Welcome to Archway Academy, an important new school offering a supportive, sober school for students recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. Archway Academy was established in 2003 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation by a group of committed Houstonians involved in 12-step adolescent peer group treatment programs. This group recognized there was a compelling need for a high school program in Houston that would support the recovery efforts of addicted adolescents. Before Archway, no school in Houston addressed the unique needs of this special group. 

Adolescent Addiction ~ A Growing Problem

• Findings from the National Council on Drug Abuse’s Texas School Survey indicate drug and alcohol use is increasing and grows more prevalent as students move through grade 12.
• Over 150,000 U.S. adolescents received treatment for addiction in the U.S. last year and drug related emergency department visits increased 20 percent for patients age 12 to 17.
• An estimated 1,000 high school students in Houston are admitted to substance abuse and addiction recovery programs each year.

A Safe Sober Environment Supports Recovery

• National statistics prove most teens relapse (80%) in the first three months after rehab, but the rate of relapse is much lower for those able to attend a recovery school environment (30%).
• When adolescents return to school after treatment, they face tremendous academic challenges as well as emotional stress as they are surrounded once again by peers who continue to use drugs and alcohol.
• Succeeding academically can help students stay sober, which, in turn, can encourage them to graduate.
• Poor academic performance is the “single strongest predictor of dropping out,” and people who drop out of school have a higher risk of relapsing than those who finish school. 

Why is it so Critical to Support these Teens Now?

• Building positive peer relationships is vital for this age, as is learning new life skills. 
• Learning how to have fun without drugs and learning how to feel emotions, positive and negative, without drugs takes months and years to do, one day at a time.   
• In Texas, the annual cost of alcohol and drug abuse is estimated to be $25.9 billion (2000). The value of reduction in productivity of alcohol and drug abusers is $11.2 billion each year. 
• To promote and prolong the positive steps achieved during rehabilitation, Houston needs a school dedicated to educating teens in recovery now to provide a positive path for lifelong success.

Archway Academy provides a supportive and sober environment where students can continue their education and their recovery.