At Cherry Gulch, we believe that education is the cornerstone of our lives. We offer an outstanding curriculum that covers all core subject areas including English, Math, History and Science. We also offer other elective programs including Art and Computers and even Wilderness Survival and Judo. Lessons are designed to be fun and engaging and are tailored to each student's needs. Our low student to teacher ratio allows us to give each student what he needs to succeed.

Our Educational Philosophy includes:

• Create a pro-social environment rich with content and instruction
• Develop basic academic skills, critical thinking and good study habits
• Present core subject matter with emphasis on problem solving, executive order reasoning and cognitive motivation
• Encourage healthy attitudes toward education that will facilitate life-long learning

Cherry Gulch is certified by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools (NAAS) and meets or exceeds the academic standards set by the State of Idaho. Cherry Gulch's academic staff is comprised of certified post-graduate teachers with more than 40 years instructing at-risk populations. Direct Care Staff also engages students by participating in the educational processes at Cherry Gulch. This provides our students with unique and diverse learning experiences. Our academic program is integrated seamlessly with the therapeutic boarding portion of student's experience, creating an immersive learning environment. Instruction also includes Sean Covey's books, "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens" and "The 6 Most Important Decisions You'll Ever Make." A Student's placement is determined by a series of factors: interviews, previous grade reports, standardized testing results, and placement assessments. Students impacted by strong emotional issues or possible learning disabilities are given special attention. Individualized academic plans are created for these students to be sure that they perform at their best. A school Semester is not determined by a set number of day/hours of instruction but rather as the amount of work completed by the student bearing in mind their academic/learning needs and individual issues. As our students learn more about the world around them, they begin to learn more about themselves. Success in the classroom often translates to success in life for troubled teens.

Method of Therapeutic Intervention:
As a therapeutic boarding school, Cherry Gulch strives to entwine the most effective therapeutic strategies into our student's daily life. Services include, but are not limited to, individual, group, and family psychotherapy, equine therapy, outdoor-based experiential therapy, bibliotherapy, art therapy, music therapy, play therapy,and a culture of positive peers.
The treatment team is led by a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and each of our therapists are licensed masters or doctorate level therapists. A Board Certified Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist visits campus twice a month. The primary interventions employed with troubled boys are those that are empirically-based and have been demonstrated to be effective either through scientific research and or clinical experience. An eclectic approach to treatment is taken based on the needs of the individual student. However, cognitive-behavioral, family-systems therapy, interpersonal therapy, existential therapy, Rogerian therapy, and positive psychology are the most common interventions employed at Cherry Gulch. Many of the activities that students participate in have a therapeutic purpose yet this fact is generally not apparent to the student.
Although a sophisticated, empirically based approach to treatment is taken, we realize that the relationship that is formed between a student and his therapist is the most critical aspect of the therapeutic process. We also realize that younger adolescents have a short attention span and often do not respond well to traditional "arm chair" therapy. We make therapy fun and rather than just sitting in an office and talking we engage our student in the therapeutic process while we are hiking or enjoying other activities. We do have scheduled therapy sessions but much of the therapy is done as life unfolds and a student is angry, frustrated, sad, in a conflict with another student, or any number of other events that may have occurred to elicit an emotional response from the student.
Cherry Gulch offers an integrative approach to the treatment and education of at risk youth. The farming, ranching, and other agricultural aspects of the program are essential because we use these activities to foster a strong work ethic, provide students with hands on learning experiences, and experiential therapeutic activities such as equine assisted psychotherapy.
Even gardening can be therapeutic for multiple reasons. A simple example of this is when a student plants a seed and cares for it as it begins to grow. That new leaf can be looked at as a new fresh start or a second chance and the student can process how he was able to help the plant grow and what he feels he needs to help himself.
Cherry Gulch is one of the true American boarding schools and what's more American than Ranching? Ranching is an important part of the student's therapy as they will be responsible for taking care of another living being. These activities can be tailored to each child's needs. For instance, if we have a child who is struggling with adoption issues we can assign him to work with a family of chickens. We would let one variety of chicken set on her eggs but include an egg of a different variety so that when the chicks hatch they will be bonded with one another as well as with their mother. This will enable the student to talk about how they are all family and care about one another even though they don't all look the same.
We offer approximately 10 hours per week of structured therapeutic services as directed by the Clinical Director, the child's primary therapist, and his individualized treatment plan. The entire program is designed to be therapeutic and therapy continues throughout the day and through many of the child's daily activities and as there is an opportunity for a therapeutic moment. Listed below is an example of the structured weekly therapeutic services offered at Cherry Gulch.
Therapeutics

Students are not required to attend church services or activities but they are encouraged to. Spirituality has been shown to be an important aspect of mental health and, for many people, it is an important coping skill as well as an additional support system for struggling students. Students who would like to attend religious services can go to church with staff members.
Good values and morals will be taught and guest speakers may be invited from many different backgrounds and faiths. They will be expected to keep their sermons non-denominational in nature and to speak about topics that will be enriching to all students. Staff members who desire to contribute to the Cherry Gulch community will be allowed to lead small-group study and/or prayer meetings with students of the same faith. If requested, students who have a religious background different from that of our staff or of the churches in the local area will be transported to Boise - or to another nearby community - once a month to attend religious services consistent with the student's faith. Alternately, a spiritual mentor from that faith will be invited to visit the student on-campus.
At Cherry Gulch we understand that spirituality is an important part of life and wellness. We remain open minded about other's religious and spiritual practices and are careful to respect one another's beliefs. Students are allowed to choose the level of involvement they have in the spiritual and or religious activities available to them while at Cherry Gulch. Our staff members come from a broad range of spiritual beliefs and backgrounds and we do not attempt to convert students. We simply want to respect the student's values and beliefs and to help them mature and grow.

Cherry Gulch has six friendly horses, and 220 acres for the horses to roam. Students feed and groom the horeses, take riding lessons, go on trail rides, and participate in equine therapy. Cherry Gulch is bordered by 540 acres of public land which gives us lots of room to go on trail rides.

In addition to horses, Cherry Gulch also has a number of small and mid sized animals for students to care for and interact with such as dogs, cats, goats, sheep, a rabbit and sometimes chickens, turkeys, or pigs.
Not all boys schools offer animal assisted psychotherapy like Cherry Gulch. Taking care of animals can be therapeutic and petting them is soothing. Cherry Gulch has a hospital/therapeutic dog-in-training his name is Elmo. These dogs have mild temperaments and specific training which will allow them to be certified hospital dogs. These dogs will be safe for students to interact with, help protect the small animals and alert staff to any unauthorized persons on the ranch premises. A number of scientific studies have documented the therapeutic influence animals have on people.
Staff members who are trained experts in animal care supervise the animal facilities and make sure that the animals are being cared for appropriately. They also teach the students about the animals and how to care for them. Students have the option of being enrolled in 4H where they can gain further knowledge of plants and animals as well as a wide range of other skills.

Athletics: Basketball, volleyball, bad mitten, judo, flag football, ultimate frisbee, golf, cross-country, skiing/snowboarding, and rodeo are just some of the sports our students enjoy. Some of our teams will compete against other middle schools in the area.
Other Activities: Horseback riding, rafting, 4H, Boy Scouts, Corporate Kids CyberKlub, Electronics Club, hiking/camping, fishing, gardening, weekend trips, various games, building projects, drag racing (spectator), work study program, field trips, mentoring program to teach younger children to read, elderly visitation program, movies, museums, and other activities in Boise.

Camp Stanley is a "base camp to adventure" for Cherry Gulch students. Groups of students spend three to four weeks at Camp Stanley during the summer. It is a fully equipped base camp located in the breathtakingly beautiful Sawtooth Mountains. There are numerous activities and opportunities available to students at Camp Stanley including horseback rides, backpacking, whitewater rafting, fishing, boating, swimming, hiking, biking, photography, soaking in natural hot springs, scenic back road drives, trips to the ghost town, museum, gold dredge, or a day trip to Sun Valley.
Camp Stanley is also an excellent outdoor classroom and a great place for students to enjoy the largest wilderness area in the continental United States. The excellent therapeutic services provided at Cherry Gulch continue while students are at camp.