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Determining The “Right” Place To Meet Your Child’s Needs
Choosing the right place for your child is an important step in
getting the help he or she needs. To many parents it appears
there are a multitude of options that can seem overwhelming.
Others may feel there are no options and don’t know where to
turn.
The members of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools
and Programs offer a variety of different schools and programs.
For further definition of the facilities available to you,
please go to our NATSAP
Program Definitions.
Our members are located in over 30 states, east to west, north
to south. The ages served range from under 12 years old up to 25
years old. Your options will include the age range the
school/program serves as well as gender specific or coed.
What’s the First Step?
We strongly advise parents to seek professional assistance in
the placement of their child. A professional can evaluate your
child to determine the core issues he or she is struggling
against. With this information, the professional can provide
assistance in the placement of your child by communicating with
the Admissions and Clinical personnel at our member programs.
Often a professional has personal knowledge of the school /
program he or she is recommending for placement. If you engage
in consultation, make certain that the professional has
experience placing children in residential programs and that
they have some training and visitation of therapeutic programs
before relying on their advice.
Where Do I Find Professional Assistance?
A list of Related
Organizations can be found on this website. For those
professionals and families who have not had occasion to travel
to the programs listed in our directory, please be aware that
members of the
Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) are
required to visit dozens of programs each year. They would be
pleased to work with you on specific placements.
What Do We Look For In A School / Program?
These factors are very important when looking for a school or
program:
- Verify the licensure or accreditation of the facility.
- Confirm the licensure of the clinical / therapy staff.
If the state in which the program resides does not require
licensure, it is important to research the credentials of
the staff. Verify the credentials are appropriate to the
treatment they propose to offer; e.g. if they have
individual or group therapy, is it provided by individuals
with appropriate advance degrees (MSW, LCSW, Ph.D. MD,
etc.)?
- Verify that the academic curriculum is accredited by a
recognized academic accrediting body. Are the teachers
qualified by credential or experience to teach the courses
the school / program offers?
- If counseling is offered, is it provided by staff that
are full time employees of the program or is it provided by
adjunct or independent personnel? If the latter, is the cost
included in the program’s tuition or is there an additional
fee for this service?
- Obtain multiple sources of information about the program
/ school prior to enrollment. For example, you can ask for
references from past clients, obtain the recommendation of a
professional educational consultant and, if at all possible,
visit the program / school to determine if you are
comfortable with the environment, culture, methods employed,
and general assessment of staff, students and climate of the
school.
- If you visit the program / school, ask to speak to
current students without a staff present and ask the
students what their experience is like. Ask each student
what they have gained from the program, what they like the
most and what they like the least.
- Inquire about outcomes. NATSAP has committed their
resources to a Research Initiative and we suggest you review
the information compiled to date on the Research section of
this website. Ask what efforts the program has made to
assess how they are doing and to improve their performance.
Ask how they assess student improvement and determine
readiness for advancement or graduation.
- Ask for an estimate of program length and what factors
determine readiness to complete the program.
- Ask about the program’s philosophy of change and methods
of discipline.
- Family involvement is an important factor at all of our
member schools / programs. It is an essential component of
your child’s recovery process. Therefore, we recommend that,
no matter what your choice, ensure that family involvement
is a key part of the program.
- Ask about any restrictions on family communication and
visitation.
- Most programs have a “level” system or series of steps
in the program that determine progress and privileges. Ask
for a description of the program’s “levels” or stages of
progress.
- Ask about the range of options at the completion of the
program.
- It is important to understand that there is a long
continuum of care for struggling children and adolescents.
Any particular program is usually simply one step in a long
process of helping a child mature and address the
emotional/psychological/behavioral problems that lead to
residential placement.
Accrediting Agencies
There are regional and national accreditation agencies that are
recognized in this industry; for example
- JCAHO (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare
Organizations);
- CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation
Facilities);
- COA (Council on Accreditation).
Therapeutic Boarding Schools may be accredited by an academic
accreditation body, such as
- Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges;
- PNAIS, (Pacific Northwest Association of Independent
Schools);
- NCA CASI (North Central Association Commission on
Accreditation and School Improvement)
- NIPSA (National Independent Private Schools Association)
or
- State Education Accreditation Boards.
Articles
| Selecting the “Right” School /Program
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Program Definitions | Program Directory Search
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Organizations |
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