A former student is accusing a now-shuttered New York boarding school of running a nightmare operation where troubled kids were allegedly strip searched, locked in closets, forced to perform unpaid labor and even made to dig their own graves.
The disturbing claims were detailed in a $10 million federal lawsuit filed in Brooklyn against the Family Foundation School, a once-pricey boarding school in Hancock, New York, located about an hour east of Binghamton.
The former student, who is seeking permission to remain anonymous in the civil case, says he attended the school from 2000 to 2003 after splitting time between his mother’s home in Demarest, New Jersey, and his father’s home on Roosevelt Island.
What he described in court papers was not discipline. It was alleged abuse, humiliation and terror.
According to the lawsuit, students at the now-defunct $80,000-a-year school were allegedly wrapped inside rolled-up rugs and bound with duct tape, forced to eat their own vomit, made to dig graves and lie down inside them, and locked in closets for days without food, water or access to bathrooms.
The lawsuit also claims students were physically abused, strip searched when they arrived and forced into “sexualized group sessions” with teachers.
The former student further alleged that children were used as unpaid labor for the benefit of the school’s wealthy owners, Michael and Cindy Argiros.
Court papers claim students were forced to dig excavation trenches on the Argiros family estate, shovel snow, clean waste from pig pens and animal enclosures, perform construction work on the family’s private residence, cook meals for the family and clean their house.
The lawsuit alleges local officials turned a blind eye to complaints because of the Argiros family’s influence in the small community, where they owned several properties and businesses.
The former student also accused the school of recruiting families through fraud and convincing parents to sign over legal guardianship of their children to the Argiros family.
The lawsuit described the school as being run by “former alcoholics and self-identified sex addicts with no professional licensing, clinical training, or educational credentials.”
Once students were inside, escape was allegedly nearly impossible. The former student claimed K9 dogs were used to chase down and forcibly return children who tried to run away.
The lawsuit also includes explosive allegations against former music teacher Paul Geer.
The former student said he was placed under Geer’s authority and forced to join the chorus. During a chorus trip to Toronto, Geer allegedly sexually abused him, according to court papers.
When the student reported the alleged abuse to Michael Argiros, he claims he was ignored and punished with a “work sanction.”
The former student later testified against Geer during a 2024 federal criminal trial. Geer was found guilty of sexually abusing children and was sentenced in September to 27 years in federal prison.
Michael Argiros has claimed in depositions that he was not aware of any abuse reports at the school, according to a report.
The village of Hancock and local police officials did not return messages seeking comment. Argiros and his attorneys also did not respond to requests for comment.
The Family Foundation School has since shut down, but the new lawsuit paints a horrifying picture of what former students say happened behind its doors for years.
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