Adolescent Adaptive Skills Training Program

Adolescent Adaptive Skills Training Program (AASTP) is a school-based outpatient program that provides therapeutic and independent living skills services to middle and high school students from the Tuscaloosa City School system. The goal of the program is to work with each student, their family, and the school to enable the student to more effectively handle their psychiatric, behavioral and emotional issues, and then to return to their home school better prepared for social and academic success.

Visit our Outpatient FAQ for answers to common questions about our outpatient programs.

Contact the program coordinator, Maura Cain, via phone (205) 348-9359 or email (mecain2@ua.edu) with any further questions.


Detailed Description

AASTP is an outpatient program that serves students ranging from 6th through 12th grade. We contract with the Tuscaloosa City Schools (TCS) to provide educational and mental health services to students living in the city of Tuscaloosa.

Our goal is to assist students in returning to their home schools, functioning in the least restrictive educational environment. A student’s return to their home school is based on several measures, culminating with a decision by the treatment team and the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team that the student has shown improvement and ability to function in their home school.

An average day is scheduled much like the students’ home schools, with a typical length school day. During the school day, Students are provided individualized and therapeutic interventions, including individual and group therapy, psychiatric assessment, medication monitoring and day treatment focused on developing/improving self-control, coping skills, social skills, stress reduction, anger management and other social skills to enable them to function more adaptively within the regular school setting and within the community. The high level of staff to student ratio allows for the most intensive treatment in the least restrictive environment.

Parent and student participation are critical components of the planning, education and treatment that occur. Regular interdisciplinary treatment team meetings are held to evaluate each student’s progress.