FAQs

Compass Rose Academy understands the decision to find outside help for your daughter is not an easy one. When choosing to send your daughter to Compass Rose, it is essential to us that you have a complete understanding of our program and services. We encourage you to reach out and ask questions. We will walk through this journey with you.

  • What types of students are enrolled in the residential treatment center?

    The residential treatment center is for teen girls ages 14-18. It is ideally suited for girls struggling with a variety of problems, including issues related to adoption or attachment; abuse recovery; depression; PTSD; identity or body image issues; conflicts with peers, parents or authority; social isolation or rejection; mild self-harm and school troubles. The program is not a match for teenagers with severe self-harm or suicidal behaviors, history of frequent violent aggression, pervasive developmental disorders or psychotic disorders. Similar to therapeutic boarding schools in other states, Compass Rose Academy’s residential treatment center is not an intensive substance abuse program but offers support and education to young people struggling with alcohol and/or drug abuse.

  • How do I enroll my child in the residential treatment center?

    We would prefer to discuss your child’s situation prior to submission of an application for enrollment. As a first step, please call our Admissions Team at 260.569.4757 or Submit an Inquiry form.

  • How long do students stay at the residential treatment center for troubled teens?

    The average stay for students in Compass Rose Academy’s residential program is 9 to 12 months. However, each case is individualized based on the student’s specific presenting problems and goals. Change takes time and commitment, and students may stay for shorter or longer periods of time. Rest assured that our mission is to restore families and get children back home as quickly as possible. Compass Rose will never extend a student’s time beyond what is necessary to complete the program.

  • How many students are enrolled in the residential treatment center at one time?
    At Compass Rose Academy, we have 3 homes with typically up to 8-9 students each. So, our typical capacity is 24 students at a time.
  • Is the Compass Rose Academy affiliated with any particular church?

    Our roots as a subsidiary of Josiah White’s Residential& Family Services are in the Quaker, or Friends, tradition. In practice, Compass Rose Academy is a non-denominational Christian ministry. Here, a blend of therapeutic care and faith-based programming nurtures recovery and growth, helping to redirect, rebuild, and restore teens and their families.

  • What kind of education will my child receive once she is enrolled in the residential treatment center?

    The Academy at Compass Rose embraces a project-based learning approach, encouraging students’ choice, intellectual curiosity, and, ultimately, ownership of their education as integral parts of their
    progress. Our students also have the opportunity to take accelerated college-level courses online through Indiana Wesleyan University-National & Global while at Compass Rose in order to earn credits toward both their high school diploma and future college degree simultaneously.

     

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  • What does the counseling program at CRA entail?

    Compass Rose Academy’s Growth Model is based on the work of psychologist and author Dr. John Townsend, Ph.D. In addition to addressing symptoms with elements of therapy models such as Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Compass Rose Academy’s trauma-informed clinical program features a major emphasis on affect-based approaches that utilize the central role of experience in the therapeutic healing process. Based on advances in affective neuroscience, these corrective experiences in therapy create new neurological pathways that reinforce new ways of being and relating, leading to changes that are deeper and longer lasting.

     

    Instead of focusing solely on reducing symptoms like depression, anxiety, or defiance, our Growth Model looks at the hard-wiring issues (or character structure) that drive symptoms. We address this “character structure” in four primary developmental levels – Bonding, Boundaries, Reality, and Competence. The focus of the counseling and all other aspects of our program at Compass Rose is on developing the character, or internal structure, necessary to face the issues of life. As we focus on building healthy internal structure in these areas, we find that symptoms like depression, anxiety, and defiance decrease and often are eliminated. In fact, we find that students are empowered and their potential is unleashed like never before!

     

    Counseling at Compass Rose Academy also focuses heavily on improving students’ ability to self-regulate emotions and address cognitive distortions that contribute to negative behavior patterns. Skills based on the core elements of DBT (mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness), are taught in both individual and group settings. A key emphasis is also on mending family relationships to change negative cycles within the home environment.

     

    Group therapy sessions, as well as the overall approach, are attachment-based to foster healthy connections with others since healthy relationships provide people with the resources needed to meet life’s challenges. Our model places an emphasis on the importance of accurate diagnosis, including a structural diagnosis in addition to the primary mental health diagnoses.

  • In what activities can students expect to be involved at the residential program?

    Campus life features opportunities for students to participate in a broad range of activities. Daily recreation can include exercise at any of our on-grounds facilities including fitness center, indoor gymnasium, indoor swimming pool, and outdoor activity fields. Cottages regularly take outings as a group, whether for educational, therapeutic purposes or just for fun. Students challenge themselves and build teamwork and cooperation skills at high and low ropes courses.

     

    Since we believe so strongly in the value of teens developing competence, we work really hard to help students build and develop their passions, talents, and interests. This may include involvement with music, volunteering at a work experience site, taking a particular class, or engaging in some other individualized activity that taps into a student’s passion and potential.

  • How often can I visit my child once she is enrolled at the Compass Rose Academy residential treatment center?

    We believe strongly in the family’s role in the redirecting, rebuilding, and restoring process. We have many ways that parents are involved in the process from start to finish including phone calls, on-campus visitation, off-campus visitation, family therapy, home visits, Parent Group, and Parent Weekend. Families can arrange with treatment staff to visit throughout the treatment program in addition to the quarterly Parent Weekends. For greater detail about family involvement in treatment, see the Parental Involvement page.

  • Is Compass Rose’s residential treatment center for troubled teens coed?

    Compass Rose is a girls-only program.

  • Is there an on-site clinic at Compass Rose in case of a medical emergency?

    If your child does experience an injury or illness while at Compass Rose, rest assured that she will receive excellent medical care. In addition to a full-time nurse and a consulting physician, we employ on-site first-aid personnel who are also trained emergency medical technicians. In case of an emergency, the Wabash County Hospital is only minutes away from campus. Students enrolled at the Compass Rose Academy residential treatment center receive a physical examination within two weeks of enrollment, and vision and dental appointments are scheduled within 30 days. House parents are trained to administer medications and work closely with our on-site nurse’s office.

  • How will you discipline my child? Do you use corporal punishment?
    Compass Rose does not practice corporal punishment. As an accredited Teaching Family Model program, we incorporate a motivation system that focuses on teaching practical interpersonal skills and tying the implementation of these skills to certain incentives and privileges. This motivation system is one piece of the comprehensive trauma-informed, evidenced-based model of care.
  • How do you measure effectiveness of the program?

    We utilize an evidence-based tool, the Youth-Outcome Questionnaire, to assess overall mental health and behavioral functioning at intake and discharge as well as 6- and 12-month follow-up. We also have various objective and subjective measures to evaluate progress and goal completion throughout the treatment program. You can take a look at our Outcomes one-pager below.

     

    CRA Outcomes