Scott Jones, Program Director for Turnabout Stillwater Academy was the featured guest on Troubled Teen Help with Dore Frances, a weekly radio program on LA Talk Radio (www.latalkradio.com). Troubled Teen Help addresses issues such as addiction treatment for teens and adults, building self esteem, family crisis intervention, how to financially fund a residential treatment or wilderness placement, options that can be started at home before a true crisis hits, residential and wilderness treatment options, and young adult and older adult options for treatment. Read More
Scott has been working with adolescents and their families for over twelve years. Expertise includes working with adoptees and adoptive families, helping families face the challenges of mood and anxiety disorders and working with adolescents with developmental challenges. His clinical expertise includes individual and group therapy, and family therapy. He was the creator and director of Project IMPACT, a community based drug and alcohol treatment program for adjudicated youth in Georgia. In addition to being an effective therapist, Scott is an experienced professional trainer and organizational coach. He has extensive experience developing customized coaching programs using systems theory applications. Scott has been the Program Director for Turnabout Stillwater Academy for the past seven years.
Discussion topics included: Why the unique housing aspect of the Turnabout program works. How the use of video conferencing works for the program, the parents and their child. What services are provided when the student is ready to transition home? Turnabout gives teens the chance to step out of their destructive patterns, make a choice to change for the better, make good decisions, experience real success, develop healthy relationships, and then move back into a new & better life that many of them may have not dreamed possible. Download and Listen to the full audio segment from the show.
Utah Attorney General Addresses Troubled Teens
Salt Lake City, Utah, May 6, 2009 –Youth at Turnabout Stillwater Academy, a treatment program for troubled teens, may have felt they had nothing in common with Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. But they soon discovered Shurtleff isn’t a stranger to the issues many of them are facing. In his address to the teens and staff last month, Shurtleff spoke about his daughter who struggled with suicide.
“Always remember, you can hold on for one more day,” said Shurtleff. “For those of you struggling with addictions, if you can get through this, you can do anything. If you can graduate from this program, you can graduate from Harvard.”
Shurtleff, who has served as Utah Attorney General for eight years, encouraged the youth to stand up for what is right and remember the support they have within the Turnabout program and the community. “Look out for each other,” said Shurtleff. “One person can save a life.”
New York Giants Linebacker Speaks to Turnabout Students
Troubled Teen Private School Receives National Recognition
Stillwater Academy Receives NASET School of Excellence Award
Salt Lake City, Utah, June 11, 2008 – Stillwater Academy, an accredited private school linked with adolescent treatment program Turnabout, has garnered national recognition as a National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET) School of Excellence—the highest honor awarded a private special education school by NASET. Only 40 schools have been chosen as NASET Schools of Excellence for 2008-2009. Read More
“Not only have these schools met the rigorous criteria to be a School of Excellence,” said George Giuliani, executive director of NASET, “but the schools selected have also shown they hold themselves to a very high standard of excellence.”
Stillwater Academy principal Marilyn Prettyman said, “It’s personally rewarding to know the school is doing an excellent job with its students. Our teachers care about and understand the kids who come here, and this award just verifies it.”
For years Stillwater Academy has been helping troubled teens get back on track with school and regain a love of learning through small class sizes, caring teachers, and student responsibility to complete schoolwork.
“Our structure helps support the students in their learning,” said Prettyman. “We keep very close track of them, and if they start to slip in their grades, we put things into place to give them the support they need, whether that is tutors, extra study time, or peer help.”
Stillwater Academy is a member of NASET, a professional organization that provides support to special education teachers.
For more information on Stillwater Academy, please contact Marilyn Prettyman or visit www.turnaboutteens.org.
Brighter Futures Become a Reality for Troubled Teens
Stillwater Academy Students to Graduate High School
Salt Lake City, Utah, May 19, 2008 – With the help of Stillwater Academy, an accredited school linked with adolescent treatment program Turnabout, nineteen students will fulfill an educational dream tomorrow that they might once have thought impossible—receiving their high school diplomas. Read More
“Once our students realize what it takes to be successful in school,” said Marilyn Prettyman, Stillwater Academy principal, “their futures change. They begin to see they can graduate from high school, and even more, they can go on to college or some other form of training.”
Started nearly ten years ago, Stillwater Academy helps troubled teens get back on track with school and come to love learning again.
“I would have never expected to get good grades like the ones I am getting right now,” said one young man. “Instead of an uncertain future for myself, I have a bright and hopeful future.”
Small class sizes, caring teachers, and an emphasis on student responsibility to complete schoolwork are integral parts of Stillwater Academy. The school also offers a summer program to give students a chance to earn some of the credits they need.
“I have learned how to be responsible for the work I do,” said another student, “and how to be dependable on the things I am assigned. I have learned how to work hard and push myself to do better. I have learned what I want in my future for my schooling and career.
Stillwater Academy’s 2008 graduation will be held Tuesday, May 20 at 6:00 p.m. at the Sandra Lloyd Performing Arts Center located at 13280 S Redwood Rd in Riverton.
For more information on graduation or Stillwater Academy, please contact Marilyn Prettyman or visit www.turnaboutteens.org.
New Partnership Offers Unique Help to Troubled Teens and Families
Turnabout/Stillwater Academy and Homeward Bound Unite to Provide Greater Aftercare Services
Salt Lake City, Utah, May 8, 2008 – Research shows lasting success among teens graduating from a residential treatment program is largely based on three components: family involvement during treatment, the return to a stable home environment, and the availability of aftercare support for youth and their families. For more than twenty years, Turnabout/Stillwater Academy has been incorporating these fundamentals into its treatment program, and now in partnership with aftercare leader Homeward Bound, Turnabout will offer troubled teens and their families more comprehensive aftercare services aimed at achieving greater long-term success. Read More
“Through our combined efforts, Turnabout’s graduating students and families will be more prepared for the real-world and will have higher levels of success than ever before,” said Dr. Tim Thayne, founder and CEO of Homeward Bound. “While Turnabout has always been conscientious about how they help parents, this integrated program shows their full commitment to the process of aftercare.”
As part of the new aftercare services, every family who comes to Turnabout will be given a Turnabout therapist and a Homeward Bound transition specialist, who work together to prepare teens and their families for the return home. The transition specialist educates parents on the transition process, assists them in making a transition plan, and provides them with vital support after their teen’s graduation. Families will also have access to the Family Bridge, Homeward Bound’s internet based program used for coordination and communication between the family, the family support team, their Turnabout therapist, and their transition specialist.
“Turnabout has always approached treatment with this end in mind—we want families to be successful after the program,” said Scott Jones, program director at Turnabout. “Homeward Bound gives us more tools and experts to do just that, and I believe other treatment programs and professionals will look to our joint model as an example of what is possible in the field.”
For more information on Turnabout and its partnership with Homeward Bound, contact Turnabout’s program director Scott Jones.
Adolescent Treatment Program Helps Local Schools
Turnabout/Stillwater Academy Educates School Administrators on Healthy Communication with Students
Salt Lake City, Utah, March 26, 2008 – Parents and teachers of teens are quick to agree that navigating the world of adolescence is tough on everyone, adults and teenagers alike. But Turnabout, an adolescent treatment program for troubled teens, is making communication and relationships with teens a lot easier. In partnership with Clementine Farms of Lehi, Utah, Turnabout will host a round pen demonstration for Granite School District administrators on Friday, March 28, showing the correlation between horse training and healthy relationship building with people. Read More
“The building blocks for a successful, interpersonal relationship are universal,” said Lee Caldwell, director of Turnabout and a horse trainer. “Whether it’s building a relationship with a young horse or building a relationship with students in a classroom, the same core principles apply.”
School leaders aren’t the only ones who benefit from Turnabout’s round pen demonstrations. Each month, the treatment program hosts a round pen for parents, students, church groups, business groups, or other treatment centers. In this unique setting, horse trainers teach the importance of trust and consistency in relationships, effective problem-solving, non-threatening conflict resolution, and building confidence.
“Those who attend a round pen see the application of these principles right before their eyes,” said Caldwell. “They have the opportunity to view things from a different perspective when their watching a round pen.”
For more information on Turnabout and other round pen events, contact Lee Caldwell or visit www.turnaboutteens.org .
