Searching for an nonprofit therapeutic boarding school for troubled boys in Cedar Rapids, Iowa? Perhaps you will look at Heartland Boys Academy, an affordable Christian boarding school in Western Kentucky. Heartland is an adventure-based therapeutic boarding school known for its commitment to teenage boys who have wandered away academically, emotionally, legally, or socially.

Heartland Boys Academy accepts troubled boys from across the U.S., including from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It is non-denominational Christian boarding school that uses adventure as a powerful therapeutic method for turning around negatively motivated boys. We are an alternative school with a mission to lead wayward teenagers to achieve their specific purpose, or destiny, in Christ.

Heartland exclusively works with troubled or struggling boys. Parents of these boys find it advantageous for their boy to experience a new environment here at Heartland that is detached from negative influences back home in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We demonstrate love and respect to disrespectful and seemingly unlovable boys who are in need of a new life perspective including a new spiritual belief system. Our mentoring and encouragement brings about new thinking and motivations where there was once only ungodly motivations and failed family relationships.

Accredited Academics for Boys from Cedar Rapids, Iowa

To provide a quality education is also our top priority. Heartland Boys Academy is a fully accredited private school that operates under a model of independent study with personalized instruction. Students work through courses at their own pace, with weekly objectives set by tutors based on the student’s chosen course work. Heartland also encourages students to work toward post-secondary goals by helping them prep for college testing.

Students from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, who come here achieve phenomenal progress towards successful high school completion and beyond. Our partnership with Edgenuity produces an educational atmosphere that spurs a desire to succeed, which gains momentum and helps the boys 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 on-campus 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 certain topic are helped, but if they are dragging their feet as an act of rebellion, they may jeopardize some on-campus privileges like fun times until they choose to get caught up.

Heartland Spiritual Focus

Spiritual life is the cornerstone characteristic of Heartland Boys Academy. We believe that ultimately Jesus Christ is the only answer for struggling teens from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We are dedicated to introducing every boy to a relationship with their Maker. We help them find their spiritual gifting and purpose in Christ.

Many teenagers who come have moved away from their religious heritage or have never professed faith in Christ. Heartland offers an open environment for them to renew or gain their faith, perhaps for the first time. Godly character frames every aspect of life at Heartland Boys Academy.

Where Boys from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Can Receive Leadership Training

Besides helping capable students get back on track academically and spiritually, we present specific leadership training to unlock the potential in each child. We teach teens to serve and love others. Mission trips and community service events provide real life experience and application of the leadership principles demonstrated at Heartland.

Changing the Bad Attitudes with a Positive Peer Culture

Heartland recognizes that adolescents and their parents in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, face huge challenges from the culture. Boys are assaulted by a barrage of negative peer pressure. The Heartland plan for change is called Positive Peer Culture (PPC), which believes that young people can learn self-worth, significance, dignity, and responsibility only as they devote themselves to the positive values of helping and caring for others.

Adventure Therapy is a Primary Tool

Adventure therapy is a key therapeutic feature of Heartland. We understand that boys are more open to talking and learning while enjoying adventure tasks, so we use those times to instill better thinking and to improve their communication skills. It also helps improve 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 is meant to contribute to character development. Every boy takes part in our adventure program because of the important values that can be gained. We offer many kinds of adventure activities including camping, backpacking, rappelling, canoeing, swimming, hiking, hunting, and spelunking (cave exploration).

At a therapeutic school like Heartland, students are allowed to engage in various activities and new adventure experiences during their time here. Adventure therapy activities at Heartland are where boys learn to listen, learn regulation skills, and push themselves to accomplish challenging fun tasks. The challenges the boys face through our adventure programming are designed to forge a more positive identity, build character, and create a sense of accomplishment. Students do not just participate in the activity; they reach for a goal and accomplish it. This is called experiential learning.

Our team 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 Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We have seen hundreds of at-risk and struggling boys transformed into hard-working, respectable adults. We help restore boys 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 outside of Cedar Rapids, Iowa to see how our Christ-centered adventure-based therapeutic boarding school program can guide your struggling boy toward life transformation. To discover more, please call or inquire online today.