Columbus Girls Academy is an affordable Christian boarding school located near Columbus, Georgia, offering a safe haven for teen girls in Opelika, Alabama and around the nation; teens who have sought to fill a void in their lives through negative peer influences, self-destructive habits, or risky activities.

After trying every option in their search to help their daughter, families in Opelika, Alabama turn to the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy. They have usually tried counseling, medication, relocation, mental health approaches, and social service interventions, and getting nowhere. Some have been told by counselors that it would be best for their girl to get away from home for awhile and from negative influences and peers. So, they make the call for the help of a Christian boarding school for troubled teens, like the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy.

The typical girl who comes to CGA from Opelika, Alabama at the Teen Challenge Girls Academy was that she was once bright and talented; however, because of poor choices or an uncaring attitude, her life may end up far different from what everyone hoped for. Where there was once excelling grades, there is academic failure. Where there were once athletic, artistic or musical abilities, there is disdain for what she held dear. The teenage girl who once looked to her parents for direction, love, approval and acceptance, now depends on her peers to fulfill those needs; she is willing to follow them down a negative path in life.

While changes usually happen in the attitudes of young women going through early adolescence, some precipitating factors can leave a void in a young woman’s life and cause extremely self-destructive and angry behaviors. These factors include:

• Loss of a parent or loved one
• Childhood abuse (known or hidden)
• Divorce of parents
• A difficult or especially critical parent
• Bullying from others/Loss of friends
• Change in economic status or a change to a new home or school
• Medical issues with a loved one
• Physical invasion or mental intimidation
• Gang participation
• Excessive interest in pornography
• Negative peer group

As a result of such factors, young women from Opelika, Alabama who enroll in our program generally demonstrate attitudes and actions including:

• Low self-esteem
• Rebellion/Anger/Defiance
• Self Injurious Behaviors or Thoughts
• Deceitfulness/Cheating/Theft
• Manipulation of family and parents
• Promiscuity
• Dangerous Behavior
• Self-Hatred

Usually, prior to selecting CGA, families in Opelika, Alabama have sought help from psychiatry and the prescription of medication. While psychotropic medications can help reduce the symptoms of deeper issues, we have achieved high success in weening girls off of them once and for all. All but the most severe psychological issues are generally precipitated by deeper emotional issues, which must be addressed and solved with a clear mind. Psychotropic drugs are eliminated over time with the supervision of our physician and the family’s psychiatrist.

Most girls who come to CGA in Columbus, Georgia, from Opelika, Alabama have been previously had emotional and motivational issues such as:

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Difficulty with Distractions in a Classroom Setting
• Being oppositional and defiant
• Mood disturbances
• Issues from adoption
• Sadness or Over Exuberance

Progression of a usual Teen Challenge resident from Opelika, AL:

When a girl enrolls in Columbus Girls Academy it is usual for her to exhibit blame-shifting, avoidance of responsibility, and sometimes complete denial of wrongdoing. Soon after enrollment, the girl begins to feel some sorrow for the consequences of her previous actions. Essentially, she is sad for being caught in her actions, but she has yet to experience a turning away from that behavior. This may be very similar to the ups and downs that parents have been living with at home — pledges to be different, moments of peace, that cycle back to repeat and crisis. Sorrow does not change behavior, repentance does.

Usually, teenagers have been spared or delayed the heartache of the full-blown consequences for their negative decisions; sometimes by well-intending adults. For these reasons, teenagers are not always entirely certain of the need for a different way of living. However, the parent is certain of the need for intervention, because their girl is obviously headed for disaster if such actions persist. The Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy is an intervention program, hopefully helping make a change in troubled adolescents’ lives before they go on with life habitually living in a dysfunctional lifestyle.

We can be reached at (334)855-3695 or contact us using the online inquiry form to register young women from Opelika, Alabama year-round.

Christian boarding school near Columbus, Georgia, a Teen Challenge program for adolescent girls in Opelika, Alabama and around the nation who are troubled by life-controlling issues. Visit the remainder of this website to learn more about Teen Challenge.

The Columbus Girls Academy Teen Challenge program isn’t in Opelika, Alabama, but it accepts young women from Opelika, Alabama.