Honestly, Excelsior was a very kind facility. The staff did everything they could in their power to do their jobs and to help the youth. They were not cruel or physical. Yes they would restrain girls, rightfully, but never without good cause or without warning beforehand. Like any adult should, the staff rewarded good behavior and reprimanded bad behavior. This didn’t mean not feeding you, or locking you in a cell. Yes there is a room where you may be separated , but only for the amount of time that you need to cool off, which the longest time I’ve ever witnessed was about two hours. They fed you three times a day, and made sure you ate, especially for people like me who’ve suffered from an eating disorder in the past. You were also given snacks. On the weekends , if you had personal snacks from family such as hot Cheetos, etc. you were able to eat them and watch a movie and play games such as Mario kart. You had therapy meetings and counseling , and had access to a counselor at any time. The staff were also there to help. I was in the Phoenix cottage, which is short term , but I stayed for 3-4 months. They did this because they were not going to place me in an unsafe home or uncomfortable environment, and wanted the best for my well being and health moving forward. Now I’m not saying any of these reviews are false, but my time there was very different, and I enjoyed it, and I’m sorry if anyone had to go through something else. I thank Excelsior for keeping me alive, able to go to college , and now expecting a kid of my own who I’ll protect just as any of the other parents on here will. Excelsior will be missed.

I was there in the 70s, due to family violence, then it was a retreat for me. They taught me a lot about myself and helped me become a better person. I dont know whats been going on there since then, but am sad that its no longer operational. Kids need places to go to that will help them out in their life. Im hoping to go to the site before it gets destroyed. By the way, became a US Marine after that for 4 years and also worked with a police department for 3 years. Yeah, you could say it helped me a lot!

I lived there for 2 years from 2000-2002. That place should have had major lawsuits a couple of times, from what I witnessed. Couple examples-I had a case worker who absolutely hated me. (The staff I still keep up with, confirmed it) Wendy decided I knew about my friends running away. I was thrown into a white cell with no food, water, not even a mat(some girls actually had to live in those). I was told if I didn’t admit I knew, and where they were, I wasn’t leaving. I broke after 24 hours. Totally lied to get out. I sent them on a wild goose case looking for my friends, just to get out. Based on that... I can’t imagine what those girls went though who had to actually live in there. To this day I remember how crazy I felt being locked in that room.There was daily violence between staff and kids. I saw a girl get her arm broke because she would not obey(the guy said it was an accident). I saw girls walking around with black eyes, from male staff. You would get in trouble if you watched or told.There was almost daily run aways.They really pushed birth control on everyone..at an all girl school. I wasn’t even allowed to get a job off campus without being on the shot.I had a girl throw hot coffee in my face because I told her she could not afford a sex change. I reacted with throwing a chair at her. I got jumped by a couple of male staff members. It was seriously excessive force, when the guys would get involved.We were all questioned if we slept with a teacher that I had personally seen get inappropriate with my friend. So he was removed. She told me that he slept with her, and the school never told her parents. Just removed “the problem”. I’m shocked this place hasn’t gotten sued more. But then again...most the parents were awful...hence their daughters were there. So who would sue?I think this place did way more bad then good. I got amazing work ethics. I learned how to be responsible. I did learn a lot. But to this day....my view is, most of the other girls were treated very poorly and didn’t end up okay.

My 10yr old, yes 10 year old is there for trying to kill herself and strangling her brother shes been in and out of facilities, Mount St Vincent was the last and she did awesome there Social Services for Jeffco placed her at excelsior I do not care for this place shes been there for a month and a half and they have not done any trauma therapy with her still Ive asked and asked and they still havent done anything. When Ive been able to take my little girl off campus on a pass she begs far me not to make her go back she hates it there the girls are so much older than her and Im sure its fine for teenagers but she is 10. I guess we will wait it out

My name is Irene contreras I was there in late 70 early 80 the state of colo springs co put me and sister there my sister made it to stage 4 I never made but stage 3 I tried to run a way a few times. But got put in there but in the long run it did me good I dont know about how it now. Thanks so much Irene contreras perkins

Traumatic, was there in the 80s. Locked down in TLC 4 months. Still have nightmares! Was there almost 4 years so glad it closed down in Colorado. Don’t send your kids to Washington campus if Colorado is anything like it

As a treatment facility, they strive to be the best they can be. Girls fight, punch, bite, hurt them selves and others, and the staff do all they can to help how they can. It is not a hotel so having expectations of it as such are going to absolutely be let down. There are many really hard lessons to be learned and (most of) the staff are there because they passionately want to help however they can. They are definitely not there just because its their job. They are changing and growing and I feel very blessed to have been apart of their facility.

Ok first off you cant go there if your under 13 and second you get 3 meals a day and snacks. I was at excelsior 7 years and i can say if you want help this place will help if u dont want to change it wont AND AS FAR AS THE KIDS ON THE WEBSITE THERE NOT ACTORS ME AND 9 OTHER GIRLS I WAS IN THERE WITH ARE ON THE WEB SITE. I LOVED THE HELP I GOT THERE AND YOU HAVE ROOMS NOT CELLS

Had 4 friend come here... 3 of them commuted suicide. Suicide is very very common here. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DONT SEND YOUR CHILDREN HERE.

This place ruined my life and if you care about the wellbeing of your child I urge you to remove them from this hell hole and send them to a better residential facility, or better yet, intensive outpatient treatment, so they get to come home at night.Where do I even begin. I was locked up here for 5 months after making multiple suicide attempts. It was an awful and traumatizing experience, not helpful at all, made everything worse, screwed me up very bad. My therapist was uneducated, disrespectful to me about my sexual and gender orientation, not helpful in the least, and used outdated therapy methods that my current therapist is completely appalled by. One psychiatrist for 300+ girls. Very understaffed, and a lot of the staff are rude and disrespect to the patients. I was very unsafe there, having other girls attack me and staff members not able to do anything about it because they were doing other things! Roommates having sex with eachother. Girls trading things to self harm with. Violent fights. If you misbehave, you get sent to the intervention unit which is a cinder block room with a mirror window for however long they feel like keeping you there. There was a terrible stomach flu outbreak and all they could do was give us a bucket to puke in and we had to stay in our rooms because theres only one nurse for the whole campus, until we became so dehydrated and ill they had no choice but to send us to the medical hospital. The school credits did not transfer to my real school so I am now an entire semester behind.This is not a treatment center. Nobody gets treatment here. Nobody gets better. This is a breeding ground for negativity and unhealthy behaviors and exacerbation of existing illness. This is a dumping ground for kids in the system that are not suitable for foster care or group homes, and kids who are court ordered there for drug and/or assault offenses. This is a place where the system throws kids that they are giving up on and no longer care about. The 5 months I was here were the worst months of my life and I would not wish this experience on my worst enemy.

I dont have an experience here but a friend of mine went here in which she was physically assaulted by the Staff and the other patients. After going to a higher up about her sexual assault they threw her in isolation for telling fibs guys she 16. In isolation she was fed once that week and when she started getting sick did they give her week old food. Which in turn gave her a stomach flu. These staff do not care about the patients lord only knows why they are working there they cant be making barely any money, my friend told me that the staff treat the patients so much worse than the mentally ill patients do. The staff have been accused of rape and neglect. if this was any foster parent or any other parent they would be charged with child abuse neglect and even rape and first degree molestation. I strongly advise you do not send your loved one here they will leave more mentally ill than before and they will be traumatized why in the hell would a mom or a parent waste their money sending the child they love so much there just for them to get worse. If you have truly gone through all of the reviews you will see that this place is hell on earth no exaggeration needed. Satan lives inside those walls and i dont mean within the girls I mean within the staff. And while I am being very forward about my friends experience I would like to explain the black eye and bruises that was found all over her body after leaving isolation which is when I came with her mom to get her, they charged us $500 to release her but we paid no problem it was worth it I strongly feel that if she would have stayed in there any longer, like many of the patients she would have committed suicide. Rip to the poor girls that took their life due to the abuse and neglect. Please PLease Please reconsider your decision to send your child here. You will eventually regret it. and Excelsior I will write reviews every week I will call every week I will do everything in my power to bring to light the harm and TORTURE you are bringing upon these poor girls. I WILL do everything to shut this hell hole down and I wont stop until the shoes on the other foot and you are sitting in jail enduring the torture you brought upon these girls. Thats and threat AND a promise.

I feel like the positive reviewers dont actually exist and one of them is clearly a former staff member

I would give this place a Zero/Five if I could. Do not send your daughters to this hell hole.

The facility was the best place i had ever been to. Teachers are the best. You learn from your mistakes

As reading the other reviews below me, I would NEVER EVER send my child here! As being a 11 year old and being able to know whats good and whats bad, I would place this into the no no category. Even if my child was so psycho he/she tried to kill me, I still wouldnt send them here! I would send him/her to a better mental hospital, now probably know what yall are thinking right now but it helped Channon Rose! Maybe, but thats only 1 person. But I would NEVER send my child there, because of all the staff sexual abuse and the fights and suicides because thats not the type of environment I want my children in! Take it from me, once again Im only 11 but I know whats right and wrong so early in my life Have a good day yall. Xxx

Absolutely disgusting place never send anyone here! So many people have ended up committing suicide here!If you want your child to kill himself/herself send them here.

This place helped me soooooooooooooo much. I was a resident there for 3 1/2 years, and I can easily say that I am a better person thanks to Excelsior Youth Center.

Hi, I looking to talk to anyone that has been to this facility or had a daughter that went through the facility. The state is looking at placing my daughter there next month and I would just like some feed back about personal experiences and what to look out for.

After 8 weeks at Excelsior, my already dysfunctional daughter left in even worse condition than when she was admitted. The staff skirts federal law with their isolation building where girls are locked locked alone in rooms with nothing more than a mat on the floor. My daughter told me that the girls hid broken CDs, nails, and anything else they can cut themselves with while locked away. When I raised the cutting issue, Excelsior said its okay if the girls cut on themselves in isolation because theyre really not hurting anyone.After the new psychiatrist immediately suspended all medication for all the girls, my daughters roommate made a suicide attempt by cutting her wrists. When she returned from the hospital, she was told by staff to clean up the blood on the carpet in the bedroom where she had bleed. She cried and repeated over and over that she deserved to die while she scrubbed the carpet. This outraged the other girls so much that they began screaming, pounding their heads against the wall, and pulling their hair out. The staff was so frightened that the girls that they called the riot squad. That night Excelsior was a hellacious insane asylum, not a well run residential care facilityWhen my daughter ran away, Excelsior failed to properly file the police report so there was no missing persons report despite her being 16 years old. I sent missing person flyers I made via fax to every public place I could (i.e. bus stations, restaurants), and I did get calls from locals saying they had seen her, Finally she called home, and I talked her into going back to Excelsior until I could come to get her.When I flew to Denver to withdraw her from Excelsior, my daughter was locked in an isolation room in their isolation building. In the background, a girl locked in another isolation room was pounding on the door of her room begging to use the bathroom. The building attendant was reading a book, ignoring her pleas. I was told that my daughter had been nothing but difficult since returning by insisting that the clothes she had been given to wear were not hers. When I looked at what she was wearing, I told them that she was telling them they were not her clothes because they werent. After a short discussion we left with the girl still pounding on the door in the background and while the isolation building attendant continued reading her book.Soon after I withdrew my daughter from Excelsior, Fairfax County removed them from their residential facility vendor list. My daughter is now a high functioning adult with a college education and a very successful career. She still speaks bitterly about the incompetence and abuse she encountered at Excelsior.

I lived there from 12 to 13 I advise you no ! I beg you please do not send your daughter there it is one of the worst placements I have been to in my entire life they have these cells they throw you in for hours called iu I spent day and night getting restrained for months to finally get kicked out I was one of the first that they ever let go just take my advise protect youre child

This place was the most traumatic thing Ive ever endured. I tried to kills myself six times there. We were kept in cells we ate three times a week four if we were lucky. This place is awful and I still have nightmares thinking that Im there five years after the horrific six month hell I had to endure.

All the people here saying that they only give you three meals a week and that the rooms are cells is lying. this facility is a beautiful place, the staff are so so so sweet, they have good food. 3 meals a day btw. they dont let you in if you are under 13 so the person saying they put their 10 year old in there is crazy. they helped me in so many ways and i am so greatful.

The ones giving it five stars are clearly either members or staff members of that place.

IM PRETTY SURE THEY USE THE JAILS DONATED UNIFORMS FOR THE TREATMENT AND LEARNING CENTER HERE. THEY WILL KEEP YOU IN YOUR CELL FOR 12HRS WITH NOTHING BUT A CEMENT BLOCK, MAT AND WINDOW WITH THE BLINDS CLOSED. THATS THE STRICT UNIT. THE COUNTY JAIL HAS THE EXACT SAME UNIFORMS. GOOD LUCK SENDING YOUR DAUGHTER HERE, I ONLY LEARNED HOW TO NOT TO GET CAUGHT IN MY STAY HERE. EYC WILL HELP YOU LEARN HOW TO BE SNEAKIER. IMAGINE BEING HOLED UP WITH 200 GIRLS ALL WANTING TO LEAVE AND REBEL. IT HELPED US CREATE SOME HUGE ESCAPE AND RIOT PLANS. THE STAFF DO NOT CARE IF THEY HURT YOU WHEN THEY RESTRAIN YOU. THEY WILL THROW YOU AGAINST THE WALL AND PUT ALL THEIR WEIGHT ON YOUR STOMACH TO MAKE YOU THROW UP AND WHEN YOU DO GET INJURED OR THROW UP, THEYLL JUST BLAME YOU AND SAY SHOULDNT HAVE BEEN STRUGGLING. THEYLL TELL THAT TO THE POLICE AND THE HOSPITAL TOO. I STAYED HERE FOR ONE YEAR. THE STAFF WILL STEAL OUR STUFF BY MAKING UP A REASON TO CONFISCATE IT AND PUTTING IT IN THE OFFICE, THEN WHATEVER THEY CONFISCATED WILL RANDOMLY DISAPPEAR. THEY ALSO LIKE TO BE SMART, SO DONT THINK THESE ARE THE KINDA STAFF THAT WILL REASON WITH YOUR CHILD BECAUSE THEYRE NOT. PLENTY OF STAFF WILL CUSS YOU OUT AND CONTINUE TO ARGUE. THESE UNIT STAFF ARENT PROFESSIONALS, THEY DONT HAVE TO DO TOO MUCH TO GET THE JOB. AND QUITE FRANKLY UNLESS THEY WORK IN A STRICT UNIT, DONT HAVE TO DO ANYTHING BUT SIT AND FILL OUT PAPERWORK. IF YOU RUN AWAY OR ATTEMPT TO RUN AWAY THE STAFF WILL GO AT ANY MEANS TO CATCH YOU EVEN IF YOU END UP INJURED IN THE PROCESS. AGAIN, THEY WILL USE THE ARGUMENT THAT YOU STRUGGLED, SHOULDNT HAVE TRIED TO DO IT OR FOUGHT BACK. AS LONG AS YOUR ALIVE AND BRINGING IN THE $$CASH EXCELSIOR WONT CARE. DONT SEND YOUR DAUGHTER HERE. THESE STAFF HAVE NO RESPECT FOR US AS INDIVIDUALS. THEY DONT AND WONT AND WILL ALSO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR TO YOU IN A NUMBER OF WAYS.

My best friend was sexually assaulted here. She had told me and nobody else. Her mom thought she needed to go back there. Two months after she was sent back she had killed herself.

DO NOT SEND YOUR DAUGHTER HERE THE PORTIONS OF FOOD ARE TERRIBLY SMALL IM TALKING 4 CHICKEN NUGGETS AND A SCOOP OF CANNED VEGATABLES IVE BEEN TO JAIL AND YOU GET MORE FOOD THERE THAN AT EXCELSIOR . ALSO MY THERAPIST WAS RUDE, MEAN, AND TOOK SIDES WITH OTHER TEENAGERS. VERY IMMATURE AND UNPROFRSSIONAL AND I DONT WHERE THEY GOT CERTIFIED FROM BUT I KNOW IF YOU WANT SOMEONE WONT CHANGE THEY HAVE TO BE WILLING TO OR AT LEAST LIKE THEIR THERAPIST.AND THEY REFUSED TO LET ME CHANGE THERAPISTS. EXCELSIOR IS AN AWFUL RESIDENTIAL PROGRAM YOUR MUCH BETTER OFF SENDING YOUR KID TO CEDAR SPRINGS. CEDAR SPRINGS HAS BOMB FOOD AND AMAZING THERAPY.

This place helped me mentaly but honestly i would put my kids here because you dont get treated right i only had a couple staff that actully cared about my well being im glad they shut this place down

I was there twice in 2012 and 2014 and it was not helpful it is now closed down i can honestly say that i still tyalk to some of the stafe from there but the actual program sucks im currently on parole now so yah anyway i sucks bad

NEVER SEND ANY CHILD TO THIS PLACE THE GIRLS IN THE PHOTOS ARE ACTORS AND IF NOT IM SURE THEY ARE FORSED TO SMILE AND IF THEY DONT THEY MIGHT GET PANSHED I SEAR I WISH SOME ONE WENT THERE TOOK A VEDIO OF WAT THEY DID AND SHOWED THE GOVERMENT BUT WHO WOULD EVEN DARE TO GO THE PLACE IS LIKE HELL UR ONLY EATING 3 MEALS A WEEK THAT NOT EVEN ENOF FOR A MOUSE IF WAS THERE I WOULD HAVE RUNAWAY OR COMITED SUCIDE NOW WONDER SOOO MUCH PEOPLE DIE THERe 0/5 stars that place is horrible

If theyre saying is safety structure and sucsess why on earth do they think its safe to feed girls 3 meals a week and let them be sexually harassed while getting mentally scared by seeing theyre friends commit suicide. i hope the govnt shuts this place down. IF YOU LOVE YOUR KID DONT SEND THEM HERE AND EXCELSIOR IF YOUR READING THIS I GIVE YOU 0/5 WOW WOW OWOW

As you can already see this school is breaking down young females of the u. s and really needs to be closed down many girls have been brought to this terrible place and left from there even worser then they came please do not take your daughter there if you love your child care for your child you wouldnt take them there and let them sufer this is extremely sad my heart goes out to anybody who had to leave there , or go through that and im praying that god heals you guys and you guys heart

Ummmmm...... Ok story time a girl named channon got drugged by her MOM just so she would go there. One of her roommates commited suicide. Then when she got out she became a PORNSTAR Im not going to lie now she is a sweet ,cute, funny ex pornstar she is now a YouTuber and has a book and she is married so I mean I have mixed feelings. Please rember love your children and never let them have to go to this place.

Dont go! Ive never been, but i just watched channon roses video on this place and it sounds terrible! people KILL THEMSELVES here!

I lived there for 3 years... the worst 3 years of my life. I was physically and mentally abused there.... far worse than what i got at home. PLEASE DONT TRUST THEM WITH YOUR DAUGHTERS!

My daughter has been there & its a decent facility , they could change a few things but other than that ot helped my daughter & didnt make her 5 month stay horrible

If you honestly want to send your daughter somewhere DO NOT SEND THEM HERE. Absolutely rude staff. They stole my daughters earrings and three of her books, one tried to pocket her iPod Touch but I came in to their office and needless to say she got it back immediately after. The therapists make the girls feel like less than dirt, and junk them up on medications not even fit for an issue they have. They tried to get my daughter on an antipsychotic and other meds for a slight depression. The teachers in the school are rude and make the girls feel worse than the therapists do. Absolute crap.In response to the owner you failed to address the fact that your faculty stole items for the fact that the children cannot do anything about it. You feed them nasty over greased food 3 times a day with no choice to not eat unless they want to get sent to isolation, making them gain weight, thus giving them worse body image problems than before. Your medication time at the cabins gives them the option to not take the pills that make it incredibly hard to wake up in the morning in trade for getting sent back to square 1 essentially with no rights. Then you force them to wake up at 6 still feeling the effects of the medicine you dope them up on and make them go to school with INCREDIBLY rude staff that makes the girls teach themselves. The time frames you gave me and every other parent to see my child is from 5 or 6 to 8. I could not take my child out of your amazing facility unless your mediocre therapist said it was OK unless I wanted to be slapped with a giant bill. You kept her there for an unnecessary 5 months when I specifically just wanted her there for only 1.Please, Jim Uhernik, if you care so much of my concerns, then address them. Get my daughter back her diamond earrings that she was given from her grandmother, that she was forced to take out and trust with your staff while you accused her of theft which you found absolutely no proof of. Give her back her $75 worth of books that your facility stole and have sitting on your bookshelves.

Yes, this is a somewhat decent place with food and nice rooms, but it doesnt help kids with there deppresion....my daughter went there and she ended up dying by sexual assault by the staff....please do not send your child here or you will suffer the pain i had to....

Ive never been here. And I dont want to be. My friend went there and she hated it. Her roommate committed suicide and found her know her closet. If you want to hear more go on YouTube and search Channon Rose.

The staff here look sick themselves. this is such a terrible facility and I dont recommend it to anyone for the greater good

Dont send your child here, this place is a joke!

After watching Channon Roses video, Im disgusted with this place. I heard that theres so many suicides in this hellhole. This place needs to be shut down for once and for all.

I never ben here but if someone sends you here wacth out there all crazy there

Ive never been but alot of people told me it sucks

My dad wants me to go here to get beat up by other girls for no reason ....but I want to see what he has to say when I come home probably peralized

People commit suicide in this place.........yeah dont send ur kids here

Im here because of Channon! Dont come here!

I never been, but Dorthea Dix in Raliegh was worse

Abusive staff

Stupid place for a 6 year old

I would give it 0 stars if I could please dont send your children here Im begging you

I had such a bad experience

I havent been here but people have been saying its the worse place to go so never send your child here

NEVER SEND ANY ONE HEAR I JUST WATCHED CHANNON ROSES VIDEOS AND HER FRIEND KILLER HER SELF THERE.

Its sad

Horrible. One of my roommates commuted suiicide in our closet. Only gets 3 meals a week

This place sucks ass

The outside services is what helped me not living there.

Worst place

NEVER SEND YOUR BABY GIRL THERE SHE MIGHT COMMIT SUICIDE FROM THE HORRIBLE LIVING CONDITIONS THEY GET SEXUALLY HARRASED AND THE SMILING GIRLS ARE JUST ACTORS WE PEE ON THE FLOOR DAMN IT GOOD THING MY MOM CAME AND SAW WHAT HAPPENED AND TOOK ME WITH MY NEW FRIEND AWAY THIS IS A TERRIBLE PLACE

An absolute sh*thole for girls,they only get 3 meals a week and no one even cares about them.All the teachers care about is money,not even thinking about other students health and safety.I wish I could do something but I cant because Im only a teen.One day this nightmare of a place WILL be shut down if the govt even cared about people.

This place looks awful.

I never went here but my sister did! Its not a good place ok her roommate and the people are terrible