SABER — which stands for Substance Abuse, Behavioral and Emotional Regulation — serves males ages 15 to 21 through a structured residential treatment environment focused on recovery, accountability, education, and personal growth.
For many young people struggling with substance abuse, emotional regulation, and behavioral challenges, life can start to feel smaller over time. School becomes harder. Relationships strain. Trust disappears in layers. Eventually, even imagining a stable future can feel exhausting.
That’s exactly what the SABER program at Pierceton Woods Academy is designed to address.
SABER — which stands for Substance Abuse, Behavioral and Emotional Regulation — serves males ages 15 to 21 through a structured residential treatment environment focused on recovery, accountability, education, and personal growth. Launched in 2022, the program was created to help young men dealing with moderate to severe substance use issues alongside behavioral and emotional difficulties.
The work is intentionally comprehensive because most struggles rarely exist in isolation.
Substance abuse often overlaps with trauma, anxiety, family instability, depression, or difficulty managing emotions. The SABER program focuses on helping students understand the underlying causes behind destructive behaviors while building healthier coping skills and relapse prevention strategies.
Abe Hepler, Pierceton Woods Academy Vice President of Residential Services, says that balance between accountability and long-term healing shapes the entire approach.
“Stability is the foundation of everything we do,” Hepler notes. “You can’t achieve sobriety without stability.”
To support that goal, the SABER program uses evidence-based treatment modalities that include Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Students participate in individual counseling, group therapy, and structured behavioral support while learning how to identify triggers, process emotions, and make healthier decisions.
But the program extends beyond therapy sessions alone. Students at Pierceton Woods Academy also participate in an on-campus alternative school that allows them to work toward a Core 40 diploma or GED through self-paced coursework and hands-on learning opportunities. Vocational training programs introduce practical skills like woodworking, horticulture, mechanics, food service, and financial management.
That combination matters because recovery is rarely sustained through treatment alone. Stability often grows through routine, responsibility, and confidence built over time.
One student may spend part of the day discussing emotional regulation in counseling and another part repairing small engines or tending a greenhouse. Those experiences may seem unrelated on paper, but together they help reinforce discipline, patience, teamwork, and self-worth in practical ways.
And according to Hepler, helping students build those real-world skills is essential to lasting progress.
“SABER works because the students see a way out,” he says. “Moreover, they see a future for themselves that’s worth striving for.”
Pierceton Woods Academy describes the SABER program as an extension of its broader mission to provide structured support and second chances for young men facing difficult circumstances. The campus combines therapy, education, vocational opportunities, and residential care into one environment focused on long-term growth.
For the young men who enter the SABER program, recovery is about more than overcoming substance abuse. It is about rebuilding trust, developing resilience, and learning the skills needed to navigate life with confidence and purpose. Through a combination of evidence-based treatment, educational support, vocational training, and structured accountability, Pierceton Woods Academy provides a pathway toward lasting stability. While every student’s journey looks different, the goal remains the same: helping young men move beyond their challenges and toward a future defined not by their past mistakes, but by the opportunities they create for themselves.
