Recovery High Schools: Innovative Schools Supporting Recovery From Substance Abuse

• In Event: Speaking Up and Reaching Out: Personal and Social Factors Related to Student Outcomes

Abstract

Recovery high schools offer academic services within a structured environment promoting recovery. Features include maintenance of a drug-free learning environment with post-treatment continuing care. This paper will examine preliminary data from a comparative outcomes study, funded by NIH, evaluating the effectiveness of recovery high schools for improving the behavioral and academic outcomes of adolescents with substance use disorders after receiving treatment. The study represents the first rigorous services research on the effectiveness of recovery high schools, and it considers whether recovery high schools are more effective than regular high schools--combined with usual continuing care support services--in preventing relapse, facilitating academic achievement, and reducing dropout for students recovering from substance use disorders.

Authors

• Andrew J. Finch, Vanderbilt University

• D. Paul Moberg, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Emily Tanner-Smith, Vanderbilt University

• Holly Wegman, Vanderbilt University