Continued sobriety requires the ability to maintain meaningful employment.

Here, residential treatment participants are provided opportunities to receive the necessary training to become valuable employees.

At the LTCs students receive extensive job and career training in real-life settings in a variety of enterprises.

They strive for excellence in their performance, building and taking pride in their accomplishments.

We have developed Life-Skills Training Centers (LTCs) to further the vocational development of our inpatient addiction treatment participants. These Life-Skills Training Centers prepare students to become valuable employees and managers. They also simultaneously help fund and maintain the operations of the John Volken Academy inpatient rehab center. Ultimately, they learn to problem-solve, “stick to it,” follow directions, cooperate with others, and deal with the public. Time spent in an LTC is vital in preparing them to become responsible citizens and “model” employees.

John is often asked why he embarked on this demanding mission. A typical response is:

“The other day, a student made a rather serious mistake…that’s expected. It gave me an opportunity to spend some time with him. After our “heart to heart” we hugged and I told him that I loved him. He responded with tears and said, “My father never said that to me…and how can you love me after all the stupid things I have done?” I reassured him that his mistakes were behind him, and that he was on his way to a new life. That is what the John Volken Academy is all about. Forgiveness and change. There are tears, there are laughs, there is hope, there are struggles, there is change…The transformations are incredible! Every day I am grateful to God for the opportunity to be part of changing lives.”