Missouri regulates boarding schools after abuse allegations

By JIM SALTER
Associated Press

Fifteen years after Maggie Drew was first sent to Circle of Hope Girls’ Ranch in southwestern Missouri, she says she still bears psychological scars and physical pain from abuse. Brett Harper says he has debilitating injuries from his time at the nearby Agape Boarding School. They are among dozens of people who say they were abused at those schools. Those allegations helped prompt a new Missouri law aimed at reining in religious boarding schools that for decades went without any oversight by the state. The founders of Circle of Hope face around 100 charges, some alleging sexual abuse. Agape’s doctor is accused of child sex crimes and five employees are accused of assault.