Outside In School of - Experiential Education

Learning-Focused Residential Community

A licensed, year-round private academic school sits on campus, offering regular and special education, Title I supports, and GED preparation and testing. Small-group instruction, weekly progress checks, and credit-bearing coursework help teens stay on track for a diploma or GED, which can make it easier to re-enter school or pursue training after discharge.

Evidence-Based, Stage-of-Change Approach

Pathway to Recovery combines Motivational Interviewing with the Transtheoretical Model, often called the stages-of-change approach. Rather than relying on confrontation, staff focus on each teen’s readiness to change and help them move from ambivalence toward healthier choices. Services also cover co-occurring mental health conditions. Counseling may include a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), anger management, trauma-related counseling, relapse prevention, and substance use education. Teens who use medications for addiction treatment (MAT) that are prescribed elsewhere can continue those medications while in the program.

Skills, Activities, and Real-World Responsibility

Life after treatment is a major focus of the treatment program. Teens take part in daily groups and activities that build social skills, accountability, and problem-solving. The 140-acre Laurel Highlands campus provides access to nature, a fitness center, basketball court, and challenging outdoor experiences such as rock climbing and service-based expeditions. A Transitional Skills Center and pre-vocational lab introduce job-related skills like residential wiring, cabling technology, carpentry, plumbing, computer problem solving, graphic design, and digital video production, helping teens imagine concrete next steps in work and training.

Family Engagement and Aftercare Planning

Family involvement is built into the program. Each teen works with a case manager who develops an Individualized Service Plan and an aftercare roadmap within 30 days of admission. These plans are updated regularly and coordinated with parents or guardians, referring agencies, and schools. As discharge approaches, the focus shifts to transition: therapeutic home passes, family meetings, school re-enrollment or GED coordination, and connections to outpatient counseling or county aftercare services. The goal is to return youth to their home communities with clearer plans, stronger skills, and support systems in place.