Teen Challenge is an evangelical Christian recovery program and a network of Christian social and evangelizing work centers. It is a 12-18 month program that serves drug addicts, alcoholics, gang members, prostitutes and people with life-controlling problems.
History
Teen Challenge was established in 1958 by David Wilkerson, an Assemblies of God pastor who left a rural Pennsylvania church to work among teenage gang members and socially-marginalized people in New York City. Teen Challenge was launched from a small office on Staten Island. In 1960, the Teen Challenge headquarters was relocated to a large historical house in Brooklyn, New York. From its humble beginnings, Teen Challenge has grown through the entrepreneurial establishment of independent centers affiliated with either Teen Challenge International USA or Global Teen Challenge. They may be organized as a network of cooperating centers having one central governing board or as stand-alone, autonomous centers.
Currently Teen Challenge International USA is headquartered in Springfield, MO. They charter and grant accreditation, develop curriculum for and refer clients to Teen Challenge centers in the United States. Global Teen Challenge is headquartered in Columbus, GA. By late 2008, Teen Challenge USA had grown to include 231 locations, including residential programs and evangelical outreach centers, in the United States.
Global Teen Challenge helps provide materials and training for centers located outside of the United States. Global Teen Challenge represents more than 1000 centers in 82 countries, and is headed by Jerry Nance, President and C.E.O. Global Teen Challenge is divided into seven regions with a director or representative for each region. The seven regions with their directors and basic residential statistics as of 2009 are below. Global Teen Challenge is also represented by additional non-residential Teen Challenge ministries such as coffee houses and evangelistic centers and efforts. The regional breakdown with its leaders as of January 2009:
Latin America and Caribbean - Duane Henders; 1,250 beds in 102 centers in 17 countries.
Europe - Tom Bremmer; 892 beds in 58 centers in 28 countries.
Africa - Mike Zello, 1,034 beds in 14 centers in 9 countries.
Asia Pacific - Malcolm Smith; 357 beds in 51 centers in 9 countries.
Northern Asia - Cindy Williams; 180 beds in eight centers.
Eurasia - Kevin Tyler; 11,600 beds in 370 centers in 14 countries.
North America - Mike Hodges, 7,536 beds in 223 centers in 2 countries.Identity
Teen Challenge is not a drug and alcohol program per se, despite its success among that population. The ministry intentionally serves the addicted population, occasionally resulting in a mischaracterization of Teen Challenge. The official Statement of Purpose of Teen Challenge is, "To evangelize and disciple those with life-controlling problems." The publication, "The Teen Challenge Therapeutic Model" states, "Traditional residential substance abuse rehabilitative structures clearly do not provide an analogy for the Teen Challenge model. Teen Challenge is, in all issues of therapy, direct and indirect, a purposeful comprehensive focus on the whole life of the student relative to that student’s functionality as a Christian disciple ... The deserved fame of Teen Challenge among addiction issues and the resulting inclusion of Teen Challenge in drug rehabilitation discussions is then limited to a reflection of who Teen Challenge ministers to." So, while Teen Challenge largely and intentionally ministers among an addicted population, Teen Challenge is the Church seeking to evangelize and disciple primarily among that population. Teen Challenge USA has been careful over the years to make sure it is understood in that context.
Tellingly, founder David Wilkerson incorporated the first Teen Challenge as a church. "The mission of Teen Challenge ministries is identical in purpose to mainline evangelical churches: the evangelism and discipleship of people. It must be emphasized that Teen Challenge pastoral counselors are facilitators of work which is actually occurring by agency of the Holy Spirit as understood in evangelical Christian circles. Teen Challenge counselors seek to be guided by the Holy Spirit for the good of the student. Hence, it is the primary responsibility of the Teen Challenge counselor, "to provide the most conducive environment for the work of the Holy Spirit in the student's life." The cause of compulsive deviant behavior as defined by Teen Challenge is man’s separation from God which is the result of his self-centeredness. Sinful behavior, including compulsive deviant behavior, is engaged in to fill the void of meaninglessness in life. When man becomes Christ-centered, his symptoms of meaninglessness and compulsive deviant behavior are replaced by a meaningful life in Christ that enables him to realize his fullest potential."
Structure
Teen Challenge USA is a department of the U.S. Missions division of the Assemblies of God, but maintains a governing board separate from the denomination. Some U.S. and foreign Teen Challenge missionaries are recognized by the General Council of the Assemblies of God. Global Teen Challenge maintains its own board and has no official relationship with the World Missions division of the Assemblies of God. Global Teen Challenge has its own independent Board of Directors and denominational relationships are voluntary and cooperative.
All Teen Challenge ministries in the U.S. are required by accreditation standard to have and implement an annual evangelism strategy. Not only should evangelism be a central and perpetual activity of individual centers, a sustained Great Commission life-style, including soul winning is a key component of discipleship and should be taught and practiced by all Teen Challenge students. "Teen Challenge was founded on a pure model of evangelism."
Prayer is also a key part of Teen Challenge ministry. As Don Wilkerson stated, “In the beginning prayer was more important than the program. In fact prayer was the program. Prayer was the therapy session. Prayer in the morning, prayer in the afternoon, prayer in the evening..."
The foundational structure of Teen Challenge is the ministry of evangelism followed by the provision of discipleship to converts generally in a residential setting. The TCUSA Board of Directors approved a "Phase" system to explain core structures of Teen Challenge. All centers of any Phase are expected to be involved in Phase I. The phase ministry is as follows:
Phase I - Evangelism and Outreach - All centers of any phase are expected to be active in Phase I. Some centers don't minister much at this Phase, others are extremely and perpetually active in evangelism and outreach, and see such activity as an essential defining component of being Teen Challenge.
Phase II - Crisis Center - This may or may not be residential, but generally these centers involve Phase I activity, as well as providing pastoral counseling and referral. Many of these ministries also coordinate or directly provide the non-residential expression of Teen Challenge: Living Free (formerly Turning Point). Living Free is small groups based. The Phase II centers that are residential are typically very short term until a more permanent discipleship bed can be located.
Phase III - Induction Center - This phase is generally four months and the introduction into the one year discipleship ministry. It is here that residents are often clean for the first time in a long time, and their days are highly structured and involve intense discipleship.
Phase IV - Training Center - This phase is eight months, and all residents are graduates of Phase III induction centers. Now that the resident has been living clean for some time, his or her discipleship continues, but focuses more on being a Christ follower after graduation from Teen Challenge.
Phase V - Re-entry - generally for those graduates needing additional assistance in securing jobs or job skills, but can involve other reasons.
Phase VI - Restoration - for graduates who have returned to old behavior patterns. Phase VI is a rare ministry as a center, and is more often co-located with a Phase IV.
Another major component of the Teen Challenge structure is the Teen Challenge curriculum by Dave Batty. This is known as the Group Studies for New Christian and the Personal Studies For New Christians . All centers in the USA are required to use Teen Challenge curriculum, and there is an extensive certification process for teachers. The details of this curriculum may be viewed at the | TCUSA web site.
Studies of Teen Challenge Effectiveness
In 1973, Archie Johnston compared results of Teen Challenge with that of a transactional analysis approach at a Terminal Island Federal Correctional Institution therapeutic community, and with a third group who received no treatment. While the numbers of subjects was small (17 in each group), he found evidence to support his recommendation that, while Teen Challenge was an "effective" treatment (with a drug recidivism rate after 29 months of 32%), Transactional Analysis was a "very effective" treatment (with a comparable 16% rate), suggesting that perhaps the lower recidivism rates were a result of TA changing the addiction concept of the self-image more thoroughly and at a slower pace. He hoped that Teen Challenge would incorporate some ps
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