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New Perspectives - Aug,
1998 Issue #53
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OBSIDIAN TRAILS
Outdoor School & Behavioral Assessment
(Part of The Back In Control Center)
Bend, Oregon
By: Gregory Bodenhamer
541-318-6034
The Obsidian Trails Outdoor School & Behavioral Assessment Program opened
in Bend, Oregon on July 1, 1998. The outdoor school is a forty-five to ninety day backcountry trek designed to regain control of temperamentally
difficult and out-of-control children. It is different from other outdoor schools and wilderness programs in a number of ways. Instead
of waiting for children to learn lessons from the consequences of their misbehavior, Obsidian Trails incorporates Back In Control’s
program of consistent discipline, personal supervision, and close monitoring to move students steadily through its field program.
In fact, each student’s experience begins with his or her first day in the field and continues for the following two years, and longer,
because the parents are trained to use the same approach at home.
The Obsidian Trails Behavior Assessment Program is a twenty-one day backcountry
trek designed to stabilize out-of-control behavior while assessing the emotional health, behavior, and academic abilities of high-risk
teenagers. At the conclusion of the program all students will be given a written assessment describing the nature of their problems
along with specific recommendations for their solutions.
I am also pleased to tell you that I am combining Obsidian Trails into a
broader program with the Back In Control Center. Together, they will offer parent training and outdoor education, along with training
workshops for educators, therapists, probation officers and others.
Copyright © 1998, Woodbury Reports, Inc. (This article may be reproduced
without prior approval if the copyright notice and proper publication and author attribution accompanies the copy.)
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