Bills Would Regulate Teen Reform Schools
by Matthew Franck of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
December 11, 2002

Two St. Louis-area lawmakers have filed legislation to regulate religious teen reform schools, which have flocked to Missouri due partly to a lack of government oversight.

The bills by Sen. Pat Dougherty, D-St. Louis, and Rep. Barbara Wall Fraser, D-University City, would require the schools to shut down if they do not meet standards on health and safety.

As it is, the reform schools can operate largely as they see fit. Missouri is one of a few states that exempts religious child residential facilities from having to obtain a state license.

The exemption has attracted several reform schools to Missouri, where hundreds of teens from across the country enroll in strict discipline programs. A recent series of articles in the Post-Dispatch quoted numerous former students who claim they were mistreated at the schools, particularly at Mountain Park Baptist Boarding Academy, near Poplar Bluff, Mo.

Lawmakers have defeated several bills in recent years that would have regulated the residential programs. Each time, critics have said the legislation would interfere with religious freedom.

The two bills filed this month mimic ones sponsored last year by lawmakers who have since left office due to term limits.

Fraser's bill is the strictest, doing away entirely with the religious exemption that allows the programs to operate without a state license. Fraser could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but her office issued a prepared statement: "Missouri has mandatory licensure for facilities that house cats and dogs. I believe it not too much to ask that our children are provided protections for their health, safety and well-being in residential facilities in the state of Missouri."

Dougherty's bill would also subject the reform schools to regulation, but with some flexibility. The schools would be allowed to bypass a state license, provided they are accredited by a private organization that sets standards on safety.

A similar bill gained the support of a Senate committee this year before being defeated late in the session.

Dougherty said regulating the residential program is an uphill fight because lawmakers are hesitant to allow government to interfere in religious institutions.

But there are signs this year of broader support for regulation. Last month, an advisory group appointed by Gov. Bob Holden to deal with juvenile justice issues called for the elimination of the religious exemption. A spokesman for the governor could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Meanwhile, an interim Senate committee plans to tour Mountain Park Baptist Boarding Academy this month to familiarize lawmakers with the unregulated school. The committee is looking broadly into issues related to foster care and child residential programs.

Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau, said Wednesday that he'll wait for the committee to complete its work before determining whether he might support regulating the reform schools.