Traverse Academy is celebrating the first year of opening its doors for students, marking an important milestone for Cherry Creek Schools in offering a comprehensive educational and clinical care experience for students with significant mental health needs. In the first year, roughly 50 students attended the school and in its second year, it has already welcomed 20 students.
"I'm incredibly proud of all our students for their major accomplishments and the challenges they have overcome this past year,” Principal Kim Avalos said. “Their resilience and determination have been truly inspiring.”
"As superintendent, I am immensely proud of the incredible work being done at Traverse Academy,” Christopher Smith added. “The school has a profound impact, offering hope and healing to students and families, and setting a new standard for mental health programs across the nation. Our district is committed to ensuring that every student has access to the care they need, and I look forward to seeing Traverse Academy continue to thrive in the years to come."
After going through programs at Traverse, students self-reported significant improvement in their abilities to engage in goal-directed behavior when distressed, access strategies for feeling better when distressed, and more willingness to accept certain emotions. Students demonstrated reductions in symptoms of anxiety and depression during the intensive outpatient program. Eighty-three percent of students felt their time in transitions was beneficial.
“The groundbreaking mental health facility established by Cherry Creek School District has improved students’ whole wellbeing and achieved remarkable success in its inaugural year,” Assistant Superintendent of Special Populations Tony Poole said. “Traverse Academy has not only provided essential support to our students, but also fostered a community of understanding and resilience, demonstrating the profound impact of prioritizing mental health.”
A middle school student struggling with some mental health issues at the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year had attended the Aurora Crisis Center first before enrolling at Traverse Academy. “Life wasn’t the best at that time, I had to stop for a moment,” the student said. “Traverse helped me use coping skills and at times helped me with social interaction and how to talk with people.”
The students’ parents are thankful that, at the time when their child needed Traverse, it was available. They explain that, like any mental health treatment, it is an ongoing process with many ups and downs, but they’ve learned how to better navigate mental health challenges with their child since leaving Traverse.
“She has been able to take what she’s learned there and apply it,” the mother said. “She has a different self-awareness, that’s big. The time she got to know who she is and who she is becoming was so good for her.”
A key factor in the student’s success was the adult to student ratio. In smaller settings, the student received more time with teachers and various adults in the building. The staff really get to know each student on a deeper level. The students really appreciated the small class sizes and the hidden meanings behind projects.
“We got to do a lot of things that you wouldn’t usually get to do, like using the pottery wheel. It was just a really cool experience,” the student explained. “I really liked doing the burn box where you put words that you wouldn’t want to have in your brain anymore on paper, then you burn it and put the lid on, and it will extinguish it.”
“At home, we could see her taking those strategies that she had learned at school and applying them at home,” the mother added. “We saw her start to feel more confident and better about herself and her capabilities.”
Parents and guardians attend a weekly group with one of the psychologists that their child sees, who walk parents through what the kids are working on that week and specific strategies so they are all on the same page. This helped families incorporate strategies into their home life.
“It was helpful for parents to also bounce ideas off each other to say ‘this is what I’m seeing from my kid’ and ‘this is hard’ and it was nice to have that support system in place, it was very helpful,” the father said.
Traverse Academy teachers know these students' backgrounds, triggers, and needs. The building was also intentionally built to keep students safe and feeling welcome with the design of the layout, doors, and bathrooms.
“I am deeply appreciative of my staff and so thankful to work with such compassionate teachers, counselors, and mental health practitioners who make a profound difference in our students’ lives,” Avalos added. “I look forward to continuing our journey together, building on our successes, and embracing new opportunities with the same dedication and spirit.”
“The communications through the process were exceptional,” the father added. “Beginning with speaking with the Principal Kim Avalos to the first intake interview by the doctors, it was very orderly and very easy to get through. It was appreciated.”
On average, students spend about three months in the program. Traverse Academy was made possible by voters in 2020 by approving a bond with an overwhelming seventy percent. In the first year, there were about 100 referrals to Traverse.
“We have devoted resources to a place where any family in our district who needs help has access to the facility, the doctors, the teachers, the ride. If you have a family where both parents work or there’s a single parent, that’s super difficult. But the district has said, ‘we got you, and we are going to make sure you have access to the things you need for your child,’” the father said.
*** To respect student privacy, the students pictured in these photos are volunteers and do not attend Traverse Academy.
Posted on 10/24/2024.
