Our Mission is to rescue girls from destructive lifestyles, heal them in a safe and caring Christian environment, and prepare them for healthy, productive lives.
Our foundation is: HOPE
Hope comes from healing …healing in a safe place where broken spirits can be made whole … a place where hope for the future can be restored. Hope Ranch is that place. Nestled in the heart of northwest Montana, Hope Ranch nourishes healing, inspires hope, instills values, unlocks potential, and builds integrity.
Read more about our admissions process.
Secluded on 360 acres amidst magnificent mountains and peaceful alpine meadows in the Flathead National Forest and located twenty-six miles north of the small town of Whitefish, our facility offers a perfect place for repairing troubled young lives, away from the world of negative influences, poor decisions, and destructive behaviors. Since 1999, Hope Ranch has offered girls a secure haven without the lure of running away, free from distractions.
The teenagers who come to us are rebelling against themselves and their families. They are lost and desperate. They all share a common need for intervention, healing and life-lasting change in a haven full of love, forgiveness, compassion, counseling, and hope. The professional staff at Hope Ranch understands the difficult problems the girls face.
Our multi-level program is open to girls from 13 to 17. Our staff of committed, professional teachers, therapists and counselors believe that leading girls to an understanding and building of healthy relationships will enable the hope and healing that truly transforms lives.
Star Meadows Academy Hope Ranch is a member of NATSAP (the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs) and as a member adheres to its principles and ethics.
“Each of the girls we serve is someone's daughter. Therefore, we embrace all of them with unconditional love, treating them as children of God. We are passionate in our commitment to walk alongside the girls, giving them the skills they need to become successful young adults.”
…Linda Carpenter, Executive Director
Our History from the Executive Director's Desk
As I reflect on our program, the history of Hope Ranch and the vision for the future, I am pleased with the advances we have achieved to be the professional organization that it is: a nonprofit therapeutic boarding school for girls ages 13 to 17.
From our organizational establishment as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 1999 to our registration with the Montana Board of Private Alternative Adolescent Residential or Outdoor Programs in 2006, we have built a program based on best practices - both as a therapeutic boarding school, as a school and as a nonprofit organization. As a member of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, we adhere to their guidelines of Best Practice and Ethical Principles.
In 2003, we created and implemented a progress-based program curriculum we call A Journey of Hope and Christian Integrity. Our work is based on a clinical model, structured by our four cornerstones of academics, therapeutics, spirituality and residential life. We employ a compassionate and caring professional staff including: a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) and Masters-level and Doctorate therapists, certified Montana teachers, a Masters-level/administrator-credentialed Education Director, and a youth pastor.
Also in 2003, we broke ground on new buildings to better serve the girls at Hope Ranch. With two residential cabins now completed, we have the current capacity to house and heal 36 girls. Our vision is to continue to enhance our facility and programs, continuing to enrich the lives of the girls we serve, and continuing to see those girls successfully graduate our program.
From the beginning in the mid-1990s, the founders had a heart for healing girls. Beyond all of the history is truly the story of girls’ lives healed and families restored.
“I came here because I was a child trying to be an adult, trying to do things that made me independent from my parents. I would go do things that people told me not to, just to do it. I made bad choices, and was arrested. Then I made those same bad choices and my parents sent me here. I can easily say, without Hope Ranch, I would be dead or in jail. They made a good decision to send me here. It took jerking me out of my entire world to change anything for me.”
-Current Student