FamilyLight will continue to use this space to call attention to bargains and unusually high quality offerings that tend to escape notice. 

Arivaca Boys Ranch is a unique program at a very reasonable price.

We call attention to  Elements Wilderness Program which offers quality service at a lower cost than most of the big players.  Careful screening also plays into their success.

We also point to Carson Long Institute in New Bloomfield PA, a boys' military School that is NOT for boys who should be in wilderness or a therapeutic setting. Dominated by homespun values, a refreshing lack of sophistication, structure (even off the drill field), competence, and caring, we think people get their money's worth at less then half the cost of most boarding schools.

West Ridge Academy is a boarding school for struggling teens with standard tuition at the low end of the range of such schools, but unlike most of the others has an excellent financial aid program.

Subiaco Academy in Arkansas, a conventional boarding (and day) school for boys grades 8-12 has one of the lowest tuitions of any boarding school in the country and has very generous aid opportunities in addition. In September 2009 they implemented special services (subject to premium charges but still less than what we would expect) for boys with ADHD and some other learning issues.  This new program has been designed in consultation with the  University of the Ozarks.   Keep one thing clearly in mind:  This is NOT a behavioral corrections school for boys who would be better served in wilderness program, therapeutic boarding school, or an emotional growth program.  It is a conventional boarding school that happens to serve boys with some specific special problems. We hope that in listing them here, they will not be inundated with calls for boys who need a more structured or more clinical situation.

Freedom Mountain Academy is an emotional growth school that provides an extremely low tuition.   FamilyLight ^sm has not investigated this school, although one of our colleagues has suggested this school warrants mention in this group. 

We will be revising this page frequently, especially looking at cost.  Also watch our rapidly expanding Program Reviews  and now complete Guidelines.  

Feedback is invited. We will publish feedback in good taste, consistent with our standards.  Email FamilyLightResponse@yahoo.com

Disclaimer: No  program review, no matter how positive, is a blanket endorsement. No criticism is a blanket condemnation.  When we express our level of confidence in a school or program, that is our subjective opinion with which others might reasonably disagree.  When we assert something as fact, we have done our best to be accurate, but we cannot guarantee that all of our information is accurate and up to date. When we address compliance with our guidelines, you need to remember that these are only OUR guidelines -- not guidelines from an official source.  We have also set the bar very high, and do not expect any school or program to be in total compliance.  It is not appropriate to draw a conclusion of impropriety (or even failure to live up to conventional wisdom) from our lack of confidence in a school or program or from less than perfect conformity to our guidelines.  Some will say we expect too much. Readers are responsible for verifying accuracy of information supplied here prior to acting upon it. We are not responsible for inaccuracies.

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Last revised August 29, 2012, although not all information was verified as current.  Some information was last verified in September 2010.