SUWS Troubled Teen Wilderness Programs specialize in helping troubled teens and defiant teens with behavioral and emotional problems. SUWS prides itself on being one of the longest running wilderness therapy programs in the United States. For over 25 years they have assisted young people to identify and work through internal conflicts and emotional obstacles that have kept them from responding to parental efforts, schools, and treatment. SUWS accepts boys and girls ages 11 to 17. These are children who are inherently good and have the ability to be successful, but because of unhealthy misperceptions about themselves, they have limited access to their own abilities and strengths.

SUWS provided families with a safe and immediate intervention by utilizing its search and rescue metaphor, individualized treatment plans, and flexible length of stay. The wilderness environment and experiential learning help students recognize and build upon their own sense of self-worth as they learn the value of helping others.

Aspen Ranch is a licensed adolescent residential treatment center that emphasizes equine therapy. Located in rural Loa, Utah, about three hours south of Salt Lake City, Aspen Ranch is surrounded by towering green mountains and incredible red rock desert which offers a great alternative to school for your troubled teen. There are miles of BLM and Forest Service land in all directions, and Capitol Reef National Park is just twenty miles away. The Ranch’s co-educational residential treatment program is set in an ideal environment for troubled teens between the ages of 13 and 17.6 years, who need an opportunity to make positive life changes.

Low self esteem, academic underachievement, substance abuse, mood disorders, anger, and family conflict are some of the issues students at Aspen Ranch may be struggling with when they first arrive. Living in a therapeutic environment, attending an individually paced school designed for success, participating in individual and group therapy, and involvement in a life-changing Equine Program, allows Aspen Ranch students to experience success and rediscover a sense of mastery and self worth.

Aspen Achievement Academy is JCAHO-accredited, licensed treatment program that integrates an accredited academic component, a sophisticated therapeutic model, and an experiential education curriculum in a healing wilderness environment. Aspen Academy recently participated in a landmark study of wilderness therapy that showed a dramatic improvement in teen behavior after participation in this type of program.

The Academy creates a modern “rite of passage” designed to assist adolescents in making the transition to responsible young adulthood. It guides each participant through a series of powerful metaphors that symbolize stages of growth, provide deeper insight towards developing self-reliance and generate a sense responsibility for self and community. Aspen’s clinical focus is on insight-oriented therapy, rather than behavior modification. The model helps our students gain awareness of their emotional and behavior habits. This unique, nurturing approach allows our students to address individual issues, become engaged in their personal success, and begin the process of bringing families back together.