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Despite scrutiny, special education money flows to for-profit residential treatment centers
An AP investigation found at least 24 out-of-state placements at one Missouri center in 2025, exposing weak oversight and referral incentives.
- An Associated Press investigation reveals for-profit residential facilities are tapping into Individualized Education Program funds meant for students with disabilities, exploiting federal law that allows out-of-state placements.
- Consultants often charge $10,000 for referrals to specific residential facilities, Oregon state Sen. Sara Gelser Blouin notes, while many states lack required oversight for such placements, creating safety gaps.
- Calo Programs in Lake Ozarks, Missouri, serves children from 30 states, with Illinois and California special education money paying for at least 24 students during 2025.
- California state Sen. Shannon Grove championed a law requiring education officials to interview students in person and hold quarterly calls on unmonitored phone lines, addressing previously "broken" communication.
- Nearly 300 California students remain in out-of-state placements, warns Jennifer Rodriguez, executive director of the San Francisco-based Youth Law Center, exposing youth to harm regardless of funding source.
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25 Articles
25 Articles
Associated Press News+24 Reposted by 24 other sources
Despite scrutiny, special education money flows to for-profit residential treatment centers
Many for-profit residential facilities in the so-called troubled teen industry nationwide that claim to treat severe mental and behavioral health issues in children and teens are deftly tapping into taxpayer money meant for students with disabilities.
·New York, United States
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Total News Sources25
Leaning Left12Leaning Right1Center8Last UpdatedBias Distribution57% Left
Bias Distribution
- 57% of the sources lean Left
57% Left
L 57%
C 38%
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