“Recovery High” a Respite for Young Addicts

~ Jason Schwartz

bridge+way+rebecca+bonner

Maybe this is a better way to address pediatric addiction?

Called The Bridge Way School, the specialized high school in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia focuses on getting teenagers back on track with their education and lives after exiting rehab. It is the only school of its kind in the region – one of only some three dozen nationwide.

“We have kids come in with 30 days [sobriety], they’re not sure how school is going to go, they haven’t done well in school for a while and then they see the environment that we have here,” says Rebecca Bonner, who runs the school. “And in two or three weeks, you see kids who haven’t worked in class for years who say ‘Oh, I’m getting a B’ and they’re actually working.”

Ranging from 9th to 12th grades, every student is recovering from some type of addiction and goes through regular coursework like English, Math and Science. But unlike typical schools, the teens talk about their recovery regularly.

Students begin their day with a 20 minute face-to-face with a counselor and staff to discuss how they’re feeling and whether they’ve been triggered to use again.

“If it’s serious enough, our counselor may just pull that kid for 20 minutes. It is so different from what a regular school does where a kid might sit on something all day,” Bonner said. “They learn nothing because they’re processing whatever that is. We try to catch it early so they can process that and get right back on track.”

Before leaving for the day, the students have another sit down to discuss their plans for the afternoon and evening. They also spend about 50 minutes, four times a week, in group sessions talking about their addiction and recovery with peers.

“The adults can say whatever we say and we can be supportive and encouraging, but the kids are the ones that give each other the support. That is positive peer pressure,” Bonner said.

via “Recovery High” a Respite for Young Addicts | NBC 10 Philadelphia.

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Published by Jason Schwartz

I have been an addiction professional and social worker since 1994. I started blogging in 2005 as the Clinical Director at Dawn Farm. I no longer work at Dawn Farm and am now the Director of Behavioral Medicine at a community hospital, and a lecturer at Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work. Views expressed here are my own. Keep in mind that the field, the contexts in which the field operates, and my views have changed over time.

One thought on ““Recovery High” a Respite for Young Addicts”

  1. This is so great! It is really giving these kids a chance at having a future with the support they NEED. I wish there was something like this in St. Louis.

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