Housing Program

Living in school-sponsored housing is a first away-from-home-and-on-my-own experience for many PTI students – and for many of their families. Exciting and terrifying at the same time, it is part of the PTI educational experience. It’s the opportunity to live, think and act independently in a nurturing, caring environment.

To help smooth the transition PTI’s housing staff offers a monthly series of focus programs designed to provide helpful advice, emotional support, and practical guidance. Topics are geared to the spiritual, emotional, physical, occupational, and environmental wellbeing of students.

Here’s a summary of representative focus programs:

  • Homesickness: what can we all do to help one another?
    Learn how to combat homesickness. Current PTI students reveal their experiences, share their suggestions and participate in a Q&A session. Educational materials and resource information are distributed.
  • Let’s talk about sex…
    Get answers to the questions you always wanted to ask, but didn’t. Anonymous questions about safe sex and sexually transmitted diseases become the central topics of conversation for this session. The goal is greater understand of safe sex principles and disease prevention.
  • Time & stress management: where do I find time for my life?
    Classes, assignments, projects, part-time jobs, cooking, cleaning, sleeping, good times with new friends, keeping in touch with old friends -- feeling stressed out! The secret to relieving stress is learning how to budget your time by organizing and planning. Group exercises concentrate on creating day planners and practicing stress relief techniques.
  • Diversity education: learning tolerance and acceptance for our diverse world
    Recognize the ethnic, cultural, sexual and religious differences between your world and the one other students live in. It starts with a 10-question quiz and evolves into a revealing group discussion designed to deepen the understanding of diversity issues and promote acceptance.

Here’s a glimpse at other focus program topics:

  • Conflict resolution: what can we do to improve our interpersonal relationships?
  • Study skills & academic support: what can we do as a group to help others succeed
  • Alcohol awareness: understanding how it is used and abused
  • Personal safety: what you can do to help keep yourself safe in your residential facility
  • Our community: beautifying and benefiting