Alternative Education Program

Bridging Success for the Future

Every child deserves to be seen beyond their behavior. For over 60 years, we’ve helped youth heal from trauma, build resilience, and find success through compassionate, trauma-informed care. Our team understands how life experiences affect learning, emotions, and relationships, and provides the therapeutic support needed to help children thrive. Now, we’re extending that expertise to serve more students and families in our community.

Rawhide's Alternative Education Program combines evidence-based academic, social-emotional, and behavioral curricula to meet the diverse needs of elementary students who require intensive intervention and individualized support.

Therapeutic Support

Students have access to mental health therapy and equine-assisted therapy, as well as occupational therapy, and skill-building opportunities that help strengthen emotional regulation, communication skills, problem-solving abilities, and healthy coping strategies.

Trauma-Informed Care

Our staff is trained to understand how trauma and life experiences impact learning, behavior, and relationships. We create predictable routines, supportive relationships, and environments that help students feel safe, respected, and ready to learn.

Alternative Education Program Benefits

Family & School Collaboration

Success happens when families, schools, and providers work together. We maintain ongoing communication with parents and school district partners to support student progress and create consistency between their home school and our school, Starr Academy, for a smooth transition.

Individualized Support

Each student will work with staff to establish personal academic, social, emotional, and behavioral goals along with the student’s home school Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals. Progress is celebrated regularly, helping students build confidence and ownership of their growth.

Specialized Instruction

Students receive individualized academic support tailored to their learning needs. Smaller group sizes allow teachers to provide focused instruction, targeted interventions, and opportunities for academic and behavioral success.

Behavior Management: STARR System

Behavioral support is guided by the STARR System, a strength-based approach that establishes clear expectations while teaching students the social, emotional, and behavioral skills needed for long-term success.

Safe

Making choices that keep myself and others safe.

Teachable

Being open to trying new things and learning from my mistakes.

Active

Doing things that help me grow, even when they’re hard.

Responsible

Making choices that help me and those around me stay safe and healthy.

Respectful

Treating people, myself, and the world around me with kindness.

Who is eligible to join Rawhide's Alternative Education Program?

Determined by the youth's school district, we work with local schools based on Individualized Education Plans.

What makes our alt ed program different?

Our therapeutic services and trauma-informed care help students thrive and learn positive coping skills to return back to their home school setting.

Where is this program located?

Located at Starr Academy on our New London campus, accredited by the Wisconsin Religious and Independent Schools Accreditation (WRISA), the classroom is led by a licensed special education teacher who provides individualized instruction tailored to each student’s unique learning and behavioral needs.

What do students receive in this program?

Mental health therapy, intensive intervention, individualized support, differentiated literacy and math instruction, hands-on learning experiences, and sensory areas and regulation spaces.

What grade levels do we accept?

Our program is specifically designed to help youth in grades K-5.

When traditional settings aren't working, we're here to help.

If your school has a student who needs specialized education and therapeutic support to heal and build a brighter future, refer them today.

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