Recovery High School - Post Rehab High Schools

Lately I have been thinking a lot about our students. Our students who are diverse and able to do amazing things with tools we never had as students. But these students also face more issues and struggles than ever before. It is amazing to think about and even after we come to grips with it. Sometimes reading an article can still take us by surprise. Recently I was reading an article titled "Recovery high school a 'soft landing' for post-rehab teens" about Recovery High School which details a high school aiding students with substance abuse histories graduate from high school.

While it is clear that technological advances have made more opportunities available to student than ever before, we also have to acknowledge this struggle with substance abuse and other issues which has only increased. Drugs and alcohol are not a new problem for students to be facing but that does not make it any less daunting. Reading this article reminded me that this struggle is alive and well. This quote is poignant and says it all, “Adolescent drug abuse cuts across all demographics -- race, class and geography.”

Cuts across all demographics? Really? It is easy to believe that some students are more likely to become drug addicts or maybe it is that whole “it couldn’t happen here” mind frame. But even after coming to grips with the students being addicts, I hadn’t thought about students needing to return to school. School which is supposed to be safe and welcoming can suddenly stay sober in the same old environment. This same school could not be part of the solution for these students but rather be part of the problem.

This article tells the story of Northshore Recovery High school whose curriculum is standard but who support is directed towards keeping students clean and sober. This school is new but not the first school of this type. The first actually was Sobriety High in Edina, MN which was opened in 1987. This high school and the several other ones have started to create the place for post rehab high school students.

The graduation rate of Northshore Recovery High School is high - 90% high which is boasted to be higher than most public schools. With graduation rates and support this high, there is no doubt that Northshore Recovery High School as well as other post rehab high schools serve these students. With education, our students as well as our materials and methods have changed. Needing to figure out how to deal with these changes and educate our youth is exactly what the founders of these alternative schools did.

Let’s follow their lead and figure out how to meet our student’s needs.