"Most of the children come to Eagle Ranch at least two academic grade levels behind," said Wade Pearce, Eagle Ranch director of education. "This led us to establish an on-campus school."
The Eagle Ranch School provides instruction for grades six to nine and serves 48 students. The school also provides ratio of one teacher and one para-professional for every 12 children.
The Eagle Ranch education program, established in the fall of 2001, formerly was located in modular units. It now is housed in a newly constructed 16,000 square foot facility. The debt-free school currently has 8,000 square feet of finished space and 8,000 square feet of unfinished space designated for future use.
The finished upper floor has four classrooms, a science lab, a large library and lunchroom. Each classroom is equipped with a Promethean interactive whiteboard and LPD projector.
According to Pearce, the school enables greater coordination, accountability, and full integration of the Eagle Ranch treatment program. For example, he said, house parents and counselors advise teachers of any specific problems with a child at home (and visa versa) so that issues can be dealt with on a timelier basis.
Eagle Ranch lies on a 270-acre campus and consists of eight children's homes, staff housing, an athletic center, a swimming pool, a chapel, a counseling and administration building, a picnic pavilion, on-campus school, and a 10-acre lake. Partnering with the children's families, the Eagle Ranch staff works toward family restoration and reunification whenever possible, according to founder and executive director Eddie Staub.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2006/9/104561