Valley Forum: The necessity of change at Hanna Boys Center

For almost 75 years Hanna Boys Center has been instrumental in turning around the lives of thousands of troubled, at-risk boys and helped them become productive citizens. We are proud of this heritage.

But like many organizations - religious, educational, political and corporate - Hanna has had missteps and failures which have come to light. You’ve probably read about them. These incidents of sexual abuse over several years are painful, harmful and unacceptable. It appears management and staff at the highest level betrayed their positions of trust and harmed some of our boys, or failed to protect them, leading to both physical and psychological injury. That’s why we’re initiating change – top to bottom. Major problems demand major changes, and we are rising to the challenge with a new strategic plan and direction.

A better, more effective Hanna is in the works.

In the months ahead we will dig further into the issue of past abuse and proactively reach out to alumni and former staff to uncover any additional boys who were hurt or abused while in our care and make appropriate amends. This can never happen undetected again, and we’ve taken important steps to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our boys.

When I was hired five years ago, it was to implement a newer and proven treatment model known as Trauma Informed Care. It rejects the old model of reward and punishment with its endless number of rules and restrictions. Instead, it focuses on the many traumas inflicted on the boys, recognizing that they will not be helped simply by structure and discipline alone. While we have not abandoned structure and accountability, we now focus on building relationships and collaboration to make a lasting change. This is a long game which takes patience, compassion and tireless effort.

We are asking for more training and more accountability from our teachers and staff, and not every staff member is equipped or interested in complying with this ask. Frankly, it is more intense and demands much harder effort than the old methods. As a result, there is some staff turnover, as there would be in any organization which is moving forward. In the old Hanna model boys who didn’t follow rules to the letter were ultimately expelled. We see our current mission to help all the boys in our care, no matter how taxing, time consuming and sometimes frustrating this is.

The science on Trauma Informed Care (TIC) is irrefutable. This is not simply a Hanna method. The landmark Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Kaiser prompted adoption of TIC by physicians, therapists, educators and counselors nationally. It is recognized by the State of California as the proper treatment for at-risk youth.

We see an enormous opportunity through the Hanna Institute to export our treatment model to assist other local institutions and become a national leader in trauma treatment. To date, we have offered professional development and training to help other youth service organizations in the Valley, including the County Department of Probation, Education, Human Services and Health; Sonoma Valley Unified School District; Community Health Center; Boys & Girls Club and St. Joseph Health. In January 2020 we are hosting a conference at Hanna that will bring together nationally recognized thought leaders in the trauma field.

Change is hard and messy. We’re going through that now. But the Hanna Board and leadership team, in approving our new strategic plan, are committed to making the necessary changes that will best serve the young men in our care. Returning to a romanticized version of Hanna is not an option. As leadership author Max DePree said, “We cannot become what we want by remaining what we are.” With our beautiful and well-equipped campus and facilities, our dedicated faculty and staff and our ability to learn from our past, we are perfectly positioned to become a national leader in 21st century trauma care and continue be an organization that everyone in Sonoma Valley can take pride in.

Brian Farragher is the CEO of Hanna Boys Center.