The Programs of the Pinnacle Schools

• Elk River Wilderness Challenge - Short Term Therapeutic Intervention Program (8 weeks)
• Elk River Academy - Step-up or Tiered Midterm Program - flexible length of stay (8 months)
• Elk River Lifestyle Challenge - Pediatric Weight Management Program (8 weeks)
• Pinnacle Alternative Day School - Year Round Private Day School, Huntsville, Alabama

Philosophy

The programs of The Pinnacle Schools (TPS) are empirically derived for the effective assessment and treatment of struggling teens. The health and safety of your child is of paramount importance. Unlike many wilderness programs our programs operate on a base campus. The campus occupies 120 acres of land and is located in North Alabama, 40 miles north of Huntsville, Alabama and 90 miles south of Nashville, Tennessee, Facilities include a medical clinic with dispensary, gymnasium, commercial kitchen with dining hall, pavilion, in-ground pool, stable, shower house and a 2800 square foot school building with accommodations for inclement weather. The programs have full medical, dental and emergency support. A full service hospital is located 10 miles away in Athens, Alabama. All staff is CPR, First Aid and SAMA trained. The wilderness is a metaphor for life. Nature provides an extremely relevant teaching environment. Events occur unpredictably and demand good judgment and cooperation. Using Native American culture as motif, the challenge of the outdoors is utilized as a therapeutic teaching tool. Young men and women are encouraged to grow and thrive; intellectually, emotionally, behaviorally and spiritually. The achievement of these goals is facilitated by strong relationships with a competent, ethical and caring adult staff.

Treatment Team

The programs of TPS use a Treatment Team approach when working with our students and their families. Upon admission to a program of TPS your child will be assigned to a Challenge Group. Each group is led by a Treatment Team including a supervisor, trained counselors, and a clinician. Parents will receive weekly updates on the progress of their child. Our professional staff includes; physicians, psychologists, licensed professional counselors, family nurse practitioner, registered nurses, registered dietician, certified exercise specialist, PhD. and Master's level educators, wilderness first responders (WFR), and a "leave no trace" master educator. Collectively, they have spent over 100 years working with children and families in crisis. They have been carefully selected and screened and were chosen for their leadership skills, maturity and compassion. The treatment team approach includes an Electronic Medical Record which enables staff to communicate more effectively with professional referral sources. This approach also facilitates continuity of care, objective interaction and mentoring, seamless monitoring and management of medications and thorough health screening and maintenance.

TPS believes parents are an integral and essential part of the team. Emphasis is placed on parent training, both instructive and experiential, and involves parents as partners in the child's therapeutic process. They are encouraged to develop parenting skills which promote family based problem solving, assertive and emotionally expressive communication, healthy limit setting, and nurturing techniques.

Therapy

Therapy includes cognitive behavior modification in the group process model as well as individual sessions when requested. Therapeutic workshops include, but are not limited to, abandonment, anger management, goal setting, accountability, communication skills and peer relations. We offer optional specialty groups: AA/NA/OA/OLGANON/Bible Study, experiential activities, physical training, and vocational/work projects. Although not part of the usual services of the programs of TPS, we do have the capability of performing Psychological Evaluations including personality, intelligence, vocational interest (academic level and/or learning disabilities determination) testing. These evaluations are useful in establishing diagnoses and making placement decisions.

Academics

TPS recognizes the importance of education and believes no student should be left behind for missing school during treatment. We offer education for students in grades 7-12. Our curriculum is fully accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and by the Commission of International & Trans-Regional Accreditation (CITA). Courses include the full range of core curriculum, advanced placement, honors, college prep and numerous electives. TPS teaching staff will also administer a student's current curriculum if preferred. Our academic administrator works closely with parents, students and counselors to design an individualized program of study that best supports the student's specific goals. All students attend school on campus daily.

Our Mission

The Mission of the programs of The Pinnacle Schools is to develop adolescents who are self-directed, educated, and contributing members of society. To support this mission, we resolve to provide an environment of respect, acceptance, skill development, and challenge which fosters the personal development and emotional growth of our students. We are one component of a continuum of growth for struggling teens and their families.