Support for youth who are navigating trauma, stress, anxiety, school challenges, emotional overwhelm, and life transitions in a safe, respectful environment.
REACH Therapeutic Learning Center is a trauma-responsive, therapeutic education support program for adolescents whose learning has been disrupted by mental health challenges, trauma, emotional dysregulation, school avoidance, substance-use concerns, family instability, placement disruption, or other barriers to school success. The program is operated in partnership with a school, district, online school, charter school, private school, or alternative education provider. The school partner remains the school of record. REACH provides the therapeutic learning environment, daily structure, emotional support, tutoring, engagement coaching, life-skills development, and coordination needed to help students stabilize and re-engage in education.
The partner school or online school handles academics; REACH handles therapeutic support around learning.
Who the Program Serves The program serves adolescent students, generally ages 12–21, depending on the partner school and program design. Students may be referred because of:
- Anxiety, depression, trauma symptoms, grief, emotional dysregulation, or shutdown - School refusal, chronic absenteeism, suspension history, or disengagement - Substance use, experimentation, recovery needs, or risk of substance use - Bullying, family conflict, homelessness risk, placement instability, or justice/court involvement - IEP, 504 Plan, behavioral accommodation, or executive functioning needs - Difficulty succeeding in a traditional classroom because of emotional, behavioral, or environmental stressors
REACH provides the therapeutic and learning-support environment.
- Safe, calm, trauma-responsive learning space - Daily routine and structure - Learning facilitation - Assignment organization - Tutoring and homework support - Emotional regulation support - Coping-skills practice - Engagement coaching - Life-skills development - Wellness activities - Caregiver communication - Coordination with the school partner - Coordination with therapists, caseworkers, probation officers, or other providers when appropriate and consented - Documentation of engagement and support needs Referral Sources The program should not be limited to CPS referrals. Referral sources may include:
- Parents or guardians - Public school districts - Charter schools - Online schools - Private schools - Behavioral health providers - Hospitals or partial hospitalization programs - Juvenile courts or probation - Children services agencies - Foster care or kinship providers - Community organizations - Self-referral by older youth or young adults, when legally appropriate
This model is a community adolescent mental health and education support program.
Admission Criteria
A student may be appropriate for REACH Therapeutic Learning Center if they: - Are enrolled, or able to enroll, in a partner school or approved education provider - Need a smaller, calmer, more structured learning environment - Can safely participate in a non-secure, non-hospital educational setting - Benefit from trauma-informed support, emotional regulation assistance, and academic coaching - Are not currently requiring inpatient psychiatric hospitalization, medical detox, or constant one-to-one supervision - Are willing, with support, to participate in a daily learning routine - Have a caregiver, guardian, school partner, or agency able to participate in planning and consent, when required
Exclusion Criteria
The program is not appropriate for students who currently require: - Locked or secure placement - Inpatient psychiatric hospitalization - Medical detoxification - One-to-one staffing for safety throughout the day - Continuous crisis stabilization - Active violent behavior that cannot be safely supported in a school environment - Active psychosis or mania requiring emergency stabilization - Substance use requiring withdrawal management - Sexual behavior requiring specialized supervision beyond the program’s capacity
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