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By Phyllis Hanlon
On November 18, Harbor Schools and Family Services assumed management
responsibilities for the Middleton program of the financially troubled
Wreath School of New Hampshire Inc. A comprehensive, 766-approved
residential and special education facility, Wreath supports 40 staff
positions and houses 16 children with a capacity for 20 at this
particular site. In addition to the Middleton facility, Wreath School
of New Hampshire, Inc. operates a program in Plymouth, NH and houses
its main offices for the Massachusetts program in Danvers. Wreath
recently lost a bid to purchase Bradford College, which resulted
in considerable fiscal hardship. The company is currently in Chapter
11 bankruptcy in New Hampshire.
"We understood that Wreath was having significant financial difficulties
and might not be able to continue operations," says Arthur DiMauro,
Ed.D., executive director at Harbor. "They were looking for an agency
to stabilize their program for children as well as their services.
This was a compelling reason to get involved. It was also an opportunity
to broaden our mission and take care of kids and protect jobs,"
says DiMauro.
A private, not-for-profit organization, Harbor Schools is committed
to helping children and families in crisis via a continuum of care
that includes psychological intervention, normalized coed school-based
experiences, therapeutic foster care and residential services.
Additionally, the school offers a variety of day programs as well
as transition assistance leading to independent living. Harbor,
headquartered in Newbury, MA, currently has 133 residential beds
and a capacity for 60 day students. Children range from ages 13
to 16 upon admission and may continue attending the facility until
the age of 22, depending on the individual and the services required,
says DiMauro.
The alliance between the two schools makes possible a comprehensive
treatment program suited for several levels of need as well as group
and individual care. According to DiMauro, the newly-combined program
will be called Harbor School Intensive Treatment Program. Because
of potential conflict with prior business concerns, the Wreath name
will no longer be used. However, DiMauro vows to uphold the school's
original mission and objectives. "We intend to maintain as much
tradition and unique qualities of the Wreath program as we can,"
he says. "This is a unique opportunity to head off disruption for
kids that don't need any more disruption in their lives."
A personal friend of Gus Krantz, founding executive of Wreath,
DiMauro has a special interest in preserving its spirit of adventure
and support for high-risk students, a hallmark of the school. Specifically,
DiMauro notes that Wreath's outstanding outdoor education program
will continue. That program has staff and students participate in
a variety of challenging and exciting wilderness activities at monthly
intervals.
To date, everyone involved is weathering the transition well. "The
first two weeks are going smoothly and we're encouraged," says DiMauro.
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