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Adirondack
Leadership Expeditions
Jeff Johnson,
Admissions Director
Saranac Lake, New York
877-252-0869
Adirondack Leadership Expeditions is a character development
program with a focus on assessment, intervention, and aftercare.
It combines insight-oriented counseling with a highly individualized
level system in a forested, camp-like setting. This new program
has been developed by the Aspen Education Group, which has
been providing “guidance and support to at-risk youth and
their families for over twenty years.” This intensive program
specializes in working with adolescents who have a history
of emotional and behavioral problems, low self-esteem, depression,
school problems, substance use, ADD/ADHD, and family conflicts.
They do not intend, however, to serve adjudicated youth and
have no state contracts.
“The goal of the Adirondack Leadership expeditions is to
teach participants to think more insightfully, assess their
abilities, improve communication skills and practice healthy
behavioral habits.” Being in the wilderness removes students
from their “emotional comfort zone”, requiring them to care
for themselves. “The simplicity of the wilderness environment
helps them recognize the results of their behavioral choices
and encourages them to try different coping strategies.”
While each participant participates in both individual counseling
and group processing, the program is also individualized
in terms of the program curricula, emotional growth assignments,
and flexible lengths of stay. They accept adolescents between
the ages of 14-17, with single gender or coed groups available.
Although the program has a minimum of 28 days, they stay
may be extended for clinical or logistical needs.
Masters or doctorate level counselors directly supervise
all the groups, and if requested, students may also be given
a comprehensive battery of psychological, neurological and
educational testing by licensed testing professionals. Family
involvement is an integral part of the program, and parents
participate in weekly progress sessions by telephone, write
letters and may also be given counseling assignments. They
also are given access to parenting and family resource modules.
Parents and adolescents both take part in a family learning
experience at the end of the program that includes a series
of activities designed to address family dynamics and practice
healthy communication.
The Aspen Education Group’s Outdoor Division recently participated
in an independent research study by the University of Idaho,
lead by Keith C. Russell PhD. The study concluded, “participation
in outdoor behavioral healthcare resulted in clinically significant
reductions in severity of behavioral and emotional symptoms.”
Results of a 12-months follow-up study showed that “students
not only maintained their outcomes, they had continued to
improve after treatment.” |
