The first high school in
Austin aimed at helping students addicted to drugs and alcohol opened session
this August with an enrollment of 13.
University High School
is located on the third floor of University Christian Church where staff and
church members have worked throughout the summer to transform the space into a
functioning school. University High School was designed to provide high school
students with an academic setting free from the temptations of drugs and
alcohol. The school’s administrators are hoping to expand in coming years, but
the independent private school does not have the funds to offer scholarships to
those who cannot afford the tuition.
Dr. Lori Holleran
Steiker, associate professor at The University of Texas at Austin School of
Social Work co-founded University High School. She said she recognized the
importance of having a learning environment dedicated to students in recovery.
“There is an epidemic
of drug and alcohol problems in our high schools these days,” Holleran Steiker
said. “Even schools with alterative programs have serious undercurrents of drug
and alcohol use and misuse. What we find is that students do not have a
protective environment that is not just free of drugs and alcohol, but also
proactive with helping the students recover.”
Becky Ahlgrim,
executive director of University High School, said that the students who are
enrolled in the school have varying degrees of addiction.
“The
student’s addictions range from ongoing marijuana use to pharmaceuticals,”
Ahlgrim said. “Some students have had experience with meth, heroin and alcohol and
some have abused their medications.”
According to statistics
provided by The Center for Students in Recovery at UT Austin, 90 percent of
alcohol and other drug use problems start between the ages of 12 and 20. Holleran
Steiker cited research showing that 65-90 percent of students who go to
treatment end up relapsing after they go back to their regular high schools. She
highlighted the unique experience that University High School provides in
helping students on their path to recovery.
“The students start the
day from 8-9 a.m. with check-in, which is where they might let out something
that is weighing heavily on their hearts. It is a very intimate setting where
they share any concerns or dilemmas,” Holleran Steiker said. “Then on Fridays
they have condensed schedules so that we can have Friday fill-up where the
students participate in things like yoga, art and theatre... the recovery staff
is another unique piece.”
Recovery Coach Mason
Broussard is a graduate of Archway Academy, the largest recovery school in the
nation. He provides University High School students with a direction toward
sobriety.
“Students are really
influenced at this stage in their lives trying to figure out who they are,”
Broussard said. “We want University High School to create an environment that
they can latch on to and direct it in to a positive chapter in their life.”
University High School
has a partnership with The Bridge School, an accredited online high school, where
the students take their courses virtually.
“Our staff is trained
by the school using Skype,” Holleran Steiker said. “That allows us to
accommodate ninth, 10th, 11th and 12th graders, everything from
learning disabled kids to AP classes.”
The recovery school is
located at the University Christian Church near UT Austin. The Rev. Chuck
Kutz-Marks, senior minister at the church, said that the church community has
been enthusiastic about helping the school.
“The woman who was
sharing the dream for the high school said it was being built on the model of
Archway Academy in Houston,” Kutz-Marks said. “As soon as she said that, one of
our church members stood up and said ‘that school saved my nephew’s life.’ She
went on to say that he had been stabilized by that sober high school in
Houston. Ever since then the energy behind this has been very good.”
Becky Ahlgrim explained
that its founders designed the school to be accessible to all, but its reliance
on private donations means that not all students can afford to pay for a
tuition that stands near $10,000 a year.
“What
would make things easier is an abundance of financial support in order to make
sure that no student who qualifies is turned down because of their economic
situation,” Ahlgrim said. “Because families spend money on treatments and
therapy there are some families that request financial support to be in a safe
and sober environment. Our biggest wish is to be able to offer that to them.”
Co-founder
Holleran Steiker explained that the school was created when several people who were
passionate about the same idea happened to come together at the same time.
“If I get nothing else
done for the rest of my life it wouldn’t matter,” Holleran Steiker said. “It is
just one of those things.”
By
Phillip Tracy
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