wilderness therapy

["bill london" <bill_london@hotmail.com>]

Ok, everybody knows there are "troubled" teens out there: suicidal, 
drug-dependent, gang-oriented, etc.  And in some of those cases, there 
are frustrated, angry, and very worried parents of those young adults.

The question seems to be: what can reach these kids?  How can their 
lives/values be turned around to something less sociopathic?

Perhaps one answer is to place those teens in a wilderness area, and 
let the natural world (and the way it strips away the trappings and 
rationalizations of civilization) and creative therapeutic 
interventions by instructors refocus these kids.

If that kind of wilderness therapy interests you, then you will find 
the presentations set for April 20, 21, and 22 exactly what you need.

Next week, the UI is sponsoring a national meeting for the groups that 
offer outdoor behavior-modification trips for troubled teens.  Many of 
the nation's wilderness therapy providers will be there.  The 
conference is being organized by Keith Russell--and questions can be 
directed to him at 885-2269.

The three public events associated with this meeting are:
1. Tues, April 20. 6-7:30pm at UI College of Education room 401
  presentation on efficacy of wilderness therapy by Dr. Rob Cooley

2. Wed, April 21, 8pm at Laura's Tea and Treasure on Main St.
  reading/slide show by author Gary Ferguson of his new book, Shouting 
at the Sky.  This book is a must-read for anyone who wonders what to 
say to those who insist wilderness is a land of no use.  Ferguson 
spent a summer observing several groups of teens involved in 
wilderness therapy sessions.  He lived with them, and tells their 
story well.

3. Thurs, April 22, 7:30-9pm, at UI Law School courtroom
  lectures by the founders of wilderness therapy, Larry Dean Olson and 
Ezekial Sanchez.

BL


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