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Welcome to NOVA

NOVA, an acronym that stands for New Options, Values and Achievements, is a non-profit organization that incorporated in 1984. For over 25 years, NOVA has provided behavioral health services for individuals with substance use disorders and mental health issues. In addition, NOVA provides foster care placement for infants, children and adolescents as well as In-Home Safety Services.

NOVA utilizes the Therapeutic Community (TC) treatment model. The primary goal of a TC is to foster personal growth. This is accomplished by changing an individual's lifestyle through a community of concerned people working together to help themselves and each other. The TC represents a highly structured environment with defined boundaries, both moral and ethical. It employs community imposed sanctions and penalties as well as earned advancement of status and privileges as part of the recovery and growth process. Being part of something greater than oneself is an especially important factor in facilitating positive growth. People in a TC are members, as in any family setting, not patients, as in an institution. Members play a significant role in managing the TC and acting as positive role models for others to emulate. Members and staff act as facilitators emphasizing personal responsibility for one's own life and for self-improvement. The members are supported by staff and there is a sharing of meaningful labor so that there is a true investment in the community, sometimes for the purpose of survival.

NOVA's Foster Care program provides shelter and safety to infants, children and adolescents who are victims of abuse and/or neglect, or who have become unmanageable in their home. NOVA selects and trains foster parents, who with the assistance of NOVA Foster Care Specialists, assist the foster child and their family to achieve reunification or a permanent healthy placement.

All of NOVA's programs and services are based on a family centered model and focus on providing developmentally appropriate and culturally competent care.

Mission Statement

NOVA Therapeutic Community, Inc. is committed to providing quality behavioral health care for children, adolescents and adults whose lives have been adversely affected by family turmoil, substance abuse and other psychosocial problems that endanger normal growth and healthy functioning. NOVA endorses and is dedicated to the dual principles of self-help and social competence as the primary means by which to achieve sustainable sobriety and a responsible, productive way of life. NOVA is committed to providing family-based sanctuary, safety, comfort and protection for children and adolescents who cannot care for or effectively protect themselves for exploitation, temptation or injury.

Philosophy

We, the members of the NOVA Therapeutic Community believe…

That people are OK and inherently beautiful;

That pathological behavior, including chemical dependency, obesity, psychosis, neurosis, and character disorder is developed as a survival adaptation in response to unhealthy and often times "crazy" environments;

That our pathological behavior is a result of a life script, self-written and one that can be re-written if we so choose;

That some of the beliefs we have about the world, ourselves, and others are based on distorted perceptions, lack of information or misinformation;

That all people have an inherent drive to wellness;

That we can make a choice to learn to become free, autonomous individuals if we so choose;

That we can choose to become winners instead of losers;

That we can take charge of our feelings;

That all people with sufficiently functioning brain tissue can take care and think for themselves;

That sympathy kills;

That there is no such thing as magic - change takes work and growth means being uncomfortable;

That we can refuse to play the role of persecutor, patsy, or victim;

That we can choose to be responsible and caring today;

That it is OK to feel, to think, to be different, to grow, to have fun, to make mistakes and learn from them, and to clean up our mess;

That we need to develop a get-on-with-it OK-OK attitude;

We resolve…

To be responsible now,

To care and confront one another,

To live fully today,

To learn from the past, and plan realistically for the future

We further resolve to begin a life-long journey developing healthy thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and behaviors to win!

NOVA Therapeutic Community, Inc.