Girls Boarding School

Abundant Life Academy is a unique Christian boarding school for troubled teens. Our definition of a troubled teen is much different than most. Our approach to serving the troubled teen is just as unique. However, the purpose of this web page is not to discuss our approach as much as it is to define the term, "troubled teen". We want to take the time to clarify the term, and to define our version of what a troubled teen is, and how he/she became that way. To know what we are dealing with does just as important as knowing how to deal with it.

To us, a troubled teen is not a thug, a thief, a gangster, a criminal, violent, defiant toward all authority, or any other description that describes someone with a mental disorder. When we use the term "troubled teen" we really mean to describe a "spoiled brat". We mean to describe a kid who has every possible resource available to make something out of him/herself, yet all they want to do is hang out with negative friends and "run their own show". We are referring to kids that have been blessed, gifted, and very talented but are wasting their God-given potential trying to emulate the latest rapper. This kid is only interested in how he/she is viewed by his/her friends, and cares nothing of their parents and how they feel.

The troubled teen that we serve comes from middle and upper middle-class Christian families who have good morals, good work ethic, principled, and are integral. These families have raised their children in good Christian homes, attending church regularly. But, about the age of 12 their child began to change. First came the rap music, then the clothes, and the hip language. Pretty soon all that used to matter is gone, and it has been replaced with defiance, anger, and rebellion toward parents. Today's troubled teen acts 8, and demands to be treated as if they were 30.

With these kinds of kids therapy doesn't work, it just makes them worse. Why? Because being a troubled teen is not a mental disorder, and therapy rarely works with kids anyway. Furthermore, this is a spiritual condition, and not a mental health issue. It is also an emotional immaturity issue, and not a lack of therapy. These troubled teens don't need a therapist; they need a sense of reality, they need discipline, and a sense of appreciation for the blessing they have. These kids suffer from the disease of "entitlementitis". Entitlementitis is a disease associated with prolonged exposure to unearned prosperity combined with numerous parental rescues. It comes from living in a society where everything is expected instantaneously, without effort. Entitlementitis can only persist in an environment where accountability is disregarded, and blaming others is always the "special of the day". Entitlementitis is the biggest epidemic since polio, and twice as devastating.

Read more at Boarding Schools for Girls Part II

Christian Boarding Schools by State

Abundant Life Academy, offering Christian boarding schools serving troubled teens and their families (since December 2000) in Alabama (AL), Arkansas (AR), Alaska (AK), Arizona (AZ), California CA), Colorado (CO), Delaware (DE), District of Columbia (DC), Florida (FL), Georgia (GA), Hawaii (HI), Idaho (ID), Illinois (IL), Indiana (IN), Iowa (IA), Kansas (KS), Kentucky (KY), Louisiana (LA), Maine (ME), Maryland (MD), Massachusetts (MA), Michigan (MI), Minnesota (MN), Mississippi (MS), Missouri (MO), Montana (MT), Nebraska (NE), Nevada (NA), New Jersey (NJ), New Mexico, (NM) New York (NY), North Carolina (NC), Ohio (OH), Oklahoma (OK), Oregon (OR), Pennsylvania (PA), South Carolina (SC), Tennessee (TN), Texas (TX), Utah (UT), Virginia (VA), Washington (WA), West Virginia (WV), Wisconsin (WI), Wyoming (WY), Canada, Mexico, Cayman Islands. For a list of counties and cities we serve click here.