Finding calm in rough waters.

Classroom teachers may not be able to emulate all of the strategies the Eckerd Youth Alternatives system uses for dealing with disruptive and delinquent students, but not every tactic requires a wilderness backdrop.

The journal seemed harmless, its pages resting obediently between black-and-white covers. But veteran teacher Sherry Stephens once viewed it differently. The journal seemed a timber rattler, coiled to strike.

"I really hate you and could care less if you die," hissed the words scribbled on "Day 10" by a 16-year-old student she'd grown to hate and fear. Written as part of an assignment, this particular sentence was no doubt meant to be read by Stephens.

Stephens is a teacher for the wilderness camp program within the highly respected Eckerd Youth Alternatives system, a 30-year-old network based in Clearwater, Florida, for at-risk and delinquent youth. Eckerd operates in seven states, serving more than 4,000 voluntary and court-committed young people each year. The Eckerd system offers a range of alternatives (see box on facing page)--classroom programs for elementary students, camps for troubled teens and secure facilities for the most hardened drug dealers, car thieves, burglars and the like.

Eckerd's tenets, as explained in its mission statement, are based on "...the concepts of a belief in God, individual dignity, self-esteem and self-improvement for both those served and employees." But staff members can't always instill such beliefs in all their students. In some instances, more than 40 percent of graduates have been convicted of a crime or violate parole within a year of an Eckerd program. The majority of program graduates, however, go on to vocational training, high school graduation or jobs, thanks to Eckerd's "reality-based therapy," a system in which students face immediate consequences for their actions.

"Most kids who come back from Eckerd have learned respect for authority and are positive about it," says Bill Hage, discipline-hearing officer for Polk County Schools in Lakeland, Florida. In two-and-a-half years, he's dealt with more than 150 Eckerd students.

"Most come back with their shirttails in and their pants up--as opposed to no belt and their pants hanging down around the knees," Hage continues. "They present themselves in a very adult manner."

If the Eckerd programs are mostly successful, why not emulate them in public schools? There are two overriding reasons. First, the average public school class session lasts only an hour, two at the most. Eckerd teachers have round-the-clock access to students for months, sometimes even a year or more, so they have the opportunity for effective follow-up and constant student development. Second, Eckerd students are a captive audience, unable to leave secure or non-secure premises without permission.

So while it may be impossible to integrate entire Eckerd programs into public school systems, teachers can tailor Eckerd practices to fit their classroom environments. The key components, Eckerd officials say, are peer counseling and respect.

Borrow a little Eckerd

Somehow, somewhere, the young people who end up in Eckerd programs got a bad start as students. They have behavioral problems and pose ugly dilemmas to school systems. Belligerent and swearing, many of these students intimidate teachers and disrupt entire classrooms.

However, these are the very students who may need teachers and positive role models the most. Vocational teachers who can bestow the marketable skills they need to become employed and contributing society members are especially valuable resources for at-risk students. A bit of Eckerd philosophy injected into any classroom--social studies or auto mechanics--could save a youngster from a life of crime and imprisonment. It also might foster the greatest success story of a teacher's career.

Eckerd teachers are trained to de-escalate situations. Rather than take insults personally, they recognize that students are acting out against a situation in which they are powerless. "If somebody stands up and tells me to shove the desk up my butt, I might say, `Well, I don't think it's going to fit,'" says Alan Adamson, director of Eckerd Academy, the wilderness camp where Stephens teaches.

By working through confrontation on an even level with their teachers, students learn to trust and even like their authority figures. For many, it is their first secure relationship with an adult. Many kids who come to Eckerd grew up in chaotic, even abusive, households. In one program, 70 percent of students were from single-parent families.

Eckerd Academy is in the swamps of Christmas, Florida. Its 44 boys are classified as a "level four" group--mostly nonviolent offenders convicted of theft or drugs who then disregarded their court sentences. (This program serves boys only. Eckerd also has programs for girls, as well as co-ed programs.) The Eckerd Academy students are divided into three dorms--Palm, Oak and Pine. Dorm members eat, sleep and attend classes together. And although they spend time sitting in a traditional classroom setting, many lessons encourage contextual learning and hands-on activities. For example, math concepts are conveyed in the context of constructing a boardwalk. Science concepts are integrated into a visit to a cattle ranch. Students also clear trails, plant trees and volunteer at the zoo, applying classroom work to hands-on work. All of these hands-on activities also burn excess energy that can lead to restlessness and outbursts.

For example, when a boy in Pine group shouts, "F--- you, I don't have to do that!" or hurls a salt shaker across the dinner table, his entire group must go outside and "huddle." That means talking it out until the offender backs down. In this culture, authority comes mostly from peers. And they all have an incentive to restore order--whether it's to finish a meal while it's still hot or to get out of the rain and back into class.

"When new students are assigned to their dorms, they posture and show how tough they are," Adamson says. "Later, the ones who caused trouble become the ones who counsel others." If students repeatedly cause trouble, their stay in camp is extended. Although this particular camp is new, it's expected the average stay will be four to six months.

Where to go from here

Standardized tests, administered to Eckerd newcomers and graduates, reveal the programs' success in improving attitudes and academics.

During the 1996-97 school year the average Eckerd student showed improved social and behavioral skills according to tests like the Millon Adolescent Personality Inventory and the Moos Family Environmental Scale.

Graduates of the Eckerd Wilderness Educational System (EWES), composed of 17 camps, show an average improvement of 1.3 school years in reading and 1.2 school years in math. Even greater improvements were achieved within the five-program juvenile justice component. Upon returning to public schools, however, many skill lag behind where they should be and administrators face a challenge in selecting a course schedule.

"If ... there's a vocational interest, we stack the deck high with vocational classes," says Liz Weber, director of federal programs and exceptional student education for Hernando County Schools in Brooksville, Florida.

As many as 10 Eckerd students a year return to Hernando County Schools. Most have learned "really good skills," Weber says. They've often learned to appreciate working with their hands and being outdoors, which leads to enrolling in vocational programs. Vocational teachers are informed of the students' unsavory backgrounds, but Weber says most welcome the students and the challenge.

One recent Eckerd graduate who has returned to Hernando County still struggles to control his anger, though he's learned to recognize an impending outburst before it occurs. Along the lines of Eckerd philosophy, the student's vocational teacher set up a system of passes, now used by all of his teachers. When tension mounts, the student asks for a pass and goes to an office where he can calm down.

Other teachers have designed incentive systems for behaviorally challenged students. If they don't swear for four days, for example, they're rewarded on the fifth.

An applied technology teacher in Hernando County says he gets along with his "alternative" kids, Eckerd students among them, because he respects them. "When someone comes into my shop, I try to blank out their past," says Tony Bruno. "I also explain to them that in the workforce, if the boss asks you to do something, you can't say, `F you' because there are 15 people in line for your job."

Critics, however, say alternative programs such as the Eckerd Academy merely teach young people to survive in the wilderness--not in the real world--arguing that back at home, family and peer pressures, hopelessness and poverty remain.

That's why, Eckerd officials say, post-program preparation is crucial. Before completers venture back into the mainstream, Eckerd counselors help schools design the best course schedule for reentering students. They also work with parents and employers to match students with compatible jobs. This requires particularly close attention, says Holly Ventrano, Eckerd reentry director in North Palm Beach, Florida.

"Some of these kids come out years behind in reading level," Ventrano says. "A 16-year-old might read at a third-grade level. If you put him in a job that requires technical reading, you're setting him up for failure."

Food service, landscaping and automobile detailing are attractive job settings. In a new program facet, a community resources coordinator pounds the pavement, setting up interviews between West Palm Beach employers and Eckerd graduates. The coordinator also teaches graduates interviewing skills, including how to dress and act professionally. Many times the students' community service stands as evidence of their reliability.

The means to an end

Vocational educators are especially familiar with the adage, "A job can be the best friend a young person ever had." This is certainly true for Eckerd graduates.

J.K., who asked not to be identified by his full name, entered an Eckerd program at 14 following convictions for burglary, auto theft, assault and battery, "you name it," says Rick Brightwell, reentry counselor in North Palm Beach.

Two years later, the boy graduated and entered 10th grade. His problems resurfaced. He seemed miserable and was failing most classes. Then, with Brightwell's help, he landed a job as a grocery store cashier. J.K.'s grades starting climbing and now he ranks in the top 100 of his 400-student class. Every Tuesday he cashes his paycheck, putting some of it toward a money order to pay court-ordered restitution.

When observers ask Brightwell how the change came about he points to the grocery store checkout line. "I could sit here and say that it was me, but I honestly think it was the job," he says. "He gets himself there, makes his money and runs his life."

On average, 85 percent of EWES graduates are either attending school or have received a diploma or GED a year after the program. In the juvenile justice component, 53 percent are attending school and nine percent obtain a degree within a year.

Take the 16-year-old who had upset Stephens with his journal entry. She admits his attitude devastated her so much that she nearly quit her job. Now she says that the student became a focused, respectful class leader. He completed the Eckerd wilderness camp program and returned to his hometown, where he enrolled in night school.

"I will always keep his journal," Stephens says of the pencil-scrawled volume. "He touched me more than anyone else because I had hated him." Asked how she overcame both their attitudes, Stephens replies, "I guess I just tried to stay in there with him."

RELATED ARTICLE: THE ECKERD ALTERNATIVES

Eckerd Youth Alternatives, Inc. divides its programs into three areas--early intervention services, Eckerd Wilderness Educational System and Eckerd Juvenile Justice Services. Here are brief descriptions of each. More information is available at www.eckerd.org.

* Early intervention services--These programs serve students ages 9-12. Participants are considered at risk for school dropout, juvenile delinquency and/or drug and alcohol abuse. Program services include classroom instruction (on resolving conflict or managing anger, for example), after-school and weekend mentoring, parent education training and a rope-climbing course to promote self-confidence and teamwork.

* Eckerd Wilderness Educational System--EWES is a residential program that includes group peer counseling, hands-on learning and reality therapy (see page 22). The average participant is in eighth grade and stays at camp for 11 months. There are 17 wilderness camps in Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont and Tennessee.

* Eckerd Juvenile Justice Services--This division companies rehabilitative programs for delinquent students. The Eckerd Youth Development Center in Okeechobee, Florida, is a secure facility for those convicted of more serious crimes. The average EYDC student is 15 and stays at the facility for 13 months. This division of services also includes the Eckerd Intensive Halfway House and the Okeechobee School for Boys.

Tibett L. Speer is a freelance writer based in Washington, D.C.

To learn more about Eckerd Youth Alternatives, Inc. contact the organization at 100 N. Starcrest Drive, P.O. Box 7450, Clearwater, FL 33758-7450; [phone]. Or visit Eckerd on the Web at www.eckerd.org.