Paris Hilton has thrown her public support behind 34 former students of the defunct Family Foundation School in Upstate New York, who are suing the institution and its financial beneficiaries over alleged systemic child abuse and trafficking.
The 45-year-old advocate issued a statement standing with the accusers as they prepare for a key federal court hearing. Hilton knows firsthand the trauma of the troubled-teen industry, having previously revealed the abuse she endured as a teenager at Utah’s Provo Canyon School.
The Family Foundation School operated from 1984 until it shuttered in 2014 amid mounting allegations of abuse. Situated on an isolated 158-acre campus in Hancock within the Catskill Mountains, the boarding facility subjected students to horrific conditions, according to lawsuits filed by accusers. Court documents outline allegations of sexual assault, strip searches, being forced to dig their own graves, and being made to eat their own vomit.
Ahead of the litigation, a federal judge in Binghamton is scheduled to hear testimony from several survivors on November 4. Those survivors are expected to recount the abuse they allegedly experienced while enrolled at the campus.
Expanding Legal Targets Beyond the Campus
The legal strategy driving these complaints targets more than just the defunct school and its corporate entity, Education Plus. The law firm leading the litigation, Johannesen & Umana, anticipates filing at least 50 lawsuits against the school and its network of beneficiaries.
Paris Hilton backs survivors suing 'hellish' NY boarding school over alleged child abuse https://t.co/Yudq5saGsp pic.twitter.com/m7jFnfGWkm
Attorney Elizabeth Johannesen explained that uncovering the financial machinery behind the institution shifted how survivors viewed their experiences. Johannesen noted that learning their abuse generated profit made clients realize they were not simply abused children, but victims of labor and sex trafficking.
Consequently, the lawsuits name outside corporate entities accused of looking the other way while profiting from the institution. These include NBT Bank, which provided loans against the campus, and food supply company Sysco. Johannesen drew a parallel to high-profile sex trafficking litigation, stating that victims of Jeffrey Epstein recovered more than $430 million from three banks under federal trafficking law, and that her team intends to pursue every knowing beneficiary to the fullest extent of that statute.
| Entity / Individual | Role in the Litigation | Key Details |
|---|---|---|
| Education Plus | Primary corporate defendant | Corporate entity tied to the shuttered Family Foundation School. |
| NBT Bank | Named financial defendant | Accused of lending against the 158-acre Catskill campus. |
| Sysco | Named corporate defendant | Food company accused of profiting from the school while ignoring warning signs. |
| Paul Geer | Former teacher / Criminal defendant | Sentenced in 2025 to 27 years in federal prison for sexual offenses against students. |
Lasting Trauma and Prior Criminal Convictions
The human toll of the institution extends across decades. One accuser, sent to the school in 2000 at just 14 years old, detailed in her lawsuit being isolated, assaulted, deprived of food, forced to sleep on the floor, and having her hair forcibly chopped off because staff deemed it “too sexual.”
Another survivor, identified as VP, testified in the criminal trial of former teacher Paul Geer. Geer was sentenced in 2025 to 27 years in prison on federal charges, including coercing and enticing children to travel across state lines for unlawful sexual activity, as documented by the Department of Justice.
“Our bodies were violated, our childhoods were destroyed, and others walked away with financial benefits while we were left to live with the trauma. We were children, not commodities,” VP told the Post.
For survivors like Rachele Van Arsdale, the aftermath of the abuse and subsequent criminal proceedings unraveled their lives. Van Arsdale’s mental health deteriorated significantly following Geer’s trial, leading to the loss of her law practice and custody of her child. While preparing her lawsuit, she required admission to an inpatient clinic in California, prompting her attorneys to fly across the country to secure her signature on the complaint.
Education Plus, NBT Bank, and Sysco have not responded to requests for comment regarding the active litigation.
