Welcome to Moonridge Academy, a small, nurturing environment that provides the springboard to healing and wellness for young teens struggling with depression, anxiety, trauma, or attachment issues.

We are all in, every one of us, every day, for every child.

Moonridge Academy’s Core Values

1. Health and Safety
2. Adventure
3. Individuality
4. Diversity
5. Choice & Accountability
6. Gratitude
7. Attunement
8. Integrity

We are dedicated to providing a safe and nurturing environment where young teens can explore their individual potential through adventure and diversity. We are committed to attuning to each child's unique needs and supporting their choices with accountability.

We are grateful for the opportunity to serve teens and families. Our core values guide everything we do. Our mission is to provide a safe and nurturing environment where each young teen can thrive and reach their full potential.

Moonridge Academy:
A Place of Healing for Struggling Teens

At Moonridge Academy, we believe that a smaller program allows for more individualized treatment and a lot of one-on-one time for each student. Because of our size, we are know how important relationships between peers are, as well as relationships with therapists and mentors. This is ideal for students who might struggle with clinical issues rather than superficial symptoms.

We specialize in individualization to meet every student's unique needs. Each student has a primary therapist as well as their own mentor advocate to assist them day to day. These caring individuals help each student explore the "why" and "how come" of behaviors. We believe in relationships, individualization, and experiential activities to help our students learn new skills to be successful when they return home.  Students are involved in individual therapy, family therapy and group therapy.  This clinical involvement along with the coaching and support in our milieu help younger teens gain skills that will last a lifetime.

 

Students at Moonridge Academy learn the following:

  • Expressing feelings before acting out
  • Appropriate Social skills
  • Relationship skills
  • Deepening relationships with parents and siblings
  • Communication about fears and hurt
  • Having healthy boundaries
  • Correctly reading social cues in social settings
  • Making good decisions "in the moment"

Why Parents Choose Moonridge Academy?

Moonridge Academy is a residential treatment program that offers unique and innovative treatment for younger teens aged 11-14.. Our approach is based on the understanding that every child is an individual with their own set of talents, needs, and interests. We provide a variety of therapeutic opportunities in a safe and supportive environment, so each student can reach their full potential. Students who come to Moonridge Academy are often beginning to experiment with high-risk behaviors. These behaviors might include school refusal, self-harm, restrictive eating, withdrawal from others, angry outbursts, poor peer and family relationships, and low-level substance abuse. In other instances, a student may not yet have begun these activities, but because of depression, anxiety, trauma, or low self-esteem, is at a high risk to do so.

With our experienced staff and commitment to individualized attention, your child will be able to thrive in our nurturing environment. We offer a variety of programs for students of all ages, so you can find the perfect fit for your family.

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What Challenges Does Moonridge Academy Help With?

Depression

Many students who enroll at Moonridge Academy have persistent feelings of loss of interest or sadness that characterize major depression. This can lead to a range of behavioral and physical symptoms, including changes in appetite, energy level, sleep, concentration, daily behavior, and self-motivation. Depression can also be connected to thoughts of suicide

Anxiety

Worry, concern, nervousness, and apprehension are completely normal in most stressful situations, such as taking a test or public speaking. Anxiety is an indicator of underlying disease when feelings become excessive, all-consuming, and interfere with daily living. Many students who enroll at Mooonridge Academy have experienced ongoing anxiety symptoms that have led them to withdraw from favorite activities, have trouble concentrating, or develop an avoidance of difficult or new situations.

Trauma

Trauma is an emotional response from the body and mind to a difficult event. Immediately after the event, denial and shock are common to feel. Long-term reactions may likely include a range of unpredictable flashbacks, emotions, challenges to relationships, and even physical symptoms like headaches or nausea. In teens, trauma can lead to overwhelming feelings of shame and guilt, uncontrollable fear and trepidation, or a withdrawal from favorite activities.

Gender Dysphoria

Gender dysphoria is a sense of unease that a person may have due to a difference between their biological gender and their authentic gender identity. This sense of non-alignment or dissatisfaction with how they are perceived may be so intense it can lead to stress, anxiety, or even depression and can have a deeply challenging impact on daily life

Self-Harm

Many of our students at Moonridge Academy have a history of self-harm. Self-harm is when you hurt yourself to deal with challenging feelings, painful memories, or overwhelming situations and experiences. After self-harming, a student may feel a short-term release, but the cause of their distress is very unlikely to have gone away. Most often, students have self-harmed by cutting themselves.

Suicide Ideation

A teen who is struggling with suicidal ideation might be preoccupied with the idea of suicide. They may regularly think about how they would commit suicide or what life would be like if they weren't around. They may also replay the suicidal act out in their mind.

Addictive Behaviors

Students who enroll at Moonridge Academy might be struggling with addictive behaviors. This can include someone becoming extremely fixated and focused on something and developing an obsession regarding it. Addictive behaviors can include the use of technology, social media, and even self-harm.

School Refusal

When a teen faces depression and anxiety challenges, they might feel too overwhelmed to attend school. A teen enrolling at Moonridge Academy is often missing school credits due to excessive absences.

Disordered Eating

While Moonridge Academy is not an eating disorder program, many students who enroll have a history of disordered eating. Some students might be restricting what they eat or binge eating, while others might have a history of purging.

Attachment Disorders

These are conditions that can develop in teens who have issues establishing a deep emotional connection. Since the quality of the attachment and bond profoundly impacts your adolescent's development, experiencing issues related to attachment can affect their ability to express emotions, develop trust and security, and build meaningful relationships later in life. Attachment challenges can occur in both adopted teens and those who are not.

Poor Peer Relationships

Many students at Moonridge Academy have struggled with developing and maintaining good peer relationships. Some have difficulty understanding the nuances of the give-and-take needed in social interactions. Others might have social anxiety, which keeps them from reaching out to peers, or they might not feel like they deserve close relationships.