Therapeutic boarding schools are ideal for students with behavioral problems. Behavioral problems can include violent, threatening, angry, destructive and dishonest behavior. Inability to get along with others and trouble respecting authority, including parental authority, are also signs that a therapeutic boarding school may be a good fit for your child. Therapeutic boarding schools have a professional support system in place to address these behaviors. A therapeutic boarding school may also be a good fit if you suspect your child is using drugs or alcohol.
Before selecting a school, check out the schools accreditations, and the credentials of the staff. If you are unsure about what accreditations the school should have, check with the state education department in the state where the school is located. Find out if anyone has sued or investigated the school for child abuse or child neglect. Review student-teacher ratios, graduation rates and their academic program. Also, ask to speak to a parent of a student who attends the school and ask her about her experience with the school. Ask how involved and informed the school keeps the parents.
Make an appointment to visit the school. Tour the campus and student living quarters. Find out how much supervision students receive when they are in the living quarters and how much therapy is available to the students. How structured will the school make your child's day? Ask about the backgrounds of the other students. If your child does not have a drug problem, you may not want to send her to a school where most of the students have that problem.
Therapeutic boarding schools have professional staffs trained to deal with students with behavioral problems. These schools offer smaller classes where students can receive more individualized attention in a structured learning environment. Therapeutic boarding schools offer extracurricular activities designed to encourage intellectual growth and creativity. The students can take part in individual, group and recreational therapy sessions with trained professionals to deal with their behavioral problems.
Therapeutic boarding schools often provide counseling for the whole family. The programs are designed to promote permanent changes, but it can take up to two years for the changes to become apparent. Therapeutic boarding schools also focus more than other types of schools on preparing your child to transition from the school, whether than be to go to college or return home. Therapeutic boarding schools offer an academic curriculum and structure designed to prepare students for the rigors and discipline required in college.