About TCSI

The Center for Success and Independence (TCSI) is a residential treatment program in Houston, Texas for adolescents, ages 12-17, whose psychological, emotional, and/or substance abuse disorders have impaired their behavioral functioning and adversely impacted their everyday home, school and community environments. Clients receive proven adolescent-focused treatment directed at the emotional, cognitive and social roots of their behavioral issues.

We have an 86% success rate with youths and teens who complete the program. It’s one of the reasons we receive referrals from physicians, hospitals, state agencies and schools.

We’re one of only a few free-standing intensive adolescent residential treatment centers in Houston offering a recommended 25 hours of therapy per week.

We’re also one of the very few residential treatment center in Texas providing a complete Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) treatment program designed specifically for adolescents. DBT is an innovative treatment method developed specifically to treat difficult clients in a way which is optimistic and preserves the morale of the therapist and the client. Research findings suggest DBT is successful in reducing acting-out behavior, self injury and in-patient treatment time.

Founded in 1999 by Marylou Erbland, Ph. D., Robert Woods, M. Ed. and Karl Webster, Ed. S, to fill an unmet need not only in Houston but throughout Texas. Prior to opening The Center for Success and Independence, their private practice clients had to be referred out of state to receive intensive DBT, dual-diagnosis and other intensive treatments. This was not only a more difficult transition for the client, but it also meant that the family couldn’t be involved in the family therapy sessions Dr. Erbland, Mr. Woods and Mr. Webster had found to be essential to long-term success and reintegration into home, school and the community. With the creation of TCSI, individual clients and their families along with area physicians, hospitals, schools and state agencies have a place to turn to for recovery and counsel.

 

Mission

It’s the mission of The Center for Success and Independence to make a positive difference in the lives of youth and their families.

Intensive treatment, specific to adolescents, is designed to address emotional, educational and addictive disorders. Using sound and proven clinical methods of treatment, our committed professional team prepares youth to reintegrate successfully into the community and to achieve their highest potential.

 

Purpose

The Center for Success and Independence is:

 

Services

 

Difference

 

Team Approach

Members of the TCSI team are highly vetted – and we look for commonalities in every single hiring decision. Our therapists bring experience, compassion and dedication to each client they care for at our in-residence facility.

TCSI staff, including chemical and psychiatric therapists, work together as a team to provide the most comprehensive and effective treatment for each adolescent.

The Center’s research-based treatment plans focus on the partnership between therapists and clients. Teaching adolescents how to cope with the underlying issues contributing to their chemical, emotional and mental behavioral problems is an important part of the plan. This dual-diagnosis treatment method is a key contributing factor in our 86% success rate. 

Therapists nurture and encourage clients to master the skills necessary to make positive changes and decisions in everyday life. 

As part of our team approach, TCSI is an intern training center for the Houston area.  We participate in intern programs in social work, marriage and family therapy and professional counseling.  We love the fresh ideas and enthusiasm they bring to The Center almost as much as we love encouraging and coaching their innovative minds.  And we are proud to report that many of our past interns are now valued member of the TCSI team. 

 

Tools

The Center employs:

We maintain a low staff-to-client ratio with a caseload of less than seven clients per therapist.  This low staff-to-client ratio allows us to maximize the effectiveness of our client treatment.

We use the latest clinical and evaluation tools and solid evidence-based strategies.  And we maintain stringent training requirements.

 

Therapy

On a weekly basis, adolescents receive approximately:  

Clients are taught anger management and coping skills. Opportunities to practice these skills are incorporated throughout the program.

Trauma and abuse issues are dealt with directly in individual, group and family therapy.

Youths and teens served by The Center have frequent and sustained access to clinical professionals – all with advanced training and an open approach to evaluation -- in a number of specialty areas, including general adolescent treatment and research-driven therapy, among others. 

 

Family Involvement  

It has been our experience, that when families come together and make recovery their focus, you see notable results.  Family members are involved in treatment planning and participate in the following:

A positive and structured home environment is instrumental for both the youth and their families. Discussions and techniques for establishing effective communications, a healthy home environment and boundaries are a part of family education and therapy. Families are given the opportunity to practice these skills when their loved one returns home.  We’ve found that increasing the periods of time that clients and families spend together allows everyone to adjust and learn new ways of managing issues. The home visits are the anchor of our strategy to reintegrate clients successfully into home, school and neighborhood settings.

Once a month, the entire treatment team meets with the adolescent and parent to review progress, identify obstacles and devise strategies for continued success.

Case managers provide services to the family from the date of admission and continue for up to 12 months after discharge.

 

Partners 

Southwest Charter School operates an accredited on-site school for our youths. Our therapeutic team works directly with teachers and clients to encourage academic success. The Center also offers a GED program.
Our network of partner agencies provides on-site mentoring, higher-education planning, career development and job training services. They include The Boy and Girl Scouts of America and the Career and Recovery Center.

 

 

Teens from the Center for Success and Independeance knit for newborns at Ben Taub Hospital in HoustonOur Video

Watch students and faculty talk about their experiences at
The Center for Success and Independence.

CLICK HERE to watch the video.