Programs » Academic Credit
Academic Credit
Our educational program is woven into the treatment program through experiential learning and organized psychoeducational group instruction. Our goal is to provide your child with the opportunity to receive school elective credits by successfully completing standards- and performance-based courses in the areas of health, physical education, home economics, and journal writing. We aim to engage the whole child in a thoroughly individualized program that addresses emotional needs, learning styles, academic background, and adolescent development.
We use content standards as a basis for our curriculum; however, students are assessed with considerable attention paid to effort and performance change over time. Although each student must meet a minimum level of proficiency for us to recommend credit, significant changes in a student's attitude and effort toward learning and demonstrated performance often correlates in increased understanding of content material. We assess student proficiency through extensive student journal writing, one-on-one sessions, group sessions, and student performance (including effort, skill accomplishment and success, and application of knowledge).
Below is a summary of the clock hours, content standards and recommended academic credit for each of these content areas. Although we feel that students meeting our proficiency expectations deserve to receive credit for the work they do while in our program, it is up to your child's school to actually grant the academic credit. For more information or details concerning these courses please feel free to contact our office at (800) 390-3983.
Content Area: Health
Course Title: Personal growth, psychology, and substance abuse prevention
Clock Hours: 90 hours (phase I); 180 hours (phase II)
Recommended Semester Credits: 0.5 (phase I); 1.0 (phase II)
Oregon Standards Correlation:
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Health Education common curriculum goals:
- Healthy and fit body
- Controllable health risks
- Safe and healthy environment
- Healthy relationships
Course Description
Throughout the wilderness therapy expedition students participate in many psycho-educational and process groups. These groups occur daily and range in time from one to three hours per group. Sample topics include:
- Values and beliefs
- Feelings
- Defense mechanisms
- Family roles and family traits
- Grief and loss
- Depression management
- Addictive personality traits
- Anger management
- Levels of drug and alcohol use
- Disease concept of addiction
- Modified 12-steps
- Recovery and relapse prevention
- Tobacco cessation
- Boundaries and assertiveness
- Relaxation techniques for relief of anxiety and stress
- When your parent is an alcoholic/addict
- Eating disorders and body image
Content Area: Home Economics
Course Title: Cooking and Camp Management
Clock Hours: 45 hours (phase I); 90 hours (phase II)
Recommended Semester Credits: 0.25 (phase I); 0.5 (phase II)
Oregon Standards Correlation: N/A
Course Description
Student's responsibilities include managing their food, meals, clothes, and campsites. It is expected that students learn how to ensure that they always have dry clothes to wear each day, prepare nutritious and tasteful meals, set-up their shelter sites, and keep an organized camp.
Students are expected to be responsible for preparing and cooking their own meals throughout their wilderness experience. Each week students are given a ration of food, which must last them one week. Their responsibility is to manage their food supply accordingly while preparing appropriate meals each day. Students are encouraged to be creative in making their food using the ingredients provided. Staff may direct students in preparing a specific meal, but students are often free to compliment or be creative given the specific meal.
Content Area: Physical Education
Course Title:Backpacking/Camping/Outdoor Education
Clock Hours: 90 hours (phase I); 180 hours (phase II)
Recommended Semester Credits: 0.5 (phase I); 1.0 (phase II)
Oregon Standards Correlation:
- Physical Education:
- Expressive and efficient movement
- Fitness for lifetime
- Self management and social behavior
Course Description
Students at Catherine Freer spend a large portion of their time (4 - 12 hours per day) learning various outdoor skills, participating in backpacking, and camping. Some specific skills students acquire include:
- Backpacking
- Hiking
- Snowshoeing
- Shelter-building
- Fire-building (when appropriate)/other camp-related skills
- Cooking on stove/fire
- Daily suitable clothing selection
Students also recognize the value and importance of physical fitness in their overall health as well as in their recovery process. As students become fit via increased physical activity, consumption of nutritious foods, and lack of substances in their lives, they begin to gain appreciation and understanding of how these various things affects their lives.
Content Area: Writing
Course Title: Journal Writing, elective
Clock Hours: 45 hours (phase I); 90 hours (phase II)
Recommended Semester Credits: 0.25 (phase I); 0.5 (phase II)
Oregon Standards Correlation: N/A
Course Description
Students are required to keep several different journals while at Freer. These journals have many functions including: 1) a tool for student reflection, 2) student responses to staff assignments from education groups, 3) other staff writing assignments, and 4) student "free" writing.