Alabama Programs & Schools
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils not only study, but also live during term time, with their fellow students and possibly teachers. The word ‘boarding’ in this sense means to provide food and lodging. There are many different types of boarding schools including military boarding schools, christian boarding schools, military boarding schools, all boy boarding schools, all girl boarding schools, arts boarding schools, etc.
Wilderness therapy is a form of adventure therapy that relies on the natural aspects of a primitive outdoor sojourn or wilderness expedition. Wilderness therapy is often used for behavior modification by the families of young people. But the aims and methods of wilderness therapy don’t center on behavior modification. Many wilderness therapy programs avoid what they view as manipulations, contrived activities, psychological games, and contrived consequences (ANASAZI Foundation 1990). Most programs employ no force, confrontation, point or level systems, or other overt behavioral modification techniques or models. They stress assertiveness, open communication between staff and students, and are very group-oriented. It is very important to note that there are MANY models of wilderness therapy reflective of different programs.
In the last few years boot camps have been including a number of rehabilitation-type programs such as education, counseling, vocational training or special programs to address the needs of drug offenders. More and more and with the same methods, boot camps also offer programs as “quick-fix solutions” for kids of parents who hope to regain lost control of their teens or who desire behavior modification. In advertisements they claim to “scare kids straight”, “help defiant adolescents improve their behavior” and guarantee “97% parent satisfaction”. In these cases it is not a judge but the parents who decide the fate of a teen and they cover the quite considerable costs. The consent of the teen is not required.
A residential treatment center, often referred to by the acronym RTC, is a live-in therapy/behavior modification facility for adolescents who present a variety of conditions, ranging from drug abuse to violence to sexual behavioral problems. Different RTCs work with different grades of problems, and so the structure and methods of RTCs varies. Some RTCs are lock-down facilities; that is, the residents are locked inside the premises; however, other RTCs don’t lock the residents in.
Military schools provide another option for parents whose teens do not necessarily have behavioral problems. They serve as an alternative to to a public or private school, but are more organized and stringent. Parents may sign their teens up for military schools that offer boarding or for military schools that offer day programs which allow parents to drop off their teen and pick them up each day.
Private schools, or independent schools, are schools not administered by local, state, or national government, which retain the right to select their student body and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition rather than with public (state) funds. In the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth countries the use of the term is generally restricted to primary and secondary educational levels: it is almost never used of universities or other tertiary institutions. Private education in North America covers the whole gamut of educational activity. Private schools range from pre-school to tertiary level institutions. Annual tuitions at K-12 schools range from nothing at tuition-free schools to more than $40,000 at several boarding schools.