Southbury Training School is a large residential facility in the towns of Southbury and Roxbury,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

. It was built in the 1930s as a large state-funded and state-operated residential and habilitative facility for adults with intellectual disabilities. It consists of 125 buildings situated on a campus of . It independently operates its own power, heat, sewage treatment, water, laundry, fire, ambulance, public safety, building maintenance, transportation and dietary services. It is run by the

Connecticut Department of Developmental Services The Connecticut Department of Developmental Services (DDS) is a state agency of Connecticut providing services to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. Its headquarters are in Hartford Hartford is the capital city ...

. The facility is listed as an historic district on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

History

Southbury Training School was built in the 1930s as a state school. It is and was self-sufficient from the town of Southbury. In 1976,

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

donated his 1970 Oscar statuette for auction to raise money for the school - it netted $600. It was auctioned again in 1992 for $110,000 with a portion of those proceeds going to the school. In 1986, admissions to STS were closed. There was a current population of 1,111. The Department of intellectual disabilities was directed to attempt to place residents in group homes and other such settings. The facility was listed on the

in 1992. In 1997, STS was prohibited from accepting any new residents. STS had 782 residents remaining. As of 2000, STS maintained a staff of 1,700 people. STS had 696 residents remaining. As of 2001, STS had 639 residents remaining. The average age was 55, and the average resident had been at STS for 43 years. The State intends to continue decreasing the number of residents through placement in other settings and through the death of residents. As of 2019, STS has 180 residents remaining.

Conditions

In 1984, the first major lawsuit regarding the conditions at STS was filed by the United States of America against the State of Connecticut. A consent decree settled the suit in 1986, requiring that the State improve the conditions of both the care and the facilities. In 1996, the United States District Court for the District of New Haven held the State in contempt of the consent decree. In 1997, an order was issued and a special master appointed to oversee the School. In 2005, Governor Rell requested the removal of David Ferleger as special master, also using the opportunity to request the removal of special masters as a whole. Without granting the state a hearing, the federal court rejected the state's request to end Mr. Ferleger's work for the court as special master. “As a federally appointed "special master," Ferleger is responsible for making sure Connecticut complies with a 10-year-old U.S. Department of Justice order to improve conditions at the facility for the intellectually disabled. In her ruling, Burns said that the state "pointed to nothing" in Ferleger's execution of his duties over the past eight years to suggest they were deficient. Hartford Courant, “Ruling Keeps Monitor on Job: State Loses Bid to Remove Training School ‘Special Master’” Colin Poitras, December 15, 200

The state unsuccessfully contested most of the special master’s reports. As one historical summary of the case puts it, “the court ultimately accepted all of the reports.” Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse

http://www.websupp.org/data/DCT/318374-DCT.pdf

IN 2006, STS was released from judicial oversight. On June 4, 2008, in another lawsuit about Southbury Training School called Messier v. Southbury Training School, the federal court relied on the findings of Special Master Ferleger to find that most of the challenged inadequacies has been remedied under his evaluation process. “In a process of evaluation lasting almost a decade, the Special Master, with the assistance of experts commissioned by him and the parties, measured improvements at STS against the standards set forth in the Court Requirements. Periodically, when the Special Master concluded that the defendants had demonstrated compliance with a particular Court Requirement, he recommended that the court release STS from oversight for that Court Requirement.” Court Ruling, June 4, 2008, Messier v. Southbury Training School.

References

External links

CT Department of Developmental Services site
{{Authority control Southbury, Connecticut Developmental disabilities Buildings and structures in New Haven County, Connecticut Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Historic districts in New Haven County, Connecticut Historic districts in Litchfield County, Connecticut School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Litchfield County, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in New Haven County, Connecticut Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut

History

Conditions

See also

References

External links