|
Aspen Education Group's
Academy at Swift River Featured in New Book by Pulitzer Prize-Winning
Journalist David L. Marcus
"What it Takes to Pull Me Through"
Gives Parents Insights into Therapeutic Education Programs
for Struggling and Under-Achieving Teens
Contact:
Lisa Freeman
Aspen Education Group
lisaf@kevinross.net
(CERRITOS, CA – January 27, 2005) — Why do some kids get
into so much trouble even as their friends and siblings thrive?
How can families get involved earlier, before problems escalate?
What lessons can parents, teachers, therapists, education
leaders and lawmakers learn about today's teen culture, temptations
and problems from a school that caters to "kids on the
brink?"
These questions and more were explored by Pulitzer Prize-winning
journalist David L. Marcus during his 14-month visit at the
Academy at Swift River, a Massachusetts-based college preparatory
therapeutic boarding school of Aspen Education Group. The
answers to these questions are revealed in his newly released
book, What it Takes to Pull Me Through -
Why Teenagers Get in Trouble and How Four of Them Got Out.
Here, Marcus offers a detailed, uncompromising look inside
the secret world of American teenagers in the 21st century
- a world of proliferating pressures, increasing drug use
and skyrocketing suicide rates.
At the Academy at Swift River, Marcus was given unfettered
access to students, staff and parents. Known for fostering
academic excellence, individual responsibility, healthy self
expression and service to others through an intensive 14-month
program, the Academy at Swift River helps struggling teenagers
regain their confidence and emotional and physical health
while providing them the personal tools to set themselves
on a positive path for their futures.
"Aspen Education Group was extremely honored to have
one of our programs profiled in an insightful way by such
an esteemed journalist," said Elliot Sainer, chief executive
officer of Aspen Education Group. "Today's kids are struggling
to make the right choices in a societal pressure cooker that
pushes drugs, alcohol, sex and other temptations on them at
an amazing rate and at a surprisingly early age," said
Sainer. "A growing number of kids cannot cope with these
pressures and need the help of therapeutic programs like the
Academy at Swift River that strip away these influences and
help students get back in touch with their true selves."
At Academy at Swift River, Marcus joined the students for
classes, group therapy and workshops on anger management;
he visited their homes, high schools and hangouts; and he
attended parenting seminars with their moms and dads. As a
result, he offers readers the perspectives of both the kids
and parents. He explores the difficult choices parents made
to "rescue" their kids; and he examines what teachers,
counselors and a dedicated Swift River staff did to get these
kids' lives back on track.
What it Takes to Pull Me Through,
published by Houghton Mifflin, has been praised by authors,
psychologists and teachers. Daniel Kindlon, professor of psychology
at the Harvard School of Public Health, says it "shows
just how thin the line is between the worlds of normal adolescents
and those who are fighting for their emotional health."
Marcus's book has been featured on NBC's "Today"
show and National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation"
and will be featured soon in Parade Magazine, USA Today
and U.S. News & World Report. For more information
on the book, visit www.DaveMarcus.com.
The Academy at Swift River is a college preparatory therapeutic
boarding school for adolescents in grades 9 through 12 who
are experiencing emotional, behavioral or academic difficulties.
The program provides a strong academic environment carefully
integrated with counseling and personal enrichment challenges.
Residents participate in a 14-month, goal-oriented program,
set on a 630-acre campus in rural Massachusetts. For information,
visit www.swiftriver.com,
or call 800 258-1770.
Aspen Education Group offers a diverse range of educational
programs, settings and solutions that improve the quality
of life for under-achieving adolescents and their families.
Through Aspen's 30 residential and outdoor programs in 11
states, parents can choose from a variety of therapeutic and
academic environments. Students in Aspen's programs benefit
from two decades of experience helping tens of thousands of
youths.
For the past two years, Aspen Education Group was named among
the top 100 education companies by Eduventures, a leading
independent research firm dedicated to learning markets. For
more information, visit www.aspeneducation.com,
or call 888 972-7736.
|
