What is a Recovery School? Why Does Dane County Need One?

What are recovery schools?

Recovery Schools are separate learning communities that provide education, peer support and support services for teens working to recover from alcohol, other drug abuse and emotional problems.

What makes them unique?

• Personal Relationships teens and the staff build strong personal relationships that motivate these teens to be able to use their strengths and succeed.
  


• Peer Pressure for sobriety. Students support each other in living life without alcohol and other drugs, and learn to cope successfully with life
  


• Multi-sensory experiential education. Teaching methods that match their learning styles, leading to academic success. Many who attend say they never would have graduated high school with out this approach.
  


• Life skills and counseling on how to live happily sober
  


• Accountability, students agree to random drug tests to support their sobriety

Why Does Dane County Need One?

• 97% of all teens surveyed are offered alcohol and other drugs on their very first day back at school after alcohol and drug treatment.
  
  


• Ken Winters who researches alcohol and the adolescent brain says,
  
  "Sending a teen back to their school is like sending an adult alcoholic back to their favorite bar for 6 hours a day and expecting he or she to stay sober! "
  


• Dane County has a terrible record for treating teens with substance abuse problems!


• National average 10% of all teens who need treatment receive it.


• Dane County? 1.5% of all teens who need treatment receive it.

Horizon High School is the only aftercare available for teens with substance abuse problems.

Research shows that recovery schools work!

Teens have fewer relapses, more days of attendance and higher graduation rates.

For more information on Horizon go to http://www.horizonhs.org/

For more information on Recovery Schools go to http://www.recoveryschools.org/

Read an article about why New York City chose to form a recovery school

http://facesandvoicesofrecovery.org/resources/inthenews/2009/2009-10-16recoveryschools.php