Columbus Girls Academy is a therapeutic boarding school located near Columbus, Georgia, providing a safe haven for adolescent girls in Ozark, Alabama and around the nation; girls who have sought to fill a void in their hearts through negative peer influences, self-destructive habits, or risky activities.

After trying every option in their quest to help their girl, parents in Ozark, Alabama turn to the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy. They have usually tried psychologists, medications, and rehabs, and getting nowhere. Some have been told by psychologists that it would be a good idea for their girl to get away from home for awhile and from negative influences and peers. That is when they seek 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 Ozark, Alabama at the Teen Challenge Girls Academy was that she was once bright and talented; however, as a result of self-destructive choices, her future has been compromised. Where there was once excelling grades, there are failing grades. Where there were once athletic, artistic or musical abilities, there is disdain for what she held dear. The young girl who once sought her parents’ direction, love, approval and acceptance, now has sifted to her peers to fulfill those needs; she is willing to allow them to lead her down a negative path in life.

While shifts usually happen in the moods 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
• Early abuse (known or hidden)
• Family split
• A difficult or especially critical parent
• Bullying from others/Loss of friends
• Loss of economic status or a move to a new home or school
• Chronic illness of a loved one
• Physical invasion or mental intimidation
• Gang participation
• Excessive interest in pornography
• Negative peer group

Resulting from such factors, young women from Ozark, Alabama who register for our program typically exhibit issues and behaviors such as:

• 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, parents in Ozark, Alabama have gotten help from psychiatry and the prescription of medication. While psychotropic medications can help alleviate the symptoms of deeper issues, we have found significant success in weening girls off of them once and for all. All but the most severe psychological issues are generally triggered by deeper emotional issues, which must be dealt with having a clear mind. Psychotropic drugs are reduced over time with the supervision of our physician and the girl’s psychiatrist.

Some students who come to CGA in Columbus, Georgia, from Ozark, Alabama have been previously diagnosed with psychological disorders such as:

• Attention Difficulties
• 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 student from Ozark, AL:

When a student comes to 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 resident begins to feel some regret for the consequences of her previous actions. Essentially, she is sad for being caught in her actions, but she has yet to begin a turning away from that behavior. This may be very similar to the roller coaster that the family has 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, adolescents have been spared or delayed the trouble of the full-blown consequences for their negative decisions; sometimes by well-intending parents. So, as a result, teens are not always confident of the need for a different way of living. However, the parent is convinced of the need for intervention, because their girl is obviously headed for lifelong trouble 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 dangerous lifestyle.

We can be reached at (334)855-3695 or inquire using the online inquiry form to learn students from Ozark, Alabama year-round.

Therapeutic boarding school near Columbus, Georgia, a Teen Challenge program for teenage girls in Ozark, Alabama and around the country who are struggling with 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 Ozark, Alabama, but it accepts young women from Ozark, Alabama.