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Admissions

        Considering having your child spend several weeks away from you and home is intimidating. We are glad you found us, and are here to answer every one of your questions to help you discover if our program is a good match for your family.

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​                            Our 2024 season will offer two expeditions!

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     May 29th - July 2nd: This trip will be reserved for teens in Missoula and              Mineral counties of Montana who meet grant eligibility requirements.                This trip will offer scholarships for daily programing costs.

     

     July 17th - August 26th: This trip will be open to the general public and

     is offered on a sliding-fee scale.

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» Download our expedition application here «

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Reach out to us with your questions!

Contact our Program Therapist, Brie Shulman, LCPC

Brie@FamiliesFirstMT.org      (406) 721-7690

 

 

 

 

 

COSTS

There are two types of costs for student enrollment. One cost is for the daily operations (staffing, gear, overhead operations, etc.) and the other is for therapy sessions provided by our clinicians to our students in the backcountry, and their families via telehealth.

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Daily Operation Costs:

We currently have a grant to fund teens in qualifying areas around Missoula, MT.

All other applicants from across the nation will receive rates from our sliding-fee scale.

 

Therapy session costs:

These sessions are billed the same way as out-patient sessions, as if your child was seeing their therapist at an office. We currently accept most Montana private insurance, as well as Medicaid, for weekly individual, group, and family therapy sessions occurring throughout the expeditions. Please note that there may be additional costs if applying from out of state due to out-of-network or administrative costs. If coverage is not provided, we will apply our sliding-fee scale to increase accessibility. Full coverage for outdoor behavioral therapy (including operational costs) is occasionally reimbursable by private insurance companies.

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 After being formally accepted into our program,

please use the buttons below to provide enrollment costs.

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"After Inner Roads, my teen had regained confidence and engagement in the world and in relationships with peers and family members. [Other treatments] kept my teen safe, but Inner Roads reminded my teen about why life is worth living." 

Parent of an Inner Roads Graduate 

Who We Serve

Inner Roads expeditions service youth 14-17 and their families. While our participants are sometimes referred to us with stigmatizing labels, we know that they are actually struggling with significant self-esteem, mental health, or addiction issues. Our ideal participants are teens who would benefit from increased empowerment, self-worth, belonging, communication skills, and accountability.

The youth we admit are identifiable by
• Self-destructive behavior
• Negative peer relationships

• Hopelessness
• Low self-esteem

• Dishonesty
• Poor academic performance
• Depression or anxiety
• Addictions to electronics or substances
• A loss of direction and accountability
• Low tolerance for stress
• The effects of traumatic experiences


We are unable to admit youth who

•Are in need of physical restraint to maintain safety of self or others

• Are unwilling to participate in our intake process
• Have experienced psychosis
• Are not cleared by our medical and psychological evaluations
 

There may be additional screening criteria, both medical and mental health related, which we would be happy to discuss with you prior to your application. Please contact us with specific concerns.

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A Typical Day

  • Students wake & pack up their campsites.

  • Intentions Circle with Mood Regulation skills

  • Breakfast and Executive Functioning development via planning 

  • Morning medications & foot checks

  • Camp break-down chores split between students.

  • Daily hike lead by the student Leader of the Day, filled with games, foraging, and group problem-solving

  • Break for lunch and academic curriculum (for High School credit)

  • Group collaborates on camp set-up 

  • Personal time for individualized Treatment assignments: journaling, drawing, sculptures, etc.

  • Individual check-ins with Field Clinicians throughout the day

  • Creating fire by friction, carving spoons, hands-on creative time

  • Dinner prep & Gratitude Circle

  • Share dinner with group

  • Hygiene-based self-care

  • Truth Circle: Field Clinician facilitates group therapy 

  • Physical health check-in with staff/Meds provided

  • Bedtime at personal shelter site

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Weekly:

-Food is resupplied during weekly Treatment Team meeting with Program Therapist

-Staff teams rotate for youth to experience diverse mentors and receive energized caretakers

-Youth and Parents/Guardians exchange letters with therapeutic content

-Parents/Guardians receive phone call from Program Therapist for case management and progress updates for their child

-Parents/Guardians receive virtual counseling session from Family Therapist to support sustained change in the home

-Parents/Guardians and youth work on therapeutic assignments assigned by Family and Program therapists

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