Teens are often excited for the rest and relaxation summer can bring. But for those struggling with mental health issues, the lack of routine and social aspects of school can worsen symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions. That’s why attending residential treatment or a full-day Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) during the summer can be beneficial—and even life saving—for adolescents.
By attending one of Newport Academy’s residential programs or PHPs during the summer, teens benefit from the high-quality, compassionate mental healthcare provided without having to disrupt their school schedule or balance the typical educational demands during the school year. Instead, teens continue to receive individualized support through Newport’s robust academic program, which helps teens stay on track towards graduation, address barriers to their learning experience, and develop their skills to become independent students.
Avoiding the Summer Slide
Research shows that summer learning loss equates to about one month of regression on a grade-level equivalent scale. This phenomenon, known as the “summer slide,” can lead to achievement gaps and create emotional stress for teens, contributing to anxiety, reduced self-esteem, and even depression.
This is why Newport takes a whole-person approach to treatment, prioritizing education along with any mental health concerns. In addition to evidence-based therapeutic and experiential modalities, each teen’s tailored treatment plan includes dedicated classroom time with licensed teachers. These classrooms provide a safe, welcoming space for teens to receive individualized, grade-level support.
Additionally, our educators work with teens on critical executive functioning skills, such as focus, self-advocacy, and time management, that will allow them to enter young adulthood with confidence.
The Importance of Academics in Treatment
Many of the adolescents who come to Newport with mental health conditions, such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD/ trauma, have school challenges as a result. Anxiety about academic performance or social connections can lead to absenteeism, school refusal issues, and poor grades. Numerous studies show the connection between mental health challenges and poor academic performance.
The relationship between school performance and mental health is bidirectional, says Francine Le, Newport’s National Director of Education, each exacerbating the other. She says that Newport teachers, who have extensive training in working with adolescents and with social emotional learning, approach teaching with these challenges top of mind.
“Our goal as educators is to help them repair their relationship with the school experience by rebuilding their academic identity and developing the self-esteem necessary to see themselves as capable and resilient learners. Without this shift, it is difficult for teens to build the internal motivation to fully engage in their learning as participants and contributors in a school community.”
How Newport’s Academic Program Works
Every teen enrolled in residential or PHP treatment has dedicated classroom time, up to four hours a day, Monday–Friday. This extensive time block allotted to education sets Newport apart from other programs in the industry, Francine shares. She explains that the therapeutic and academic components of treatment are both critical to a teen’s long-term success.
After a comprehensive academic assessment informed by current transcripts and discussions with the teen, family, and therapists, educators develop an Individualized Academic Plan (IAP). The IAP meets the needs and educational goals of the client, their family, and their home school. It also determines one of two pathways the student will take:
- The student continues with their home school curriculum, with Newport teachers serving as liaisons and student advocates, collecting schoolwork and communicating with teachers at their home school about their progress.
- The student is enrolled in an online, self-paced and fully accredited curriculum, which is supported by Newport’s teachers.
Highly-Qualified Educators
Newport’s team of compassionate and highly-qualified educators brings a diverse set of strengths to meet a wide range of learning and emotional needs. All staff receive ongoing training in executive functioning support, trauma-informed practices, and differentiated instruction. They also work closely with the clinical team to collaborate on a holistic approach that aligns with their treatment goals and learning profile.
The low student-instructor ratio ensures the opportunity to receive one-on-one support that they wouldn’t necessarily receive in a large school setting.
Opportunities for Learning and Growth
We meet teens where they are academically with opportunities that include:
Credit Recovery
For teens who have failed a course, need to remediate multiple credits, or simply want to improve their GPA, the program includes a mastery-based credit recovery option. Students are assessed to see what they’ve already mastered within the subject, requiring lesson completion only in areas where understanding is not conveyed. This approach helps them progress more quickly with less repetition and frustration.
Credit Advancement
Students who are on track and want to get ahead to alleviate a full schedule can take elective classes. Newport teachers coordinate with the student’s home school, or the school they will return to after treatment, to ensure the credits are in line with their graduation plans.
College Prep
College-bound students can use classroom time to research prospective majors and colleges, complete applications, or study for college entrance exams, such as the SAT and ACT. One-on-one time with teachers gives teens the opportunity to ask questions about majors or careers of interest and even create a vocational plan.
Reviewing Foundational Skills
Students can review materials and get assistance in essential subject areas in which they struggle or would like to improve.
The summer months can be an ideal time to reinforce study skills and explore future vocational goals while the stressors and expectations of the normal school year are removed. In working with our educators, students can really take the time and focus on how they learn best all while receiving the therapeutic care they need.
Francine Le, National Director of Education
What Our Research Shows About Clients’ Academic Improvements
Newport closely measures the outcomes of our academic program, which are published each year in our Science of Healing report. Using a proprietary survey, the Newport Academic Scale, we assess students’ gains in three components of the academic program: motivation, interpersonal skills, and study skills. By week 5 of the program, on average, students report improvements in all three areas.
Additionally, Newport gathers patient feedback at intake and again at 30 days on general functioning, or their ability to cope with everyday demands. In the post-discharge survey, our alumni reported higher functioning in all domains, which include engagement at school. See more outcomes in our most recent report.
Beyond Academics: The Importance of Executive Functioning
In keeping with Newport’s approach of nurturing all aspects of a teen’s well-being, our academic program extends far beyond foundational subject areas such as reading and math. Therapists and teachers help students build the executive functioning and organizational skills they need to be successful—both in and outside of the classroom.
Teachers are vital members of clients’ care teams, communicating regularly with therapists about challenges and progress in the student’s focus, initiative, self-advocacy, time management, organization, and more. Instructors work with students to develop daily and weekly goals for putting these competencies into practice.
“It’s important that we’re setting clear goals with the students and adopting a growth mindset in managing setbacks,” Francine said. “When we create a safe, structured routine and environment for teens, they are more inclined to take risks and maximize their potential in the classroom. We’re telling them, ‘Let’s try this together. If it doesn’t work, we’ll pivot.’”
Francine describes the classroom as a “live lab,” where teachers can observe how students interact with their coursework, peers, and the adults in the space. These interactions indicate whether they are modeling the interventions learned in therapy.
Parents receive weekly reports on their child’s progress, along with clear-cut action plans to course-correct when an approach isn’t getting desired results.
“We’re looking at students’ ability to self-start, work through a goal, and explore what it looks like to miss the mark. If we didn’t make our goal for that day, we sit down and talk about what the barriers were and identify an action plan to better target it the next day.”
Tapping into Natural Talents for Better Outcomes
Francine says the classroom can be the gateway to improving mental health outcomes for some students. She remembers one student who was very withdrawn and treatment resistant, due in part to feeling misunderstood and not having the language to self-advocate.
“He was so brilliant, so intelligent, and a lot of his confidence came from his ability to perform in school, though even that was suffering because he had become completely withdrawn. So, while he was oppositional and not engaging in the therapeutic component, we knew that we had an ‘in’ through the educational piece.”
By connecting with the student through his favorite subject, math, Francine was able to build a trusting relationship with him.
“He started to open up a lot more, and ultimately, allowed himself to authentically connect with others and explore the reasons that brought him to treatment. Outside of the classroom space, we saw him create friendships with his peers in the programs. You could see the spark come back—and the parents recognized that too.”
Ultimately, the young man graduated from high school while with Newport and went on to a four-year university. At home, his relationships with his mom, dad, and sister improved.
“This is the impact Newport’s educators are committed to making,” Francine says. “We’re helping clients heal and feel proud of their skills, strengths, and achievements. This student was able to reengage in the things that used to him happiness and fulfillment.”
Summer Treatment at Newport
Summer is the perfect time for your teen to access the results-driven, research-backed treatment Newport is known for. Not only will they get the mental health support they need from a caring team of mental health experts, they’ll receive individualized academic support that will keep them on track for the new school year. Contact us today to learn more.