Phoenix House
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| Phoenix House | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1967 |
| Type | Not-for-profit organization |
| Headquarters | New York, N.Y., U.S. |
| Regions Served | New York, California, Florida, Texas, New England |
| Founder | Mitchell S. Rosenthal, M.D. |
| President | Howard Meitiner |
| Website | www.phoenixhouse.org |
Phoenix House is a nonprofit drug and alcohol rehabilitation organization with 120 programs in ten states, serving more than 7,000 men, women and adolescents each day. Phoenix House is committed to serving individuals, families, and communities, affected by substance abuse and dependency.
Contents
History and organization
In 1967, six heroin addicts came together at a detoxification program in a New York hospital. They talked about the struggles of staying clean and decided to help one another through the tough days ahead. Together, they moved into a brownstone on Manhattan’s West Side and lived as a community, encouraging and helping each other to stay sober. That is how Phoenix House was born. What made it work was the structure and approach to treatment brought to the fledgling program by psychiatrist Mitchell S. Rosenthal, M.D. and counselors from New York City’s Addiction Services Agency (ASA). As deputy commissioner of ASA for rehabilitation, Dr. Rosenthal made Phoenix House the model for a citywide treatment network. Among Phoenix House milestones was its role in creating the country’s first correctional treatment unit, a model now widely replicated in prisons throughout the country and abroad.
Phoenix House was also an early provider of treatment as an alternative to prison. And, more than two decades ago, Phoenix House opened its first Phoenix Academy, a residential high school where teens can make up schooling lost to drugs and recapture opportunities for higher education and careers. Eleven Phoenix Academies now operate in seven states and were designated a “model program” by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2005. with customized evidence based interventions and treatment plans developed to meet a variety of needs. The organization is funded mostly by government contracts, but also receives philanthropic support for a portion of its $100 million annual budget. The Phoenix House programs are also accredited by CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities). This is an independent, nonprofit organization that certifies adherence to national and international standards of program quality.
Who Phoenix House Serves
Phoenix Houses of New York
The first Phoenix House program opened in New York in 1967 and the Phoenix Academy model was introduced in 1983. The region now provides a range of programs that include afterschool outpatient treatment for adolescents and their families, residential and outpatient options for adults and adolescents, programs for mothers with small children, programs that serve clients with co-occurring mental illness, and support services for substance abusers in recovery. Each day, the organization serve more than 2,300 New Yorkers. it also allows some of its people to come and visit schools and prevent drug use.
Phoenix Houses of California
Phoenix House has served communities in California since 1979, helping thousands of individuals each year to overcome the problems associated with drug and alcohol abuse and lead healthy, productive, and rewarding lives. Today, California has three Phoenix Academies—model residential high schools for troubled teens—in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties. They provide afterschool outpatient programs for adolescents, residential and outpatient options for adults, and treat more than 2,200 Californians daily. The California programs were CARF certified in 2010.
Phoenix Houses of New England
Phoenix Houses of New England – originally called Marathon House – was founded in 1967 by a coalition of social service professionals, clergy, business, and political leaders in Providence, Rhode Island. Today, some 3,000 adults and teenagers receive treatment each day at 45 programs in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. In addition to residential and outpatient programs, Phoenix Houses of New England provide an array of services to specific populations including the homeless, persons involved with the criminal justice system, and those charged with driving under the influence. The New England programs have been CARF certified since early 2009.
Phoenix Houses of Florida
Phoenix House has served communities in Florida since the early 1990s. A leading provider of substance abuse services in Florida, Phoenix House treats Hillsborough County adolescents at the Derek Jeter Center in Tampa and adults at their Adult Outpatient Counseling Center. Adults from throughout the state with substance abuse complicated by mental health conditions are treated at the Citra residential facility in Marion County. The Florida programs were CARF certified in 2009.
Phoenix Houses of Texas
Phoenix House has been providing substance abuse services in Texas since 1995 and currently operates programs in Dallas, Austin and the Houston/Galveston Bay area. Among these are two Phoenix Academies for teens in Austin and Dallas – residential high schools that provide comprehensive drug and alcohol abuse treatment to adolescents while helping them catch up academically. Their client-focused array of services range from early intervention to long-term aftercare. Their school based prevention program reaches 15,000 Texas teens annually. Texas’s Phoenix Academies provide afterschool and out-patient programs. In total they treat more than 170 adult and adolescents each day. The Texas programs were CARF certified in 2009
Phoenix House COAF
Phoenix Houses is affiliated with COAF (Center on Addiction and the Family). COAF provides help and hope for families affected by alcohol and other drug abuse. COAF also runs the Facts on Tap education campaign for college students.
Affiliates
Phoenix House was also established in the UK as an entirely separate organization, though has its origins in the US-based Phoenix House described above. Phoenix House (UK) runs a number of residential rehabilitation units, structured day programs and is the largest not for profit provider of prison based substance misuse programs in the UK. In November 2006, Phoenix House (UK) rebranded to trade under the name 'Phoenix Futures.’ See the website listed below for more details on the organization's work.
On March 5, 2010 Phoenix House announced the opening of the Beyoncé Cosmetology Center at the Phoenix House Career Academy. A residential treatment program with a fully equipped vocational training center on site, the Career Academy, located in Brooklyn, NY, guides students as they work toward their professional and personal goals. Adding a new track to the Career Academy’s vocational programs, the Beyoncé Cosmetology Center will offer a seven-month cosmetology training course for adult men and women. As Beyoncé is a spokesperson for L’Oréal Paris, the company is generously providing all makeup, skin care, and hair care products. The pop superstar’s relationship with Phoenix House began when she was preparing for the role of Etta James in the 2008 film Cadillac Records. To play the part of the former heroin addict, Beyoncé met with women in treatment at the Career Academy. Moved by their powerful stories of addiction and recovery, she later donated her salary from the film. A year later, she and her mother and business partner, fashion designer Tina Knowles, who owned a popular hair salon in Houston when Beyoncé was growing up, conceived of the idea of Phoenix House’s new cosmetology program. The Beyoncé Cosmetology Center will teach students the theory and practical skills they need to pass the NYS Cosmetology Licensure Exam. The Center will also offer complimentary services, using L’Oréal Paris products, to a wide range of community partners, enabling its more advanced students to refine and practice their skills. Phoenix House’s partners in this endeavor are two divisions of the NYS Department of Education, the Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) and the Bureau of Propriety Schools (BPSS). BEYONCÉ OPENS COSMETOLOGY CENTER AT PHOENIX HOUSE
