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Q: Where is ALE located?
A: We are situated in the heart of the Adirondack Forest Preserve surrounded by 6 million acres of designated parklands. Our administrative office is located in Saranac Lake, New York in the Olympic region of Lake Placid, New York. ALE is located within driving distance of most Northeastern metropolitan areas.
Q: How long is the ALE Program?
A: Our average length of stay is 45 days. Each week when you speak with your family’s Field Supervisor, you will receive updates that will help you to gauge the length of time that is most appropriate for your child's experience.
Q: Can my child continue to take his/her medications?
A: Yes, your child can continue their medication regimen at our program. We do ask that kids are stabilized on their medications prior to arrival.
Q: What is the staff to student ratio?
A: Experienced instructors provide 24 hour-a-day attention at the ratio of one instructor for every two or three students. Our groups rarely exceed eight students. Groups do not interact and are single gender.
Q: Is your program year-round?
A: Yes, we operate 365 day per year! Living in the wilderness during all four seasons is an immeasurable experience. We adapt special protocols to maintain safety standards. Here are some of the ways:
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We research and select gear specifically designed for the mountain environment.
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When the weather is too cold, our students stay in cabins which have wood heated stoves.
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Our sleeping bags are conservatively rated at -20 degrees. During the winter, our students sleep on double sleeping pads and learn nutritional techniques for generating extra heat with metabolism.
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In the event of an emergency, instructors have radios and satellite phones which can be used to contact 24 hour on call staff.
Q: What is the difference between what you do and what boot camps do?
A: At ALE, we believe all behavior is the expression of an emotional need. Therefore, we address kids on an emotional level by searching for the positive intentions behind their choices. Boot camps tend to work with kids on the behavioral level with aggressive confrontation and do not address the emotional need driving the behavior. We are also not a punitive program like many boot camps. We do not use deprivation therapy, and we would never use food or physical activity as a punishment. Instead, we use as much positive reinforcement as possible, provide consequences that are natural and logical, and encourage adolescents to develop insight that allows them to understand how they are shaping their reality and relationships with the choices they are making. We are truly a strengths based program.
Q: What is the training and experience your instructors have?
A: ALE Field Instructors are chosen for their commitment to helping adolescents, their experience, their education, and their demonstrated ability to utilize the wilderness as a powerful tool for eliciting growth and change. Our instructors are carefully selected after demonstrating their skills and knowledge during our multi-day hiring seminar. After hire our instructors participate in trainings every week. Each of our instructors has a minimum of First Aid and CPR certification. Every head instructor is a Wilderness First Responder, which is a very advanced wilderness-specific first aid certification. Our instructors are also trained in MANDT de-escalation, which is comprised of positive interventions for negative choices.
Q: Who will my child's peers be?
A: We are working with typical high school kids who are not feeling good about themselves, and therefore not making good choices. Our kids may have ADHD, ODD, family conflict issues, negative peer relationships, low self-esteem, academic difficulties, and/or entitlement. Typical ALE students may be experimenting with drugs and alcohol, or have a history of trauma. We do not work with adjudicated adolescents or kids who are court appointed. Nor do we work with adolescents who are a risk to themselves or others. We screen very closely for teenagers who have a history of violence.
Q: Can my child handle the physical component?
A: Many of our students have been inactive prior to their enrollment with us. Upon arrival each of our students has a physical with our medical director, Dr. Michael Pond. At this time a plan is designed for any nutritional or physical accommodations. Our students may hike from 2 to 5 miles per day, 5 days a week, with a backpack. While here with us, our students improve their diets, sleep regularly, drink plenty of water, and exercise regularly. With this new structure, previously inactive kids often discover that physical activity is one of their strengths and recognize it as a new healthy way to manage stress.
Q: How is risk managed?
A: Safety is critical here at ALE - everything else comes second. We have a physician on call to us 24/7. We have medical staff on call and living on-site 24/7. Our students are checked by a member of our heath staff weekly. We are certified by The New York State Department of Heath. Our field instructors, who are First Aid and CPR Trained, carry satellite phones, radios, and pagers to communicate their needs at any time.
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