Utah has terminated the license of a boarding school where Paris Hilton disclosed experiencing mistreatment during her teenage years, stating the school’s failure to offer appropriate health and safety services to clients. The state’s action, effective as of Monday, lists numerous instances of noncompliance at the Provo Canyon School campus in Springville. The school has a 15-day window to request a hearing before the Department of Health and Human Services.
The citations, spanning back to 2025, include issues such as inadequate staff-to-client ratios, unnecessary use of restraint and physical aggression towards a client, neglect of care, and delays in verifying employee information and conducting background checks for applicants. State health officials previously imposed temporary restrictions on the school in May, citing a failure by staff to promptly seek medical attention for a student with severe injuries.
Paris Hilton, in a statement on Tuesday, emphasized the long-standing history of children reporting abuse, neglect, and trauma at the school. She remarked that the state’s decision validates what survivors have long asserted: that Provo Canyon School did not adequately care for the children under its supervision.
Hilton, known as a hotel heiress and media personality, spent close to a year at the school in the late 1990s and alleged instances of physical abuse, invasion of privacy, administration of unidentified substances, and solitary confinement without proper clothing by staff members.
Shannon Thoman-Black, the director of the division overseeing licensing and background checks at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, announced during a media briefing that the facility must cease operations by August 6. She stated that the owners are prohibited from reapplying for a new license for five years, with ongoing monitoring and inspections to ensure compliance with regulations.
Utah authorities have been urged by Hilton to permanently close the school, and her advocacy efforts have led to the enactment of protective legislation in Utah and other states. The troubled-teen industry, which encompasses private, for-profit residential centers catering to children with behavioral challenges, has had a significant presence in Utah for an extended period.
Provo Canyon School, characterized on its website as a psychiatric residential treatment facility for youths aged 12 to 18, did not provide an immediate response to a query from The Associated Press. The state directive mandates the cessation of all services at the campus by August 6.
In a show of support for families who have filed lawsuits alleging mistreatment of their children at the school, Hilton returned to the facility in June. The school is now under new ownership, and the current administration has refrained from commenting on past events, including Hilton’s experiences during her time there.