According to the Home and School Association of Southbury Training School (STS), STS is a “state-of-the-art" residential care facility aimed at providing a “progressive model” of care “for the intellectually and developmentally disabled (I/DD) population of Connecticut.” [1] In 1986, however, its admissions were restricted following a federal investigation exposing hazardous and inhumane conditions. Despite this, STS remains open to this day with 97 residents as of May 2025, and it is the last large institution left in CT. [2] But what separates STS from other institutions such as Willowbrook and Mansfield Training School (MTS) that were inevitably shut down?

 

This website serves as a compilation of my online and archival research conducted for an independent study under the mentorship of Dr. Brenda Brueggemann, Aetna Endowed Chair of Writing at UConn. It is still in progress and will be updated with reflections from an in-person visit made to the Southbury Campus.