly needs to be shut down

 I am not sure how long ago you were here, but it has changed. It is not a catholic school anymore. Has not been one for several years. The nuns left years ago. It is run by SCO family of Services. That is when the place went downhill. It needs to go back to the old ways. It is run by a bunch of incompetent people who do not come out of the office. It is very sad, we are not doing a thing to help the young people that come in , it is just a business now.

This is for the person who posted in theit title they were the owner of Madonna heights yet claimed to be a resident over 20 yrs ago! Times change honey and so do the attitudes and qualifications! How many children have to commit suicide or be raped & forced medication they don't need for the state to realize their is an issue! It's sad it's a self reporting facility and though I posted originally back in 2004 when I was employed I WILL continue to make people aware of this s**t box of a place

 hello my name is alexandra sheehan a former resident.it is joyful news i bring.i am presently a practicing catholic with a heart toward God and a love of all peoples

madonna heights instilled in me a sence of self worth and the values i have carried my entire life. when times are diffcult and i dont know what to do next i kneel in prayer...and thank God every day my mother sent me there.

it is my great hope that people will not be swayed by a single incident that may or may not have happned there. as for me i find it an impossibility sincerely a m z sheehan

please note i have nothing to gain.the loss of this school would be criminal and heartbreaking.

 I'm a former student of Madonna Heights. I was there from 2001-2005 and let me tell you, that place was a real torture chamber. There were several teachers and 1 administrator who were verbally and physically abusive to a lot of the girls there and I would know because I was one of them. The teachers were Mr. Sig (social studies teacher), Ms. Aretakis (gym teacher), Mrs. Fedeli (assistant home ec teacher), Mrs. Furey (not sure what she teaches now but when I was there she taught english and social studdies), and Mr. Goodman (assistant principal before he became principal and then resigned). Mr. Sig would make fun of some of the heavy set girls by calling them fat and even the girls who were skinny, he would call them fat as well. I was always skinny but he would call me fat and not to mention he would also call me useless. From what I, Mr. Sig doesn't work there anymore and I'm glad he doesn't. One time Ms. Aretakis got in my face over something and then she tried to slam a door on me as I was walking into the main office. Mrs. Fedeli loved to give write ups and loved to bad mouth the girls. One time I was very upset over something that happened and I was in tears. Mrs. Fedeli saw how upset I was and she started announcing to everyone in the classroom, "Oh look she's having another so called crisis that's probably nothing" and when I tried to stand up to her, she wrote me up. Sometimes we'd have screaming matches and again she'd write me up but yet her behavior was always excused. Everytime she wrote me up, she always had a smirk on her face as if she enjoyed it. Mrs. Furey was cruel, mean, miserable, and loved to gossip about some of the girls unless she favored you and obviously I wasn't one of her favorites. She always judged me. When I had her as a social studies teacher, I told her the first day I had her that I suck at social studies and that I'm probably going to need to stay after school for extra help. She said that wasn't a problem.  As time went on she started getting impatient with me and just turned into a complete b*tch. I hardly ever raised my hand in class because most of the time I didn't understand the way she was explaining some of the stuff she was reading and when she would ask the class a question I just ignored it and kept reading ahead. Not to mention everytime I did raise my hand, she would embarass me infront of the class by saying, "Oh look, she actually knows something for once" and she would start laughing. Sometimes she'd make me cry for no reason like the very last time she ever made me cry, out of nowhere I suddenly just stopped crying, turned around, and just bolted down the hall towards where Mrs. Furey and some other teacher were standing and talking and then when I got close enough, I tried to punch Mrs. Furey in the face, yelling in a rage at her. And then child care had to restrain me and that was the first time in my life that I was ever restrained from trying to punch somebody. I snapped that day. She drove me to it that my parents made the principal, Dr. Brodeur, take me out of her class and put me in Mr. Sig's class because my parents were extremely pissed at Mrs. Furey. At that point, I didn't care that I was in Mr. Sig's class. I was just glad I was away from Mrs. Furey. I started to not even care about Mr. Sig calling me useless...it was better than the sh*t Mrs. Furey would say. Mrs. Furey would trash talk me to other teachers and students. Like a new girl came to the school and I got picked to be her big sister where I took her under my wing because she was in my group. So her and I became best friends and one day I over heard Mrs. Furey telling her to stay away from me because I'm a bad influence. So I walked over to them and said to Mrs. Furey, "Who the f**k do you think you are? Don't be telling my friends a bunch of fcuking bullsh*t about me! Keep my name out ya mouth or there will be serious problems. And not for nothing but if I am a bad influence you can thank yourself for that because day you drove me to lose my sh*t". She had nothing to say after that. Another time I was forced to sit outside one of the classrooms I was in force something I wasn't even involved in and I was crying and Mrs. Furey walked by and stopped and turned to me and said, "What's wrong? Are you ok?" and I said, "Shouldn't you be in class making students feel like death? Besides why would you care anyway", then she said, "You can trust me. I'm your friend and of course I care". So I said, "You're so full of sh*t. I'm not your friend and you're one of the last people I trust on the planet. I don't know what your deal is or what you're high on right now, but you need to get away from me because if I lose my sh*t right now, you're the first to go." And then of course I get written up after for being negative.  Also Mrs. Furey saw me wearing a pentagram necklace because my religion is Pagan and no it's not devil worshipping. It's a nature based religion  which happens to be very peaceful. Anyway when she saw the pentagram she said to me, "That's disgusting." So all I said to her was, "f**k off you close minded b*tch." And I walked away. One of my friends who was in Madonna Heights with me, told me that Mr. Goodman would sexually abuse her in his office when nobody was around. It went on for a while. She was afraid to report him to the school because she thought nobody would believe her so she only told me and told me not to say anything so I didn't.  Then one day she told me she got fed up with Mr. Goodman doing this to her and that he was also stalking her so she called Miss Connie and told her but she didn't tell her about the sexual stuff because she was still afraid and Miss Connie did nothing and Mr. Goodman resigned. As far as I know from news reports and news articles back in 2006, after Mr. Goodman resigned fom Madonna Heights, he started working in Plainview-Old Bethpage Middle School as a health teacher and in December of 2006 he was arrested for practicing CPR on a 12 year old girl infront of the class instead of using the dummy he brought. Even other students complained that he touched them inappropriately. When he went to court there were a few girls from Madonna Heights who testified that they were inappropriately touched by him as well. But I guess he obviously had a good lawyer because he was found not guilty and was free to go.  After all that, he had to register as a sex offender, which is nothing because he's still aloud to walk the streets. It's disgusting how this guy took advantage of his position.  Not to mention, in 2007 a girl from Madonna Heights killed herself by jumping infront of a train and there was a suicide note mentioning Mr. Goodman. I knew her as well and I heard from one of her best friends from Madonna Heights that she told her Mr. Goodman liked to feel her up. That's all I know. If nobody believes this about Mr. Goodman, google these websites...they're the news articles about Mr. Goodman's arrest: http://www.antonnews.com/plainviewoldbethpageherald/2006/12/22/news/ http://www.parentsformeganslaw.org/newscategories/newsArticles/General/SEX_CRIMES_COMMITTED_IN_SCHO/SEX_CRIMES_COMMITTED_IN_SCHO/TEACHER_PLEADS_NOT_GUILTY_IN http://www.lifamilies.com/chat/topic-108581-1.html http://mydeathspace.com/vb/showthread.php?3651-Cherilyn-Duca-(16)-committed-suicide-by-jumping-in-front-of-a-train

 Ms. Val was just hurt 2 days ago along with 2 other people. She is out for a while, one of the others went in the ambulace all from one girl. The place is out of control. connie does not come out her office. she wont see or help anyone at all she hides with everyone else. her hart is not in her work  she dont step up to the plate anymore. all the things she use to talk about is all out the window. she lost the staff a long time ago  she started to treat everybody really bad tell them if they dont like it to quit there the door dont let it hit you on the way out. she needs to leave this place and take her people with her because they are the same. everbody who work here does not feel safe. everybody is looking for other jobs just not much out there.  You will see this place on the news soon, one girl saide she brining a gun in to shoot the place up they did not call the cops to report it. thats how f%$#   up this place is girls gettin high smokin and bringing in booze. they do nothing at all. it is all connie fault she change everything.

Here's what I remember....I had several uniforms and a gym uniform. I had a dresser full of clothing (my own). I took LIRR home on weekends for visitation. I learned how to sew, cook and make things in home ec. We had a beauty salon where we would do each other's hair. We had a fashion show. I learned to swim there. My group mother took us to movies on weekends if we didnt get to go home.

Now....the head sister (cant remember her name) was mean as hell. I was generally annoyed with some of my groups because a lot of girls with ghetto tendencies were brought in (fight first, think later). No, I'm not racist. ..as a matter of fact I grew up near some of these girls, but my demeanor did not meld with theirs. Meals were very disciplined. Gossip was rampant and I felt the staff were out of touch with how to deal with the girls. There were some VERY VERY DISTURBED GIRLS THERE....and if those were the girls who went on to overdose or hurt themselves, thats the reason why. NOONE KEPT OR TOOK MY MONEY....NOONE ABUSED ME....NOOME TRIED TO PROPOSITION ME.

I don't recall the psychiatrist being available all the time or not because I didn't need her. Some of the awful descriptions above are.....CRAZY! Again, if someone was treated as mentioned above, maybe THEY were the violent one and needed restraining. My brother works for NY Psychiatric center in Queens and works with teens and a violent teen can be very dangerous. He has to restrain these kids without hurting himself or them. Now omagine trying to do that and you're a woman.

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It was a great place when I was there my sister was there too I also heard Mr Tony retired I was in group 3 I had a hard time with being separated from my parents n siblings I want to apologize to all the staff n girls I have a hard time I was in a worse place after there try the pines residential cemetery in VA now that is a abusive place mentally n physically I got blamed for something I didn't do anyway I saw,pics n it looks the same as it did when I was there if my daughter ever had the problem I had I world def send her here BC I trust them thanks Ms Kim Ms pat Ms Val Ms Tanya n everyone who help me Lori

Ha Ha!! i think that i know who you are!! Watashi wa daisuki Obachan!
If you are who i think you are, then i would very much like to visit you. Do you still work weekends?? ;-) Wanna do my hair?? *giggles*
Maybe i'll have to make a random phone call to find out who's working where, when and stop by and say hey....i'd love to go on a store run for old times sake.
Yea, Ms Andrea is a B*tch!! i never could stand her. i know how Connie does things, but she was always nice to me so i can't say it ever bothered me all that much-i'm selfish like that.
Sad to think all those people aren't there anymore, they were some of the good ones. Poor Ms. Pat, she was such a sweet lady!! i can only imagine how she got "really hurt". i hope my Clown (Ms. Val) is still there-i miss her!! If Mr. Tony was fired what happened to Lil C?? Poor baby.
Anyway, if any of you think you know who i am and wanna chat i'm shastasnowe on google, so feel free to find me. Or just respond here since the site emails me when someone does.
Who am i?? i'm the SMARTEST, MOST sarcastic, prettiest, MOST spoiled, sweetest little b*tch ever to grace the halls of MHS!! That's right baby, you know me-Group 1, room 8, come see me!!!
That's it, i'm out.
Ja-ne!!

Danielle S just left. She was offered a better job in another agency. She said if things were better here she  have stayed. Trina, Promise, Martine are not here . Ms.Pat was hurt very bad here and is never coming back. She is using a wheelchair. They ran Sav and Sig out the door. Just made it bad for them that they quit. Funny because the new science teacher was fired for giving answers to the regents test. Ms. gwen was let go and Mr.Tony is not here. People say he was transfered, but the secratary in the front office said he was fired. Mr. Kermit is still here. You can see the frustration in his face with the way things are. He is still the same good person that he has always been. There are no more consequences at all. One girl had her mattress from her room in the school hallway all day so she could sleep on it. She said she still gets to go home so she does not care. Force fields are a joke. The only person to blame is Connie. She is the one in charge of the dictatorship here. If you do not do it her way, or try to go against her, she will tell you to hit the road. She runs the whole building, and calls all of the shots. She micro manages the school, social workers, everything. If you do not do it her way you better look out. She will humiliate you and belittle you to no end in front of everyone. And the next in command is not much better. She ruined her husbands career as a judge. She is just as bad if not worse that Connie. Everyone hates her.  And they wonder why there is no morale here. It is because they treat everyone like crap. Come and visit. You will see.

The first report was written in 2004-i was actually a resident @MHS at that time.....so i very much wonder which staff member you are.........

As for the person regarding the Exec-.-.-.-.-.-i was there-i watched Ms Connie fall 30 and hit the ground, scared the crap outta me. Still plays in my head sometimes.

Over all, i'd say a lot of what's being said is true-i was there for 3 years and change.....there are lots of staff that don't really have a clue, but there ARE some that do, and there are those that TRULY care and want to HELP in both categories.
Shout outs to my homies DANIELLE S, BB-A, DIANA(Blessed Be), MARTINE, TRINA(mum), MS PAT, PROMISE, CLOWN <3<3, GWENDOLYN, MR. FROG, MR. TONY, MY SISTER IN MADONNA(chipmunk cheeks!!!), the ladies in the front, my teachers-Mr. Sig & Mr. Sav especially!!.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.Ok, i'll just stop now...

My Group Mom was fired for actually being in some kind of relationship with one of my friends on the unit........i dunno what happened legally, but i DO know that it really happened despite what anyone says, cos again, this girl was my friend......and she started dating another staff member shortly there after.....

i can say that i really did in fact leave way worse then i went in-.-.-.-.-.-that wasn't hard though cos i was sent in for my own protection, due to abuse. My guess is that they kept me for psych & cash.

Dr. Gurvitch does in fact speak English very well, she just has a very heave accent-she's the head head shrinker at a very rich and important LI hospital and is really not to be effed with---she's very much one of my favorite people to this day..........

Being honest, yes there should be more to this program, but in all honesty, most of these girls wouldn't want it to be any other way then what it is---they're not there to "get better" they're there cos they have to be.

 i'm just sayin.........

Living at that place was horrible everything that person said was true. They throw me out at 18 and gave me 750 dollars to work with i was homeless for a year nd a half was not educated at all they didn't help me with housing job experience didn't even let me finish school didn't give my aunt or anyone in the household a background check had me robbed Madonna heights got paid to release me. To my aunt her husband was a felon nd so was she. I still want to suit for pain and a whole lot of suffering. Everything that person said was true. That school needs to be closed i was forced to be gay my money was stolen room small uniforms was filthy like i couldn't agree more

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Are you kidding!!!???  What office did they keep you locked up in?  let's go one by one on this.

The benadryl is forced. The kids are told they have to take it or they are written up for a medical non compliance.

Verbal abuse and threats by some staff are all the time. As far as qualified goes, if your drivers license was good and your backround check was ok, you were hired.

They should do drug testing on all new and existing employees. They would loose a lot of people. As far as professionalism goes, that is a joke. The racism is all over the place, not only by staff on residents, but by administration on staff. Also, it is the black staff who are racist against the white children. Diamonds is the worst group for this. I have seen it for myself. It is disgusting and sad. It is not a claim it is fact.

Clothing, only 2 uniforms, not 3. If they were lost, they had to pay for them. They sometimes are given used uniforms that are worn out and stained. They are not given enough clothing to make it a full week. Some girls come in with nothing, and they get mostly nothing.

Staff is trained, but do not want to get involved because if they get hurt and are out for a long period of time, they are threatened with there job if not back within the 3 months leave. It has happened to a few people. Now, if an administrator is hurt, say by falling off of a pole, and is out for about a year, her job is there waiting for them. Anyone else, they would not have a job.

24/7 who you kidding. Girls are lucky if they see there social worker once a month. The doctor is here once a week, and she is afraid of the girls. If she spoke english it would help. There is no thereaputic value to this place.

The girls are just here, trying to survive. There are sexuall assaults by girls to other girls. There are girls that have been in relationships with childcare staff and supervisors over the years. There are  relashionships of the same sex between the girls. When you look at the staff working here, the example they set, and the fact that they put all there personal business out there, no wonder the girls are the way they are.

I was an intern for Madonna Heights and I never saw any of these events occuring. The benadryl was always optional. The staff were courteous to the girls and cared for them.

I NEVER saw a staff member physically or verbally abuse a single girl. Also, the staff were qualified professionals. This 'racism' accusation is nonsense considering many of the staff members were african-american as well! Some girls may have not enjoyed their stay because they were sent their against their will. These claims sound as if they are made by such girls.

Also, the girls had plenty of clothing. They had dressers and I know that they were given at least 3 school uniforms. Yes, there is fighting. But the staff is trained in the proper method of stopping such fights. There are counselors and social workers on staff 24/7. The girls have many rights - the only time they are 'confined' is that they will not be allowed to leave the grounds if they have a certain status. There are daily recreation activities for the girls as well.

I was at madonna heights in the mid 80's, and I thought everyone was caring, and it was structured... Just what I needed.  They fed us SO much food, that the girls kidded me that my flat tummy would have a big bump when I was through...

Nobody mentioned the Doberman Pinchers they had guarding the campus nor the bars on the windows, the knife fights, lack of food and water ect. I used to beg the sisters to throw me in jail so I could get out of there. I didn't see daylight for over three years. Two of my friends died while there, someone from the staff put rat poison in their cat food. You were lucky to get two cans of cat food a day but if you went to church on a daily basis you were entitled to three cans. One girl in my group was forced to drink nail polish remover because she left monopoly money on the floor by accident. I wore the same clothes for 2 months when I first arrived, I did not get a school uniform until my friend from the outside sent me some money stuffed into a pack of ciggarettes. I had to pay off a nun with cash to get some clothes. The only thing that kept me going was my relationships with the girls in my group, group 7,  it was the only way to get anything from the outside. As far as name calling went I was called a leper for being half Hawaiian. So you mean to tell me it took this long to investigate this palce? Oh yeah and making outside phone calls was not even an option but for some people this WAS better than living on the streets of New York.

The day I got out I purchased a one way ticket back home to Hawaii where I have relatives that took me in until I got on my feet......

It's about time someone investigated that crap hole.

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When I was a resident there, we only got benedryl if we asked the counselor for some but we were never forced and in my apartment the two counselors we were nice and never said an unkind word so what you have told us is such a shock to me. I only know of one resident that was worse off after she left. She started abusing drugs and she eventually died from an overdose from what I have learned. I was not better after being released but I was not worse off either. I hope that someone either closes it down or try to improve the conditions there.

When I was a resident there, we only got benedryl if we asked the counselor for some but we were never forced and in my apartment the two counselors we were nice and never said an unkind word so what you have told us is such a shock to me. I only know of one resident that was worse off after she left. She started abusing drugs and she eventually died from an overdose from what I have learned. I was not better after being released but I was not worse off either. I hope that someone either closes it down or try to improve the conditions there.

When I was a resident there, we only got benedryl if we asked the counselor for some but we were never forced and in my apartment the two counselors we were nice and never said an unkind word so what you have told us is such a shock to me. I only know of one resident that was worse off after she left. She started abusing drugs and she eventually died from an overdose from what I have learned. I was not better after being released but I was not worse off either. I hope that someone either closes it down or try to improve the conditions there.

my sister was a dix hills resident less than 5 years ago. i can vouch for the fact that instead of being rehabilitated, she left in far worse condition. as i visited her on numerous occasions, i can vouch for the fact that the most other girls did as badly. this place should be closed down as i don't think it is helping anyone.

I was a resident there 23 years ago and it was nothing like the way you describe it now. It was clean, the staff treated everyone with respect and we did not have to drink from a plastic bowel or eat off of aluminum foil. I was there for a little over a year and there were no homosexual activity going on in my unit which was Group 3. The teachers there were very good and we were all required to go to summer school, no choice in the matter. Boy, have times changed.