Military Schools and Boot Camps in Washington
Military school and highly structured boot camps may seem like the answer to your teen’s bad behavior that probably includes defiance, substance abuse, violence or threats of violence and depression. HelpYourTeenNow is a parent advocate group that wants to make your search for the right teen therapeutic program as informative and accurate as possible. We can provide answers to your questions, because we’ve been in your exact same position with our own children. Before you commit to a military school or teen boot camp program, give us a call to see if that is really the right program for your child.
Military Schools and Boot Camps Aren’t the Best Option for Troubled Teens
There are actually many other options for at-risk teens than military schools and boot camps. These programs are not designed to really help teens recover from the deeper issues that may be causing the poor behavior. Military schools are legitimate academic institutions, while boot camps are generally private programs designed to push teens into compliance via strict structure and extreme physical activities. Neither of these options are successful in treating teens for the long term and don’t have actual therapists on staff. Choose programs that have proven their approaches really work.
Washington Regulatory Laws
Facilities that provide treatment, therapy and residential services to juveniles must be licensed by the Residential Treatment Facility, which is a part of the Washington Department of Health.
Any treatment facility that includes an academic program as a private school is not required to become accredited (RCW 28A.305.130(5). Any teachers at such schools must hold a state certificate, however (RCW 28A.195.010(3). The curriculum of private schools throughout Washington state must include all subjects that will make it possible for students to meet the state board of education graduation requirements (RCW 28A.195.010(7)(8) et seq.)
(U.S. Department of Education, State Regulation of Private Schools, 2009)
Reference: http://www2.ed.gov/admins/comm/choice/regprivschl/regprivschl.pdf
Washington children between the ages 4-17 diagnosed each year with ADD/ADHD: 8% (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011 Study) https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/prevalence.html
Washington ranks 37th in the country for teen pregnancy. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 2016 Study) https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/facts-and-stats/national-and-state-data-sheets/adolescent-reproductive-health/washington/index.html
National suicide ranking: 26th. (CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control: Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System.) https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/population-health/us-states-ranked-by-suicide-rate.html
In a 2017 report, it showed that 30% of Washington teens abuse alcohol and 13% are binge drinking. Marijuana use in Washington teens was 9% and other illicit drug use was at 4.%. ((CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control: Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System, 2017) https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/facts-and-stats/national-and-state-data-sheets/adolescents-and-substance-abuse/washington/index.html
Juvenile arrests in Washington for 2018 include 71 arrests for aggravated assault, 52 arrests for robbery, 364 arrests for larceny, 168 arrests for drug abuse and 34 arrests for weapons violations. (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2018) https://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/crime/qa05103.asp?qaDate=2018&text=yes
For the 2014-2015 school year, Washington reported a 78% high school graduation rate. (U.S. Department of Education, Graduation Rates 2014-2015) https://www.governing.com/gov-data/high-school-graduation-rates-by-state.html
Summary
At-risk teens need to learn new and better ways of approaching the challenges and obstacles that life has in store for them, and military schools and boot camps do not teach these. Instead, we’ll guide you toward workable residential solutions during our free consultation. HelpYourTeenNow will advise you on your options and give you the best recommendations for your teen that exist in your area. Your teen will get the structure, discipline and therapy all in a supervised setting designed to nurture, not degrade. Call HelpYourTeenNow to start your quest getting your teen’s life and future back on track.
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