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Q: What Kinds of Children Come to Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home?
A: Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home serves troubled, hurting children . . . children with a broad range of behavioral and academic problems . . . children who are experiencing emotional instability, often due to family trauma. Some children are from backgrounds of abuse and neglect. For whatever reason, all are unable to live and study in more traditional family and community settings.
Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home is not a correctional institution nor a prep school. It is an inter-denominational basic child-care facility and private academy that provides very specialized help for children who need another chance in life.
Q: How Is a Child Admitted to the Program?
A: Boys and girls, 5-17 years of age, are considered for admission without regard to race, religion, or ethnic origin. References are usually made by a school counsellor, physician, psychologist, or diagnostic facility. Placement determination is based upon the school's ability to meet the applicant's needs.
Q: Is Happy Hill a Real Farm?
A: Located just south of Granbury, Texas, on State Highway 144, Happy Hill Farm is a working, 500-acre farm. Livestock include horses, cattle, sheep, donkeys, chickens, and a host of pets. The Farm provides much of the food needed by the children and staff, plus a wholesome, healthy, rural lifestyle.
Q: Where Does the Money Come from to Operate the Farm?
A: The program at Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home is operated almost entirely with contributions from interested friends, foundations, corporations, clubs, and organizations. The Farm receives no State, Federal, or local tax funding or United Way grants. Fees and tuitions annually account for a small portion of the Farm's total operating budget. The Farm is not affiliated with any particular church; therefore, it does not receive any denominational funds. The Farm is totally dependent on its many friends for financial support.
Q: Is the Farm Licensed?
A: Happy Hill Farm Children's Home is licensed by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services as a basic child-care facility, authorized to admit children from 5 to 17 years of age.
Happy Hill Farm Academy is fully-accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools as a private school and is a member of the Texas Association of Private Schools and the Texas Association of Non-Public Schools.
Q: How Large Is the Campus?
A: The 500-acre farm-campus includes a fully-accredited (K-12) private school, designed to accommodate more than 100 students. There is a health care center, athletic center, dining center, fine arts center, chapel, twelve living units, staff housing, barns, livestock pens, stables, athletic fields, administrative center, and more.
Q: Are Gifts to the Farm Tax-Deductible?
A: Happy Hill Farm is a non-profit, charitable, tax-exempt, Texas corporation. The Farm is owned by the tax-exempt organization and is operated by a Board of Directors made up of business men and women from throughout Texas. All gifts of money, stocks, bonds, property, or gifts-in-kind are tax-deductible.
Q: Are Morals and Ethics Taught?
A: The Farm is inter-denominational, and children from any or no religious background are offered care. The highest moral, spiritual, and ethical values are upheld and taught.
Q: Geographic Area Served?
A: Happy Hill Farm is open to children from throughout the country. There are students from north, south, east, and west Texas, but the majority are from a seven-county area known as the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.
Q: Where Do the Children Go to School?
A: Happy Hill Farm's (K-12) private Academy is fully-accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. An overwhelming majority of the children who come to the Farm share a common problem. They have been failures in the public school system. Some have been expelled altogether. Academically, and usually socially as well, these children are the dropouts and kicked-outs of our society.
Q: What kind of program does the Farm offer?
A: The average stay at the Farm is about 2 1/2 years. Happy Hill Farm works mostly with children in Texas, but we do have students from many other states, as well as other countries. The program is a year-round one with scheduled summer breaks and holidays. The children have weekly phone calls from parents and weekend visits about every six weeks. We do not offer a summer program or very short-term care. We are not a drug rehabilitation facility. We do work with children on medications and with a variety of diagnoses. Because of the vigorous nature of the complete program, we are not set up to work with children with physical handicaps or below average IQ's. Tuition is based on household income and scholarships are available. |
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