Hopefully by now you have heard the news of our new affiliation with The Crossnore School in Crossnore, NC, but you may be wondering just who is The Crossnore School?
Founded in 1913 by Dr. Mary Martin Sloop and her husband, Dr. Eustace Sloop, The Crossnore School has served children for more than a century. The Crossnore School is located on 85 acres in the Blue Ridge presenting a natural setting in which to offer hope and healing. The campus is home to 10 cottages, administrative offices, counseling center, a chapel, and four businesses. The Crossnore students are educated at Williams Academy, the oldest charter school in the state of NC.
The Crossnore School has a staff of about 120 professionals dedicated to providing hope and healing to children in need and is supported by a large base of donors and volunteers.
The Crossnore School offers the following services…
- Residential services provides housing for individual students and sibling groups. Professional cottage parents live in with the children for a 7-day on/7-day off rotation. The residential team supervises cottage staff and are vital members of each student’s team. Residential services also provide extracurricular activities such as recreational sports, holiday gatherings, spring break trips, and summer beach trips.
- Case management services are provided by a team of social service professionals who are the hub of each student’s team. The case manager is the liaison between the student and his or her guardians, and makes sure that each student has access to all the resources they need to be successful.
- Therapy services are offered by our staff of licensed therapists. Following a complete assessment, therapists work with case managers, cottage parents, legal guardians, Guardian Ad Litem, social workers, and other important individuals to provide a cohesive and consistent environment for healing. Staff therapists are trained in Trauma Focused – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Equine Therapy, individual and family counseling, and group therapies.
- Outpatient Therapy Services are also available to members of the community on a referral basis from the local schools or Department of Social Services.
- Stepping Stones program is for residents, 17 to 21, who are still in high school. This program recognizes and rewards students who have made enough progress toward independence to live with minimal supervision. Residents have jobs, on and off campus, and many have their own transportation. Stepping Stones helps young adults move towards independence. The major goal is to alter future outcomes for students who have experienced years of foster care by extending a safety net of nurturing, care assistance with housing, enrollment in post-secondary education, finding a job, coaching in personal finances, church attendance, healthy adult relationships, car ownership, access to continued healthcare and continued therapy.
- Miracle Scholars program is designed to provide much needed support for high school graduates who are or have been in the School’s care but are unsure about their life plans. Each Miracle Scholar must enroll full-time in an educational program, work 10-20 hours per week, provide their own transportation and participate fully in the Miracle Scholars community. The aftercare support initiative is designed to support students who are no longer in The Crossnore School’s care but are occasionally in need of special assistance. Oftentimes, alumni will contact the School when they are in need of money for college tuition, textbooks, housing, etc.
- Adoption Placement Program partners with the counties we serve to effectively and efficiently recruit for and match children who desire to be adopted with qualified loving families. To become eligible for participation in the program, all prospective adoptive parents must submit a completed Adoptive Home Application. Prospective adoptive parents will be selected for participation in the program on the basis of a favorable application and background checks.
- Pet Nurturing is a healing program not only for the animals but for the School’s children as well. Each of the 10 campus cottages have a cottage dog, rescued from the local humane society. Often times when children come into the School’s care they are nervous, angry, sad and afraid. The cottage dogs provide support and comfort from day one.
- Williams Academy serves all residential children that call The Crossnore School home. Along with residential students the Academy also serves students from the community in a K-12 learning environment. Williams Academy is a public K-12 charter school. The mission of Williams Academy is to offer a stable, emotionally supportive, educational environment for children with a goal of empowering each child to achieve his or her real academic and social potential.
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- Blair Fraley Sales Store is the largest thrift store in the high country.
- Miracle Grounds Coffee Shop & Cafe serves breakfast, lunch, coffee, and specialty drinks six days per week, year round.
- Crossnore Weavers preserves the Appalachian art of hand-weaving garments, household goods, and table linens.
- Crossnore Fine Arts Gallery represents regional painters, sculptors and fine craft persons who want to take part in benefiting the children of The Crossnore School.Campus businesses operate on The Crossnore School campus providing services to the community and supporting the mission of the School. They also serve as vocational classrooms for our students to learn about business and holding down a job, and to earn a small income.
For more information about The Crossnore School, please visit the website HERE.
