Other Side Academy

What’s The Problem?

The problem is that there is a portion of the criminal and drug offender population that doesn't get better by doing time or being on the streets.  Many of them are repeat offenders, spending their lives in and out of jail and prison.  They usually have substance abuse problems and many times find themselves unable to secure or keep a job and eventually wind up on the streets, being involved in criminal activity, and going back to jail.  And this cycle continues at great expense to taxpayers.  These people are living lives of increasingly destructive behaviors to themselves, to their families, and to society.

What’s our Answer?

We provide a two-year live-in educational program for ex-convicts, drug abusers, homeless and others that have hit rock bottom that teaches our participants how to live successful, productive lives free from crime and substance abuse.

How do we do it?

1. We follow a model of "Each One Teach One".  Healing occurs as a member of our community with more time in the program begins to help, care for, and mentor a member with less time in the program. We do not rely on therapists or psychiatrists to cure us, but we rely upon each other in a a highly structured family environment where honesty, trust and mutual self-help are the foundation of the treatment process..  The community is our doctor and our method of healing.  Throughout the week, we run our own group sessions where we work out the tensions of living and working together and reinforce healthy, productive behaviors.

2. We run businesses that are staffed and managed by our participants.  This allows our participants to learn on-the-job vocational skills, learn how to work together, and how to show up and work hard all day long. Work responsibilities are assigned that teach basic cooperation, respect and discipline. The revenues from these businesses pay the expenses for the program so we are not reliant upon the government for funding and it allows us to offer the program at no costs for participants.

3. We prepare them to successfully re-enter society.  They will work on getting their High School equivalency degree or other educational goals. As they spend more time in the program, they will be given more and more responsibility, such as being a manager or crew leader for one of the businesses, as well gaining more privileges along the way. The last portion of their stay in our program is composed of living on-site, but working out in the community with a full-time job.  This allows them a free place to live and consistent support while adjusting to reintegration.

What We Need

We work hard at being self-sufficient and paying our own way.  However, we have been receiving such a warm reception from the courts, that we are growing much faster that we had projected, so we need to grow into a new facility and to expand our vocational training schools.

We need money to buy another moving truck and moving supplies.

We also need money to expand our facilities so we can serve more students.