Therapeutic Staff
- NSA employs 3-4 full time licensed Masters-level therapists (either completed or in progress) for
18 students' needs. - These therapists are a part of the family community and participate in everything from classes to
cookouts to experiential education trips, creating a rich, intensive, therapeutic milieu. - They meet regularly with students individually and keep notes regarding emotional growth goals,
progress, and strategies. - Therapists communicate with guardians through unlimited emails & weekly phone calls.
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- New Summit Academy is a community where students gain motivation to continue their process of
change and to live a healthy lifestyle, embracing new social and learning skills. The therapeutic
component of the community is substance-free, cross-cultural, and incorporates a system of
psychotherapy and self-help techniques inspired in the Transtheoretical Model of Change and
Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT) in a milieu primarily supported our student-
empowered & positive peer influenced philosophy. - Through our own model of peer-centered Honor Council Meetings, 3 weekly community meetings,
team-building recreational activities, and therapeutic Aventuras, students use their individual
strengths to support each other and create the kind of home and family in which they grow and
mature into healthy young men.
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The Transtheoretical Model of change (Prochaska & DiClemente, 1983; Prochaska, DiClemente,
& Norcross, 1992; Prochaska & Velicer, 1997) is an over-arching understanding of how change
occurs in stages over time. It involves emotions, cognitions, and behavior that can occur in a
non-linear dimension. This aspect has been overlooked or ignored by other theories of change
as behavior change was often understood as an event, such as quitting smoking, drinking, or
over-eating.
Stages of Change:
& Norcross, 1992; Prochaska & Velicer, 1997) is an over-arching understanding of how change
occurs in stages over time. It involves emotions, cognitions, and behavior that can occur in a
non-linear dimension. This aspect has been overlooked or ignored by other theories of change
as behavior change was often understood as an event, such as quitting smoking, drinking, or
over-eating.
Stages of Change:
- Precontemplation: not aware and not intending to change in the near future.
- Contemplation: intending to change in the "near future" but may be "stuck" or ambivalent
about preparing for change. - Preparation: intending to take action in the immediate future & have taken some
significant action in the past year and they have a plan of action. - Action: making specific overt modifications in their lifestyles in the recent past and
present. Risk behavior is reduced by action, but vigilance against relapse is critical in
this stage. - Maintenance: working to prevent relapse but they do not apply change processes as
frequently as in the Action stage. They are less tempted to relapse and increasingly
more confident that they can continue their change.
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1. Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy approaches provide staff at NSA with a practical approach
to help the students change dysfunctional emotions and behaviors by showing them how to
become aware of and modify the beliefs and attitudes that create these unwanted states.
2. Through community wrap-up meetings 3 times a week, peers problem-solve as a group about
issues that affect the entire community. Students are encouraged to be proactive & resourceful in
writing & presenting proposals for changes & improvements to their community living
agreements, including issues such as study halls, dorm cleanliness, dish chores, weekend
recreational activities, internet use, etc.. This initiative is encouraged & rewarded as part of the
process of learning to "own" one's life & community.
3. Individual therapy not only happens in the one-on-one interactions with the student's personal
therapist, but it also happens in our unique peer/staff Honor Council Meetings. These meetings
consist of 3 peers and 3 staff members who give feedback & discuss issues with the student
before reaching a consensus of what consequences (including therapeutic tasks, restrictions,
privileges, recommendations, etc.) will apply to that particular student & situation. This is a forum
that takes advantage of a non-reactive, peer-influenced, problem-solving approach to an
individual student's situation & natural consequences (both positive & negative).
4. Our licensed therapists are from Costa Rica and the cultural infusion of their culture's
non-confrontational, warm, peace-loving values are one of the most unique aspects to our
therapeutic program. Students feel therapeutically disoriented away from the high levels of
energy & stress in American lifestyles, and the natural lifestyle of the Ticos provides a calm and
non-threatening environment in which to grow and change.
to help the students change dysfunctional emotions and behaviors by showing them how to
become aware of and modify the beliefs and attitudes that create these unwanted states.
2. Through community wrap-up meetings 3 times a week, peers problem-solve as a group about
issues that affect the entire community. Students are encouraged to be proactive & resourceful in
writing & presenting proposals for changes & improvements to their community living
agreements, including issues such as study halls, dorm cleanliness, dish chores, weekend
recreational activities, internet use, etc.. This initiative is encouraged & rewarded as part of the
process of learning to "own" one's life & community.
3. Individual therapy not only happens in the one-on-one interactions with the student's personal
therapist, but it also happens in our unique peer/staff Honor Council Meetings. These meetings
consist of 3 peers and 3 staff members who give feedback & discuss issues with the student
before reaching a consensus of what consequences (including therapeutic tasks, restrictions,
privileges, recommendations, etc.) will apply to that particular student & situation. This is a forum
that takes advantage of a non-reactive, peer-influenced, problem-solving approach to an
individual student's situation & natural consequences (both positive & negative).
4. Our licensed therapists are from Costa Rica and the cultural infusion of their culture's
non-confrontational, warm, peace-loving values are one of the most unique aspects to our
therapeutic program. Students feel therapeutically disoriented away from the high levels of
energy & stress in American lifestyles, and the natural lifestyle of the Ticos provides a calm and
non-threatening environment in which to grow and change.
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- 1. All of our difficulties arise and are expressed in our relationships with other people.
By focusing on interpersonal relationships and cooperation within a social community, students
have an infinite number of opportunities to gain insight into how their thinking and behavior may
be self-defeating, and to develop and practice new ways of relating to the world around them. A
boarding school environment provides the ideal canvas to create a structured and carefully
defined social system, free from many of the pressures of the larger social milieu, while
reflecting the realities of young adult social interaction.
2. Healthy and open relationships are crucial in milieu therapy as all members of the
community must be open to personal examination and growth.
Faculty and staff model patience, flexibility in thought, and a willingness to continually work to
solve problems and grow. This self-reflective teaching model recognizes that all human beings
share similar psychological processes, and by doing so, creates a therapeutic environment that
allows students to let go of emotional defenses and experiment with new ways of thinking and
behaving. The development of a strong, positive peer culture is the community goal of milieu
therapy while the goal of milieu therapy for an individual student always focuses on helping him
to gain insight and practice more adaptive ways of engaging the world.
Research and studies have proven that peers have a greater impact on each other than anyone
else. A positive peer culture is the most powerful component in the equation for effective change
as peers live and attend classes together, share living spaces and daily living activities,
participate in therapy and give constant feedback to each other.
As the peer culture is based in mutual respect, support and care, the strong influence that
adolescents and young adults have on each other will provide a healthy milieu where:
- Students will exercise empathy, care and compassion for the best interest of the community
above self –centered and egocentric behaviors. - Students are encouraged to seek help and support from each other.
- Students will learn and practice skills to be able to work together effectively and develop pro-
social values. - Students develop academic, vocational, social and personal potential effectively when their
social needs are met and those needs are address periodically. - Students create and maintain a constructive environment to become productive, contributing
members of society. - A relaxed, happy, supportive and safe campus makes it possible for students to feel
comfortable, embrace change, open up and develop self - acceptance. - Every student is expected to become a positive role model, willing to help and support his peers
to recognize negative influences, irrational beliefs, unhelpful thoughts and inappropriate
behaviors - Students develop self-discipline, problem solving and decision making skills and healthy
coping strategies. - Students understand and enforce healthy living standards through good communication and
assertiveness. - Students are the primary source of support to replace inappropriate living standards.
Through interdependence with other peers, staff members, the community and the
culture each student is ensured to learn personal success skills, enabling older
adolescents and young adults to achieve independence and self-sufficiency regarding
daily living skills, self-advocacy training, and support with any issues that challenge
their independence: nutrition skills training, basic money management, time
management, household organization, wellness and physical fitness, job finding skills
- resumes, interviews, and travel planning.
Milieu therapy with a peer-based philosophy and a cross cultural learning component
will provide a unique platform for personal growth and emotional development. The
integration of educational and therapeutic services through experiential education in a
multicultural environment is an ideal combination for a transitional environment and to
develop real success skills, supervised and instructed by trained professionals.
culture each student is ensured to learn personal success skills, enabling older
adolescents and young adults to achieve independence and self-sufficiency regarding
daily living skills, self-advocacy training, and support with any issues that challenge
their independence: nutrition skills training, basic money management, time
management, household organization, wellness and physical fitness, job finding skills
- resumes, interviews, and travel planning.
Milieu therapy with a peer-based philosophy and a cross cultural learning component
will provide a unique platform for personal growth and emotional development. The
integration of educational and therapeutic services through experiential education in a
multicultural environment is an ideal combination for a transitional environment and to
develop real success skills, supervised and instructed by trained professionals.
New Summit Academy Costa Rica
Personal Growth: Building introspective skills
through insight-based milieu therapy!
through insight-based milieu therapy!