Andrew Finch

Media Appearances

• Rising Up: Eight months inside Frederick’s Phoenix Recovery Academy

  Andrew Finch, a professor at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of Education and Human Development and a co-founder of the Association of Recovery Schools, said the institutions can go a long way in addressing substance abuse among young people — a widespread problem that many don’t want to acknowledge exists.

  May 25th, 2024

• It's Time For Recovery High Schools To Be The Norm

  Traditionally, our public schools have not taken on that onus of meeting the needs of students with substance abuse issues. Honestly, how in the world could they? Educators are expected to stand in loco parentis, complete interminable paperwork, manage their classrooms, and actually teach; understandably, they are already expected to do too much, and they simply do not have the training and time to work with this specialized subset of students. Andrew Finch, co-founder of the Association of Recovery Schools and an associate professor of human and organizational development at Vanderbilt University, knows this. “There has been a gap in adolescent treatment for many, many years,” says Finch. “[Recovery] schools are one of the programs that fill in that gap.”

  November 25th, 2021

• Readin'. Writin’. Recovery: Faith-based high school new option for Lehigh Valley students battling addiction

  That’s typically why recovery high schools are successful, said Andy Finch, a professor at Vanderbilt University who has studied recovery high schools. Studies have shown that recovery high schools have a positive impact on students, and that can be attributed to the small class sizes and support systems. “You’ve created a culture of peers who are ... trying to change their alcohol and drug use, and trying to stop,” Finch said. “When a kid starts to struggle, people are aware of it.”

  July 30th, 2019

• Ohio Opens School For Students With Addiction

  Research on these small schools is limited, but Vanderbilt professor Andrew Finch says outcomes have been encouraging. "The scientific findings have shown so far that you do see a positive effect of having a recovery high school even for a short period of time," Finch says. Finch is co-founder of the Association of Recovery Schools. In a 2017 peer-reviewed study, he and his research partner found that recovery schools have a variety of beneficial effects.

  July 29th, 2019

• Fresh Times at Rehab High

  Because recovery schools are all run independently of one another, they vary greatly in almost every other way: size, structure, curriculum, funding sources. Schools range between five and 100 students. "It's not a one-size-fits-all approach," says leading researcher on recovery high schools Andy Finch, an associate professor at Vanderbilt University and co-founder of the ARS.

  May 14th, 2018