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An open discussion about the troubled parent industry

Teen Challenge does not coerce people into Christianity.

No, most programs that operate share a bloodline that leads back to Synanon. Synanon is a cult and most programs conform to a few if not all of the tactic types of thought reform.

But Teen Challenge was around BEFORE Synanon and started over 3000 miles away in the projects of Spanish harlem. It is not based on any model that aims to tear the individual down and then rebuild them into anything. It is based solely on introducing people to the Christian life and discipling them.

The question becomes is this about religion or rehab.

Well, now THAT'S a great question! And the answer is this--both. Teen Challenge was founded on the belief of the restorative power of Jesus Christ. They believe He is the great healer and free someone from the bonds of addiction. They also believe in the great commission, where Christ told his disciples to go into the world and preach the Word, reaching out to others---yes, prosyletizing. But will you give me that prosyletizing is pretty much a common practice thruout Christianity? The program curriculum is based on applying Biblical principles to to help overcome life's problems and daily struggles. So, yeah, it's about both.


 

In the questions I asked about the program you never said anything about providing medical care for addicts withdrawal symptoms.

No medical care is provided for withdrawal. Speed freaks and crackheads tend to sleep it off for a couple days, while heroin an barbiturate addicts have to go thru full withdrawal and TC will make them do it cold turkey if they do so in the facility. Someone is usually assigned to provide whatever assistance they need and most centers will hook them up with the chocolate fix (sweets tend to help take the edge off). Obviously sometimes a heroin withdrawal can be life threatening, so an addict tha thasn't kicked before and has been using large amounts would be better served going into detox first.

 

The power balance between the program and the court appointed clients is troubling because it takes treatment and turns it into a convert or go to jail situation.

This is a recurring concern, and I DO see the potential for abuse of said power, but in all my years with TC I never saw more than 10% of students in the entire program who were court ordered. Most TC students are genuinely seeking help from addiction. And I can also say with full certainty tha tit is not a policy of Ten Challenge to hold jail sentences over the heads of any student. That doesn't mean that some hot-headed staff member hasn't shot his dumb mouth off, but it's not a part of the program and is not supposed to happen.

There's nothing wrong with a Christian run rehab but the priority must be given to rehabilitation which must be based on science. Faith can be incorporated, and included but in no way does it replace science in regards to rehabilitation. The information you've given us reads like a policy manual. I have read many policy manuals and what actually goes on in program is usually quiet different.

When I have time I'll ask more questions.....[/quote]

Antigen's ghost--calm down. You really are losing it. I've been reading your responses to my response from a request by someone her eabout how tc works. My post and most others like it have done nothing more than either explain the Teen Challenge progam or challenge you and Karly's erroneous beliefs about it. I have not stooped to the insults that you have from the very first moment.

Your problem with Teen Challenge is based on complete ignorance of Teen Challenge. I will be here to continue to expose your falsehoods. I encourage everyone who comes to this site to thoroughly research any organization they wish to enter or refer a loved one to. By the way, you can order all of teh Teen Challenge curriculum and see for yourself what it's about. They used to charge about $10 a book. So once again, here i am, encouraging YOU and KARLY to actually research and learn about something before forming an opinion and prosyletizing others to your own twisted, uninformed viewpoint.

Nice try, Karly, really. Good strategy there. When presented with the truth and when challenged to actually back up your wild claims and research them yourself before irresponsibly posting them on a blog, you accuse me of doing exactly what you are doing.

Once AGAIN, that very thread has far more people saying they were helped by Teen Challenge and Michael himself is driving the majority of the negative feedback, along with a couple of you here. If tha tyoung lady suffered abuse at a TC as a minor then it is a horrible thing. But it is no way a part of the Teen Challenge program. There have been far more cases of public school teachers abusing students than any reports of problems at TC. In fact right now do a worldwide internet search and find me even 20 different cases of people who report havingbeenabused at TC. Find me 5 lawsuits ever filed against TC for abuse in it's 50 YEAR history. Find me any incident in the entire history of TC where the police have had to raid a facility or shut it down. If TC is so abusive where ar ethe TC survivor suppot groups? Why has this never been reported in the news in 50 YEARS!?! With tha tmany individual centers and the 10's of thousands of people who have passed thru TC's doors why do we not hear thousands of people complaining of abuse?

Michael's own website teenchallengeexposed actually praises most of the staff he mentions. He points out 3 staff he hated, two I know, one I don't but if he said someof things Michael claims , he sounds like an arrogant ass and it's good he's gone. Christie Luna is not Miss warm and fuzzy and is kind of strict for sure, but not abusive. Her husband Larry is an amazing man. He is wonderfully friendly, open, caring individual.  

Paul Montoya---Paul Montoya is the big scary green eyed monster induction center interns like to frighten new students with. In truth, he serves a very important purpose and is actually exptremely committed to staff involvement in helping students restore their lives. He teaches first phase at the Christian Life School in Riverside. (the post induction center).  Teen challenge tries to match students with what counsellors they think will work best with the student. Sometimes counsellors are changed, because a bad fit was made. Paul Montoya's caseload is usually the harder headed bunch who have a history of causing problems in the program. Paul's very job is to raise the standard on them to either force them to take it more seriously or convince them it's too hard. Paul's class is pretty strict, but fun. You walk in on the first day and he tells you he doesn't allow horseplay or goofing off in class and he introduces you to the acronym LTL--listen to learn and learn to listen.

He's been known to yell arrgghhh out the window in mock frustration, feign a heart attack if a student answers a question right and give out candy during verbal quizzes. It's easy for me to see why some people dislike him, but I will also stand my the statement that most of thos ewho don't are also the biggest troublemakers in the program.
Othe rthan that, Michael does little more than attack the intelligence of other staff and complain about fundraising---on fundraising I agree with him, as do many former and current staff. But options are limited

Ok, let's go phase by phase starting with 2.

What is provided in this phase?

This is induction. The student's day starts with breakfast, then a time for personal devotion, wher students read tehir bibles to themselves for 15 minutes and then they quietly pray for 15 minutes(or sleep as often is the case at his stage.) Once the interns wake them up from their prayer time, they have a morning work call that last about an hour to clean up the dorms, facility and breakfast mess. After work call their is a one hour chapel service--typical church stuff, sing hymns and then a staff member presents a sermon. After a 10 minute break class begins. At this stage class material focuses on personal responsibility, developing healthy personal realtionships, treating others with respect and earning their respect, how to deal with and control anger. Let give a minute to explain this:

Teen Challenge's method of "treatment" is to consider drug addiction a symptom of other problems. To the church they say it's a sin problem, but in the program they take a much more practical approach. What are some of the most common reasons people who try to stay clean fall back into drugs?
Anger--they get frustrated, it overwhelms them and they give up.
Unhealthy personal relationships: every addict can point to that single person who was a bad influence, or at elast the two of them together were bad influences on each other.
personal responsibility: a victim mentality is a very personally destructive one. It keeps a person down, takes their motivation away and leaves them feeling that someone else is keeping them that way. This class teaches how to take responsibility for the decisions you've made and their consequences ( good and bad) and then takes it to the next level of teaching how to take responsibility for your own life, take the reins and control your own destiny( with the help of God, of course)

These classes last 1 to two weeks. Format is a typical classroom setting, where a teacher lectures and then students interact with the teacher--just like school.

That takes us to lunch, after which afternoon work call begins. What happens here varies from center. At LATC many of the oldre students who had been there longer than a month would go to the thrift store and help out. Newer students still facing physical cravings or dependencies would stay at the center and work

Then there is dinner and it varies from night to night. Wednesday they go to a church service, monday the have a nhour of intercessory prayer and then free time. sometimes there is a short studfy hall. If the rec center is open some of the more mature students may be allowed to go out and help the rec center staff, which is a big treat. They end the day with a little quiet time for those who want to pray and then sleep---8 to 9 hours a night.

What rules & responsibilities do clients have to abide by?

Typical dormitory living rules of course. Students can not go wandering off into the neighborhood, no smoking allowed. Swearing is not allowed. Students are typically segregated and are not allowd to fraternize with the opposite sex at this point---it's not a time to focus on sex or women. This rule actually didn't always exist, but severe dropout rates and a booming Teen Challenge baby population resulted in this approach. Hormones have a way of taking your focus off of recovery. Television is kept to a minimum, mostly news, sports and family-oriented movies. Students have full access to exercise and recreation facilities. stuff like that. Violation ofthe rules gets a write-up and can result in disciplinary action, typically a week of extra work calls while everyone else has free time. Severe violations, like drug use can result in dismissal. This is reviewed per case, tho. Some guys, the fakers, have no remorse and are asked to leave. If it's a case of someone who slipped, then they will be workd with. Transfer to a different center is on option, removal from daily program and placement on a special program where staffmembers can work closely with and monitor teh student is another. It's really on a per case basis.

What criteria is used to determine success, Checklist Counselor's whim?

Students are reviewed by the staff before advancement to the next phase. The criteria considered are counselling notes from sessions with their advisors, performance in their studies( basically their GPA), disciplinary history, and basic general attitude. A student may be held back two weeks if they are not at the level the staff deems needed for advancement. Conversely if an opening comes up and a student is performing exceptionally well, they may advance as much a month earlier.

How does that affect paroles?

In a word..it doesn't. Some parole officers require monthly progress reports, some still insist on seeing the student. Now if you mean court ordered students, typically the courts take a hands off approach and just deal with whether or not the student is in the program. Court committals to TC do not make up a very large percentage of students. I had never seen more than one or two at any given time over 5 years as a staff and 2 and 1/2 as a student. That may have changed with California's drug rehab law that requires courts to send first time drug offenders to rehab first, but probably not significantly, simply because it is the student who chooses TC, not the courts.

 

What medical care is provided in regards to withdrawal and who(credentials) provides it?

TC does not provide medical care. Potential students are required to take a full physical and bring the results before entry. Students who are on a family health plan will keep their insurance info on file in case it is needed. Many TC students have no longer have familial relations by the time they come to TC and those students if they need medical care are sent to local county hospital facilities with a staff member. Family members are allowed to come get students with special needs and take them to a doctor. However, there are students who lie to staff just to get away for a day so proof of a doctor's actual visit is required.

Is mail phone contact monitored or censored?

phone--no. calls are 15 minutes long to allow others to use the phone. Mail is monitored only so much as who they are sending letters to. TC does not want students communicating with that friend or girlfriend who they were shooting meth with before they came in the program, for obvious reasons. A problem student may actually have his mail monitored more closely, but typically no one reads anyone's mail.

There is another dynamic at work in TC and that is the "as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" dynamic. Dorm living produces all kinds of entanglements and heads clash on a regular basis. TC staff use this as a teaching opportunity. At no time do they instigate this, but when it happens they use it as an opportunity to teach the students how they should practically apply the principles they have been learning in class. This is actually a large part of the growth process, an unintended one, but one noentheless.

Oh, also, every TC I was ever involved with had weekly staff meetings and either weekly or monthly meetings between the students and the Dean of Men. There was always a suggestion box where students could anonymously express their concerns over certain rules or other concerns. The Dean of Men would meet with the entire student body and go over those suggestions/concerns, explaining why some things are as they are and then implementing some rule changes if a student brings up a good suggestion or point. Staff meetings were similar, but also included any issues with staff treatment of students.

Can you give us any input on the phases

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While at the Teen Challenge office Mr. Soemo gave me literature about the organization. Throughout that literature the intent of the organization is made very clear.

Phase I of the five phases of Teen Challenge, according to their literature, is "Basic Confrontational Evangelism."

There are two different things we can mean when discussing phases. One is what you are asking and the other is the 4 phases of the actual residential program. I will deal with yours:

Phase 1: basically, outreach in a word. Scheduled turning point meetings and interviews requested by an individual are one method. TC is also actively involved in various outreach activities with many local churches, like concerts, homeless outreach ( soup kitchens, blankets and clothing,) basically getting out and spreading the gospel to the down and out.

Phase 2: this is induction. Teen Challenge is set up like this: they have induction centers where new students come in and spend 3 months. This is the weeding out phase, basically. People enter rehabs for a variety of reasons, many of which have nothing to do with getting off drugs. This is the time where those who are not serious about change get a chance to count the costs and either get serious or leave. Also, those who are newly cleaned up have entire different needs than those who have been clean a few months. It takes a couple months for certain drugs to quit affecting your reasoning processes. Anyway, those who advance beyond this ar eplaced at a different level and separated so they can focus on the next level of their rehabilitation. These facilities tend to be located in some of the roughest inner city neighborhoods around their area.

Phase 3 would be the 9 month program after induction at one of the larger facilities. These facilities tend to be more remote so that the students can focus on their studies  and counselors can monitor their progress.

Phase 4 would be an internship of 4 months, either with TC or at a local church. At this phase the student is given a limited amount of authority, is put in charge of student in the program to a limited degree as afar as keeping the daily schedule going and making sure rules are adhered to. Interns do not discipline or counsel. They merely report any problems they see and keep the day to schedule moving.

Phase V, which is about re-entry into society revolves is based upon the principle of putting a client in an "established . . .. local Church." That church would apparently meet the doctrinal requirements of Teen Challenge. Your definition here is correct, so I'll leave it. This is after the program is complete, basically. At this point a student has graduated his internship and is off to live his life. Phase 5 is basically goodbye. SOme however do opt to go to TCMI for a year and be trained to either work as staff or in some other innercity ministry.

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Also TC does work in the prison systems, adult and juvenile(Arizona for sure). Questions have been raised regarding TC notification of parents that their child is involved with the program. What are the written rules on this and how does it actually play out in practice?

Unfortunately, in California TC has never succeeded in opening a teen facility, so I don't have a direct answer. Obviously, TC would have to abide by whatever state laws are on the books requiring parental notification. Dealing with minors brings up an entirely new set of problems for obvious reasons, which is one of the reasons TC moved more to dealing with adults. I CAN tell you a couple things, tho, that I think may offer some insight. Teen Challenge is very committed to restoring families broken by drugs or alcohol. In induction the focus is more on separating a person from immediate outside influences, bu tfamily members are always welcomed at church activities and family day is held once a month. At the main program family day is every Sunday and family members also can attend open services on Thursday nights. That being said TC guards it's students against those who contributed to their problem to begin with. By that I mean people who used drugs with them or abused them in any way (as determined by the student, not tc staff, in the case of abuse) Fiances and wives are generally allowed to come, but there has to be an engagement ring on that finger for TC to consider her your fiance. Regular girlfreinds or boyfriends are not allowed visitation, because oftentimes these are people they got in trouble with and have tended to try to pull them right back out. After a few months weekend passes are permitted once a month for a student to go home--wives, relatives or in rare cases members of that student's home church who played an important role in helping them are the only people studetns are allowed to stay with. They can't go hole up in a hotel somehwere,  for obvious reasons. So with that jumble in mind maybe you can ascertain how TC would likely act in a minor situation regarding parental notification.

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Also

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It may be on the first visit or the fifth. The person usually realized that the only true change can come through Christ. They either receive or reject Him. The plan of salvation is explained to them. When possible we direct them to a Church for further follow-up. Others having come to this decision 'I really want help through Christ' we will then represent them in Court."

Yes. I have personally done that. They do not mean they will provide an attorney. They mean that a representative will stand up in court on your behalf and do everything in their power to convince the court that you should be allowed to enter their program. Absolutely.