Trying to find an private therapeutic boarding school for struggling boys in Aurora, Illinois? Perhaps you will consider Heartland Boys Academy, an affordable boarding school in Western Kentucky. Heartland is an alternative therapeutic boarding school known for its devotion to teenage boys who have gotten off track academically, emotionally, legally, or socially.

Heartland Boys Academy accepts troubled boys from across the U.S., including from Aurora, Illinois. It is a faith-based boarding school that uses adventure as a powerful therapeutic tool for turning around negatively motivated boys. We are an early intervention school with a mission to lead wayward teens to achieve their specific purpose, or destiny, in Christ.

Heartland exclusively serves troubled or struggling boys. Parents of these boys find it valuable for their boy to grow in a new environment here at Heartland that is away from negative influences back home in Aurora, Illinois. We display love and respect to disrespectful and difficult boys who are in need of a better life perspective including a new spiritual focus in life. Our mentoring and encouragement is meant to bring about transformation where there was once only negative motivations and failed family relationships.

Accredited School for Boys from Aurora, Illinois

To provide a quality education is also our top priority. Heartland Boys Academy is a fully accredited private school that employs a model of independent study with tutelage. Students complete courses at their own speed, with weekly goals set by instructors based on the student’s program of study. Heartland also encourages students to work toward post-secondary goals by offering assistance with college testing.

Students from Aurora, Illinois, who attend Heartland achieve phenomenal progress towards successful high school completion and beyond. Our partnership with Edgenuity produces an educational environment that spurs motivation to succeed, which gains momentum and encourages students to do their best. Edgenuity is certified by COGNIA, the highest accrediting body for schools in America.

While the Edgenuity program is intuitive and self-paced, our own certified classroom teachers make sure that the boys keep up their coursework. They tutor, answer any questions, and give each student plenty of encouragement. Our teachers are kept informed online how well each student is progressing. Students who fail to keep up or are not understanding a specific topic are helped, but if they are failing as an act of rebellion, they may lose out on some on-campus privileges like fun times until they choose to get caught up.

Heartland Spiritual Focus

Spiritual life is the foundational component of Heartland Boys Academy. We believe that ultimately Jesus Christ is the only answer for struggling youth from Aurora, Illinois. We are devoted to introducing every boy to a relationship with their Maker. We help them find their spiritual gifting and purpose in Christ.

Many teens who attend have dismissed their religious heritage or have never professed faith in Christ. Heartland offers an open environment for them to take ownership of their faith as they may never have done before. Godly character surrounds everything we do at Heartland Boys Academy.

Where Boys from Aurora, Illinois, Can Receive Leadership Training

In addition to helping capable students learn to apply themselves academically and spiritually, we provide specific leadership training to unlock the potential in each student. We teach teens to serve and love each other. Mission trips and community service opportunities provide real life experience and application of the leadership principles demonstrated at Heartland.

Replacing the Bad Attitudes with a Positive Peer Culture

Heartland acknowledges that teenagers and their parents in Aurora, Illinois, face huge challenges from the culture. Teens are assaulted by a barrage of negative peer pressure. The Heartland plan for change is called Positive Peer Culture (PPC), which states that young people can learn self-worth, significance, dignity, and responsibility only as they become committed to the positive values of serving and caring for others.

Adventure Therapy is a Primary Tool

Adventure therapy is a primary therapeutic tool of Heartland. We find that boys are more open to communicating and learning while participating in adventure tasks, so we use those times to instill positive thinking and to develop better communication skills. It also facilitates improvement in their ability to work cooperatively with others.

Adventure therapy is a form of experiential therapy that uses challenging adventure activities to aid the therapeutic healing process. It plays a key role in character maturation. Every boy takes part in our adventure program because of the important values that can be gained. We offer a number of adventure activities including camping, backpacking, rappelling, canoeing, swimming, hiking, hunting, and spelunking (cave exploration).

At a therapeutic school like Heartland, students get the opportunity to engage in many activities and new adventure experiences during their stay. Adventure therapy used at Heartland are where boys learn to listen, learn regulation skills, and push themselves to overcome challenging fun tasks. The challenges students face through our adventure programming are meant to forge a more positive identity, build character, and develop a sense of accomplishment. Students do not just participate in the activity; they reach for a goal and accomplish it. This is a therapy know as experiential learning.

Our staff are trained to facilitate the adventure program in a safe and effective way. The same team members who live with students all week, building rapport and making connections, are then able to instruct students during their adventure activities.

Heartland Boys Academy is a campus teeming with healing and hope for boys in Aurora, Illinois. We have been privileged to see many at-risk and struggling teens transformed into hard-working, respectable adults. We help restore teens to their families; healthy, confident, and spiritually and academically on track. Call (888)300-2830 to learn more today, or fill in our online inquiry form.

Please think about looking beyond Aurora, Illinois to see how our Christ-centered adventure-based therapeutic boarding school program can lead your troubled teen toward life transformation. To discover more, please contact us today.