Alumni Questionnaire ← Back to Index
Eric Sloan:
Your name, first and last.
Eric Sloan
To which institutions were you sent?
I was in Canada and the Dominican.
How old were you?
16-17
Date you entered The Program/ Date you left.
97-98
What was the highest level you attained?
2nd
Please describe the circumstances that got you sent to The Program:
Smoked weed and was the typical bad ass kid which was the way I coped with my brothers death.
Which house were you in?
Don't remember in Canada, Thomas and Huyck.
Please describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any.
I got pushed and slammed around all the time for trying to tell my parents what really went on in the program and for worrying about my swollen lymphnods that were the size of golf balls, which seems legitimate because cancer runs in my family. I was constantly reminded what a piece of shit I was and had to stay in push-up position for hours at a time. The main thing was emotional, the physical stuff really didn't bother me, muscles heal. I was given tons of made up 'issues' that I had to deal with before I could leave.
Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any.
Pretty much all the same stuff for my fellow low levelers.
Do you have any good memories of The Program? What are they?
No-bakes and once in a blue moon playing basketball on our "free" days, which were usually spent scrubbing tile floors for 8 hours that day. Going home.
What is your overall impression of The Program - did it "help you"?
It was a wake up call, it made me appreciate freedom and all the other things normal members of society take for granted, but so does prison. I think it hurt me more than anything, it forced me to hide all my emotions and feelings because if I didn't I would be disciplined. I still can't express my emotions.
What do you think of the quality of education you received?
Complete trash, they gave you a book and you had to do the assignments at the end of each chapter. I wasn't taught anything. Hell they made me take calculus at 16 and no teacher had any clue. Imagine a 16 year old kid trying to teach himself calc, I got disciplined often because I fell behind my assignments in calc. I was once given swats for writing a short position paper because I used a similar topic that was in my book. I did like the nature of the work because it was my ticket out because I could go at my own pace and I did so much school work I would of graduated like May of what was my real junior year. I was always forced to do the exact same English assignments over and over again because the teacher didn't like me doing double the school work as my cell mates and got disciplined plenty of times for falling behind in English.
How old are you today?
24
Did you go to college afterward? If so, what degrees do you have?
Yes, I obtained a B.S. in Human resources management from Clemson University (Go Tigers) in 2003 and I recently finished my Masters degree in healthcare administration.
What is your profession?
I am about to join the Army unless the perfect job comes around really soon.
Do you consider yourself a Christian today?
I am a devote Catholic.
What effect did "The Program" have on your faith?
None really, the program is strictly Protestant.
Please feel free to add comments here.
The NHYM brochure looks like your sending your kid to Disney World. Parents need to be informed before they dump the responsibility of their children off to, for the most part, untrained and under-qualified staff. The program might work for some kids, usually the extreme cases but for the majority it is simply the last thing they need, it's like trying to put a fire out with gasoline. A person's adolescent years are by far the most important, that is where you find oneself, one's personality, you form real relationships, you learn to deal with failure as well as trials and tribulations. You simply can't do that in the institutional setting of the program. Every student whose parents pawned off the responsibility which they assume when they bring life into the world can never be repaid for the for the priceless high school years that was taken away from us. The program will want your kids to stay there until their college fund runs dry and they have to take out a second mortgage on the house, but success in the program has absolutely nothing to do with real life.
