New Beginnings Youth Academy is a 28-bed moderate-risk residential program provider for the Department of Juvenile Justice and a Residential Substance Abuse Treatment grant (RSAT), designated for adolescent females who meet specific admission criteria based upon their criminal history of substance abuse law violations.
New Beginnings Youth academy follows the current trend in psychology and the movement from First Force Psychology (Behaviorism) to Third Force Psychology (Choice Based Therapy) as evidenced by their current commitment to the Balanced as Restorative Justice (BARJ). New Beginnings Youth Academy seeks to create a balance in community safety, accountability, and skill development. It encourages youth to take responsibility for their actions, behaviors, and decisions and to encourage a sense of responsibility to society and to the victims of their crimes. By taking advantage of the principles inherent in Choice Theory, Family Systems Therapy, and Adlerian Psychology New Beginnings Youth Academy’s Therapeutic Community encourages youth to believe in their ability to make positive choices, to see that the control of their behavior resides within and to stress cooperative living, equal respect, and understanding. Our goal is to create young people who can make positive choices for themselves and their families, not in response to rewards they expect, but in response to a sense of self obligation to self, family and community.
Various treatment modalities are offered in conjunction
with the daily behavior modification system. These modalities consist of
intensive substance abuse treatment services, vocational services, education
services, case management services, and recreational services. Our intensive
therapeutic community emphasizes gender specific programming in the areas of
social/life skills, academics, pre-vocational and vocational
training.
Behavioral health overlay services are provided by all staff
employed by New Beginnings Youth Academy. Daily crisis counseling is offered
along with treatment groups each day. Life skills, psycho-educational groups and
health educational groups are held throughout the week to assist the youth with
exploring growth and development issues. A bachelors/masters level therapist
provides individual therapy and family therapy to each resident placed into the
program. Further, the therapist conducts group therapy focusing on topics
ranging from self-esteem to anger management techniques. Specialized groups
substance abuse groups are offered for youth and therapeutic community meetings
are held weekly.
A child and adolescent psychiatrist provides consultation regarding each resident. A complete psychiatric evaluation is performed on every youth admitted and ongoing mental status exams are conducted every thirty days. The psychiatrist also attends each youth’s multi-disciplinary staffing on an as-needed basis in which the treatment plan is modified. Educational services are provided on-site by the Polk County School Board. Each resident’s individual needs are addressed academically. While in the program, youth can work toward the completion of their G.E.D. or earn credits toward a diploma.
Medical, dental, and vision issues that arise which are both routine and emergency in nature are coordinated through local providers. Staff provides transportation assuring safety.
The on-site case management services provide
ongoing communication to professionals within the Juvenile Justice System along
with foster care workers. The case managers also coordinate discharge planning
from the day of admission to assist each resident with establishing a solid well
developed conditional release/ transitional plan. A resident’s average length of
stay in the program is 6-9 months.