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Messages - Lost Dog

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The Troubled Teen Industry / Summit Prep. School in Montana
« on: May 01, 2004, 09:10:00 PM »
Antigen

Instead of continuing are rant about the ills of public and private schools... I would love to know what people out there feel works!!  I am current in a grant writing phase and I am searching for current examples of successful school programs (low drop out rates, enhanced creativity, low drug abuses, etc).

Let talk about how we start solving the problems we face in education.  What programs work?

-Lost Dog[ This Message was edited by: Lost Dog on 2004-05-02 09:26 ]

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The Troubled Teen Industry / Summit Prep. School in Montana
« on: May 01, 2004, 09:06:00 PM »
I love greg brown, great song...thanks!!

I did not mean to ranble as much about as I did, but yesterday sucked. so to clearify some what...

You are right schools make bad parents, but teachers and counselors can make great role models. I can not speak for every school in the country but here I am surprised at how skilled the teachers are and how positivitly they affect their sudents lives.  I have even seen teachers go as far as to help get students off the streets and back in school when the parents could have cared less.

As for Dare it is defunct.  It had some good aspects to the program such as having a police officer assigned to work with each school district.  This helped build relationships and dispell the student's myths that cops are all bad.  My school district is at a great lost without our police contact, he helped a ton of kids. Now don't misunderstand me, the program as a whole had some flaws that allowed for abuses of power.

About drug prevention:
Antigen wrote "No, it works the other way around. I'm sure of it. When I was a little kid, our culture designated smoking as an adult activity. Almost all adults smoked. Housewives smoked in the grocery store, there were even ashtrays in the stores. Restaurants, if they had a non smoking section at all, had two tables next to the kitchen doors. As is always the case, changes in culture lead changes in spending allocation. So now we have all this anti-smoking propaganda (and I don't mean that in a bad way) and it seems to work because it's supported by the rest of society."  (how do you quote so it shows up in the box)

I do not mean to be disrespectful, but I am confused, Are you saying that drug rates go up when you provide drug prevention??  It is proven that drug and tobacco education do help reduce the addiction rates.  When there is no education programs or support system (counselors), addiction  goes up.  In fact your example seems agree with my point, that the current culture has created funding for smoking prevention that has lowered the rates of underage smokers. In the 80's it was the anti-drug (remember Nancy Regan)messages that recieved the funding.  Now it was a pretty lame message but it did work as drugs use like crack droped signifiantly after drug education in schools recieved funding.  

I never knew that about Socrates, that is great!  You are right, our society seems to look for the short term profit, where they should instead be looking at the long term value.  

I am familiar with Gatto and feel that the solution to the stagnate school system is funding.  There are tons of grants we write each year to provide alternative and outdoor education, art, drama and many other program but all these things are shot down due to lack of money.  Way too much time and money is spent on testing.  The current administration's plan "to leave no child behind" in reality leaves most of them on the street corner as the bus speeds on by.  

Education is clearly not a priority in this country. As it would cost only 1 billion to repair all the schools in the nation and bring them up to date, but instead we spend 87 billion on Iraq and can not afford to beter our own schools?  Is something wrong here?

-lost dog
<[ This Message was edited by: Lost Dog on 2004-05-01 18:11 ][ This Message was edited by: Lost Dog on 2004-05-02 09:16 ]

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The Troubled Teen Industry / Summit Prep. School in Montana
« on: May 01, 2004, 12:25:00 AM »
I agree that you can never force treatment of any sort, whether treating drug or exstream ice cream addiction.

I do believe that you can offer a person options...  "Adult have options, childern have one (to cry, kick and scream)"  Now they may not like their options (that can get into dealing with the ego) but exploring healthy options can led to a way out of what ever "trauma" a person has entered.

I have faith in summit school because I have faith in this counselor.  He/She helped tons of students (and even helped me after I got out of CEDU).

I really hope that there are more healthy schools out there for the kids that need something else. You may have known students that truly needed to get away from their parents and reestablish their value systems.  I had one student this year that needed a residential program (home life was really bad!!!!!), but I could not in good faith just send her anywhere.  The state system is not much better (no funding).  I looked around for programs but I did not come across a lot I trusted or would take her (medicaid).  In the end I gave her the choice and she refused.  So I left her with options, for when she hits bottom. That was the best I could do.

I did find one place in Wrangell, Alaska that I checked out and liked.  It is a wilderness program call "Crossings".  The owner seemed to have it together, therapists were highly skilled and best of all they worked with medicaid!  Again this is only another opinion...

I do believe in programs like outward bound. Most of them are great and kids choose to go there!!  They teach life skills, build self esteam, corperation and led kids to find hope within. This reminds me of something I read somewhere?!?! (brain no work good on friday) About some parents that as their daughter approched her 13th birthday, they set up challenges for her that would teach her how to survive her teenage years.  Th whole family got involved teaching her everything from skydiving to cooking to changing the car oil.  Each task built self esteam, established support systems with family members, taught her decision making and most important told her she is loved. I thought is is great and what so many students I have seen need or something like this to show them they are loved!! Unfortunitly most family systems are about as healthy as eating McD on a daily basis...

I have switched gears in my profession, instead of treatment I am working in prevention.  This was a radical change for me.  I had to let go of everything I knew and relearn how to help.  I have found that even my job title "Drug and Alcohol Prevention Counselor" is BS.  I spend more time teaching responsible decision making and educate students on the pontential dangers of durgs, drinking, ice cream, etc.  But as you know we best learn after we fall, I can only hope that throught healthy mentoring, I am providing these students with the tools they need to learn from their mistakes.

I do see a direct link between many social problems and lack of public education funding.  I have a wonderful opportunity to work with schools throughtout washington and see the same problems in every school.  I would love to say that all parents are great people that love their kids, but that would be a big fat lie!  So as the job of raising kids should fall on the parental system it unfortunately shifts into the school's shoulders.  Take drug prevention: Ideally if you educate students and provide healthy role models most will avoid drug addiction, thus reducing the demand for drugs in our country. Look at the change in teen smoking for emample.  There is currently tons of money in smoking education, which has dropped the smoking rates way down.  Here is the catch, there is no (or very little) money in drug education!!!  Just like there is not money for after school programs, art, dance, drama, alteritive sports, outdoor education, etc.  The best anti-drug (or way to steem bad choices) is to "Follow Your Bliss".  Give studets other outlets insteam of TV, video games, drugs, sex, etc. Sure some of them will experiment, but the anti-drug will win everytime.  

So for many kids homelife sucks, there is nothing to do after school, working at the mall puts teens in direct contact with more drugs, gilfriend is pregnat, TV is only trying to sell you something and most of the good mentors are burned out or dead.  And best of all the same politision that cut school funding is preaching about bad teachers, drugs, MTV, janets boob...

Does this feel kind of like a hampster wheel?

So it is friday and I am ranting...  Yes, I spend the rest of my little time looking for grants.  Unfortuneatly I can find thousands for the Oprea but nothing for our half built skatepark (our idea of an anti-drug location safely behind the police station).

I will be less narotic tomorrow after I go play outside...

-Lost Dog

Clancy's Law: The perceived role of governments is to deploy ever increasing resources to the attainment of  ever diminishing end results.
--Home Page


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The Troubled Teen Industry / Summit Prep. School in Montana
« on: April 29, 2004, 03:29:00 PM »
Antigen,

I did not leave my name for the same reasons no one else does, trying to move on with life, law suits and CEDU is scary!!!

You are ex CEDU as well, so I am suprised that you would even ask me that question.

I am currently a drug counselor for a public school district in washington.  I had to leave my home in sandpoint because I could not  get work around there after CEDU.   (Many of the jobs I have applied to looked down on me because I had worked for CEDU).

I am finally getting my life put back together and moving on.  Yet, A part of me is still trying to make sense of it all.  I thought, along with many of the therapist (that have now left), that we could make a difference and change the system into a healthy  supportive enviroment.  I was wrong and it cost me dearly.

The therapist at Summit is someone I trust because we fought the good fight against the abuse and the shame that many of the staff placed on the students.  (I am withhold this persons name out of respect to their privatecy).

So why trust me about Summit  school? Don't!  Do the research for yourself.  Be critical, ask the hard questions and trust yourself! Take only what I say as one opinion. Consider my advice, but still make your own decisions about Summit or any other program

I am currently trying to discover what programs out there work and are healthy.  As a drug counselor I see tons of students that need help, but the public system tends to suffle them off instead of helping them (mainly do to lack of funding and programs).  As we know the private system is filled with crouption and abuse.  So my question to Antigen, as someone who is familiar with the industry, In your opinion what programs do you know about are healthy and productive in helping kids?

*If you still want to know who I am, send me a private message and I will gladly share more.

-Lost Dog

Boundary, n.  In political geography, an imaginary line between two nations, separating the imaginary rights of one from the imaginary rights of another.
-- Ambrose Bierce,  The Devil's Dictionary


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The Troubled Teen Industry / Summit Prep. School in Montana
« on: April 28, 2004, 10:41:00 PM »
I am an ex-CEDU employee.  I would like to advise "confused" to avoid all CEDU schools (aka NWA) at all cost.  It is a sick place!  

I worked with a therapist that had escaped CEDU and is now working at Summit and loves it there.  I would trust this person with my life.  We had talked for hours about want a healthy program would look like and what would make it great. So  I would tend to believe that Summit is a solid healthy program.

Good luck in your search and research every program indept.

Lost Dog

When the government's boot is on your throat, whether it is a left boot or a right boot is of no consequence.
-- Gary Lloyd


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