A checklist for choosing a boarding school for your troubled teen

As your teenager becomes more and more defiant, truanting from school, making poor life choices, running around with the wrong crowd; you have no doubt searched for a solution, possibly on the Internet, and come to the conclusion that boarding school may be the only option.

Before sending your teen away, make sure your teenager has been assessed to ensure that there is no clinical reason for their behavior, and to identify any possible depression. Consider the following points when choosing a boarding school for your troubled teenager.

• Does your health insurance cover this? Are there any constraints?


• Talk to your teens' school and their counselor, ask for a recommendation.


• Read the schools websites for further information, and check for accreditations they may have, and the qualifications of their personnel.


• Write down all the questions you have, however silly, that you need answering (you may want you read "Questions to ask a boarding school.")


• Discuss the idea with your teen, and the family, you need to know what is important to your teenager, it is their treatment, not yours! Do not keep this a secret from the family!


• Shortlist two or three schools, then ask them to send you details; you are checking what their response time is, and whether they are prepared to "go the extra mile" for you and your teenager.


• Telephone the schools and arrange appointments to visit, if you can. If the distance is too far to travel and too expensive; arrange a telephone conference with the people running the schools and ask your questions then.


• If at any time, what a school says makes you feel uncomfortable or worried, cross them off the list.


• You should now have enough details to make a considered choice, and it is not until you have reached this point that you should consider finance!

I know that the price of different teen boarding schools is important, but it needs to be less of a priority than the care and development of your teenager. The most important aspect of this is that at the end you and your teen feel that you have made the best choice. However distressing your teen's behavior has become, you must not rush this decision to send them to troubled teen boarding school.

This decision should not be made when you are stressed and at your wits end and it should not be a choice made to punish your teen. Teen boarding school is part of a solution, a step in redirecting your teen back to the right path. It may be that you have much work to do after your teen goes to boarding school, but initially finding the right boarding school for your troubled teen is the priority.

If you suspect your teen has extreme mood swings or depression, we strongly recommend you go see a licensed physician to get a complete diagnosis and treatment plans. If you think your teen could benefit from a boarding school or wilderness camp, give us a call and we can walk you through the process.