Utah regulators revoked the license of Provo Canyon School’s Springville campus on July 6, marking a significant escalation in enforcement against one of the nation’s most scrutinized residential treatment facilities for troubled teens. The shutdown, which becomes effective immediately, represents the latest major action against the boarding school that has faced decades of allegations related to abuse and neglect.
The decision came after the facility was cited for failing to maintain the health and safety of clients, engaging in unnecessary restraint and aggressive physical contact with a resident, and failing to report critical incidents within required timeframes. The Springville campus must terminate all services by August 6, 2026.
The revocation culminates months of escalating regulatory scrutiny. In May, state health officials placed emergency conditions on Provo Canyon School’s Provo campus after an investigation revealed severe safety failures in an incident where staff members delayed medical care for a 13-year-old boy who suffered a brain bleed and fractured jaw during an alleged assault. Rather than calling 911, staff transported the unconscious boy to the hospital using a non-medical transport company, resulting in approximately one hour of delayed medical treatment.
That May incident sparked a legal reckoning. In June, two families filed lawsuits against the facility alleging medical negligence and malpractice. Celebrity Paris Hilton, who attended the school as a teenager in the late 1990s and has spent years advocating for reform in the troubled teen industry, traveled to Utah to support the families and demanded the facility’s permanent closure.
One lawsuit involved a 13-year-old boy whose mother alleged the school failed to protect him during a physical assault by another resident. Court documents state that staff watched the assault unfold and, rather than immediately calling emergency services, attempted to manage the child’s injuries themselves. The boy now faces lasting complications from the brain bleed.
A second lawsuit described a teenage girl who allegedly developed severe kidney complications after the school delayed medical care for nine days. The girl was left with vomiting, diarrhea and other serious symptoms that went untreated while staff reportedly only provided ibuprofen, eventually leading to kidney failure. She now requires dialysis three times weekly for the rest of her life.
“I was forced into solitary confinement, physically restrained and sexually abused — all in the name of treatment,” Hilton stated during her June press conference in Utah. “It breaks my heart to know that children are still inside that same facility, feeling that same fear that I know too well.”
The facility’s troubled history extends far beyond the recent incidents. State records show the Utah Office of Licensing conducted 341 investigations into Provo Canyon School’s four campuses over a five-year period, resulting in 27 violations. The school has faced multiple documented incidents of staff misconduct, including a March 2026 case in which an inspector found that a staff member punched a client in the mouth, requiring stitches.
In 2024, the facility had conditions placed on its license after video evidence showed a staff member striking a teenager who was physically restrained. The facility has also been subject to a 1982 federal court injunction stemming from litigation over alleged violations of residents’ rights, including censorship of mail and improper use of isolation.
Provo Canyon School was founded in 1971 and remains a for-profit private facility. Its current ownership changed in 2000 when Universal Health Services purchased the school. School officials have previously stated that they cannot comment on operations prior to their ownership change, though they maintain that the safety and well-being of residents remain their highest priorities.
The revocation of the Springville campus license occurs within the context of Utah’s broader reckoning with the troubled teen industry. The state has long been the epicenter of the national troubled teen sector, with some 20,000 children sent to Utah treatment programs since 2015. The industry comprises more than 100 facilities across the state, ranging from wilderness programs to residential treatment centers.
In 2021, following Hilton’s public disclosure of her abuse at Provo Canyon School, Utah lawmakers passed Senate Bill 127, marking the first significant regulatory reform in 15 years. The legislation placed limits on the use of restraints, drugs, and isolation rooms while requiring facilities to document instances of physical restraints and seclusion. It also increased the frequency of state inspections and allocated funding for additional licensing staff.
However, advocates argue that loopholes remain in current regulations. While facilities must now report restraint and seclusion incidents, the practices themselves remain largely permitted under the law. Critics point to ongoing deaths and safety concerns at other facilities, demonstrating that legislative reforms have not fully addressed systemic problems within the industry.
The revocation of Provo Canyon School’s Springville campus license represents one of the state’s most significant regulatory actions against the troubled teen industry in recent years. For Hilton and other advocates, it validates years of activism and public pressure, though they continue pushing for the permanent closure of the facility’s remaining Provo campus and broader systemic changes throughout the industry.
The school’s operating procedures and standards remain subject to increased state monitoring, and families considering enrollment would need to explore other facilities, as the Springville location ceases operations.