Who we are
180 Ranch exists to provide hope, healing, and a future for West Virginia’s most vulnerable children & transitional youth. As the state faces the highest per-capita rate of children in foster care and a system stretched far beyond capacity, 180 Ranch was created to be a fully rounded solution for the child's biological, foster, kinship, or adoptive family—offering stability where there is chaos and family where there is loss.
Located in Jackson County, WV at the Historic Rippling Waters Camp & Conference Center, 180 Ranch is West Virginia’s first large-scale, foster care & transitional youth campus designed to meet short & long-term placement needs for children with an initial emphasis on 8-10 year old siblings. Each night hundreds of children are in out of State due to a lack of available homes. Our mission is to end that reality. From intake to placement, we work with urgency, compassion, and excellence—believing every child deserves safety, dignity, and a forever family. A full continuum of care for WV children. We don’t compete – we complete. Families pursue the normal licensing path through a state licensed agency. Children are placed with that agency, not 180 Ranch. 180 surrounds the families with support including single-family homes & full wrap around services on campus. We remove the barriers to fostering and transitional housing needs for ageing out foster youth.
At the heart of our work is the 180 C.H.I.L.D. Pathway, an innovative, trauma-informed model focused on stabilization, assessment, healing, and development. From day one, our priority is safe meaningful & lasting reunification whenever possible. When reunification is not attainable, we partner closely with agencies and families to secure stable, loving placements that serve the child’s best interest—never losing sight of their emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being . This is achieved through an on-campus and post-campus network of trusted mental health providers that engage the full family unit.
180 Ranch is more than a placement campus—it is a foundation for lifelong transformation. Through on-site educational access, therapy, life-skills training, and our 180 Economic Pathway, older youth are equipped with real-world vocational opportunities tied directly to West Virginia’s core industries. Our goal is not dependency, but contribution—raising children who grow into healthy adults, strong families, and future leaders who help strengthen our state for generations to come.
