Two survivors of the Academy at Ivy Ridge recently interviewed John Free, an Ogdensburg resident and former employee of the school in their new podcast titled ‘PorchFitcks.’

The podcast launched in the wake of the Netflix documentary ‘The Program’ which highlighted physical, emotional and sexual abuse allegations that took place at the former Academy at Ivy Ridge, which operated just outside of Ogdensburg in the Town of Oswegatchie from 2001 to 2009.  The documentary included video, documents and emails that had been left behind by staff. It also provides strong evidence that parents were misled about the nature of the school and the diplomas earned there were not legitimate.

On the show, host Nick C. says he was a student at AIR in 2005 for nine months where he says he witnessed and was a victim of a variety of abuses.  He was also among the survivors featured on the Banfield Podcast in a March 28 interview.

Host Jack H. says he was at Ivy Ridge from March of 2005 to 2006. The two hosts met each other at the academy and launched the podcast in hopes of raising awareness about not only what occurred at Ivy Ridge, but also at other institutions that may operate similarly  to AIR.

“This Podcast is dedicated to exposing the Troubled Teen Industry (TTI) as a whole. Along with the 'Programs' part of that industry. The hosts of the Podcast, Nick and Jack, are both survivors of the now infamous Academy at Ivy Ridge from the acclaimed Netflix Documentary; The Program: Cons, Cults and Kidnapping. They will be giving insight from personal experiences of what it was like inside one of these 'Programs' and bringing on special guests. This Podcast will be a voice for all survivors here and not here to see this fight. This Podcast is for anyone and everyone,” the podcast description says.

The podcast includes three episodes, the most recent of which includes an interview with Ogdensburg resident John Free, who was a dorm parent at the academy when Jack and Nick were attending the school.

During the interview Free discusses some of the events and abuse that took place and fields a variety of questions from the survivors.

The candid conversation includes explicit language and discussions of abuse which may offend  some viewers. The interview can be found here. 

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