Services – Alternative School and Community Youth Programs

Boys’ Village School at the Wooster Network
The Wooster Network’s Boys’ Village residential campus houses the Boys’ Village School, part of the Wooster City School District. Experienced staff, small classes, a variety of academic offerings and a fully scheduled school day enable youth to meet state educational requirements while receiving treatment for emotional, behavioral and sexually dysfunctional problems. Additionally, the school takes youth from the Village’s Day Treatment program and a limited number of placements from the local community.

Proper school behavior and academic achievement are part of The Village Network’s overall treatment plan for each youth. Integrating each student’s treatment plan with educational plans and academic goals is challenging. Therefore, the school’s teachers are participants in the treatment process. Teachers attend weekly team meetings and their input is invaluable in terms a youth’s treatment plan and evaluation of his progress in all areas of the program.

Most class sizes are small (5-8 pupils) and coursework is supplemented by a full interest and reference library, tutoring, small group work and computer-assisted instruction. The majority of the teaching staff holds advanced certification. The Boys’ Village School is operated as a partnership between The Village Network and the Wooster City School District.

Opportunity School of the Wooster City School District
The Opportunity School is an alternative school operated as a partnership between The Village Network and the Wooster City School District. It consists of three components: the alternative school program, the suspension/expulsion program, and the positive learning program, a special classroom for youth with problems, which includes aggressive behavior and threats toward others. The Opportunity School is a joint venture of the Wayne County Schools, Wooster City Schools and The Village Network.

The Village Network provides onsite clinical and behavioral therapists to work with the Opportunity School teaching staff in a therapeutic team environment. The target population for this program includes both males and females identified by their schools as being "at risk" for dropping out. All admissions are by referral by the student's home school. Parents and agencies wishing to refer a student should contact the student's home school principal.

The Village Network of Knox County Mentoring Program

The Village Network of Knox County School-Based Mentoring Program focuses on developing trusting relationships between at-risk children and their mentors. The program is being funded in part by a grant from Knox County Job and Family Services. The Village Network of Mt. Vernon/Knox County serves as the administrator and coordinator of this program with identified youth referred to the program by Mt. Vernon City Schools, Knox County Schools, and the Knox County Juvenile Probation Department.
Knox County Mentoring Program