The area's first high school for teens recovering from alcohol and drug addiction, eating disorders or other mental health issues will open in Lake Bluff on Monday.
Newport Academy Day School will be the first recovery high school serving Chicago's North Shore teens, age 15-19. The school will occupy a suite of offices at 900 N. Shore Drive in Lake Bluff in the same building that houses the Lake Bluff School District 65 administrative offices in a light industrial area that includes Pasquesi Home and Gardens.
Already, several students are enrolled to start classes on Monday. They will work a self-paced, year-round individual curriculum based on the successful model started at the first Newport Academy Day School that opened in California three years ago.
Jamison Monroe Jr. founded the recovery school as an extension of the Newport Academy residential treatment facility he started in California four years ago. The Lake Bluff recovery school is the first of several that Newport Academy will open in major metropolitan areas in the next few years.
Work on finding a North Shore location for a recovery school began about a year ago.
"We've seen a number of kids from the North Shore in our treatment facility out in California and we've worked with a number of professionals in the area for many years now," Monroe said.
Newport Academy Day Schoolwas created for teens with a commitment to staying sober from drugs and alcohol while completing their high school education. Classes are led by credentialed educators and all curriculum is fully accredited.