Ridge Creek Eagles All-Star Player Selected for All-State Team!

All-State Eagle

Since the first day of practice, Michael T. has been with the Ridge Creek Eagles Basketball team. He has been the glue that held the team together through tough times. A 15 year old sophomore from North Carolina, Michael has a love for basketball that is addicting. During any activity period or practice time Michael can be found in the RCS gym developing his ability. He will be “shooting his threes,” practicing his free throws, and perfecting his passing and dribbling technique. The boy loves to have a basketball in his hands. In fact, if he can’t find his own ball, he will steal yours. He will pester anyone into a pick-up game, and he will always try and get the last word on the court. To Michael this is not only a game it is an escape. It is his dream, and his chance to do something great.

Michael started off the season slow, intimidated by other players, and in the shadows. He rarely talked much during the game and would pass the ball before even thinking of taking a shot, and when he did, he would usually miss. His determination began to grow. Inside of him there was an itch to be a leader. Something in him began to shift, something that would help spark the team to make a dream run at a championship. Michael found his passion and used it the best way he knew, to help his team succeed. In doing so he secured a position on the Georgia All-State Basketball Team.

His determination made him special and helped him to earn the position of Team Captain. Averaging more than 20 points a game, he led the team on a run that helped to give the RCS Eagles a shot at the state championship. He became a leader on and off of the court, pushing his teammates to succeed academically, as well as athletically, to ensure their eligibility to play.

Last night, Michael was recognized for his achievements by the commissioner of our conference. He was selected by coaches to the All State team. A position reserved for the best basketball players in the state. He was also approached by coaches of other teams telling him he has a chance to play in college if he works on certain aspects of his game. Michael accepted these accolades with uncharacteristic humility.

This special moment will not be forgotten. After the final buzzer last night, Michael said something to me I will never forget. This was told to me about an hour after receiving the award and we were getting ready to leave the campus. He told me that this was one of the happiest moments of his life. At first I thought he was talking about receiving the award, and I asked him and he explained his statement, telling me that it wasn’t the award or the recognition. It was the chance that the game gave him to escape the everyday problems in his life. It was about finding a game that had become part of his life and given him hope. It was about finding hope, a hope that fueled by a dream and a desire to be successful.

First Therapeutic School to Receive Accreditation by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools

Ridge Creek School is proud that we were the first therapeutic school in the country to apply for and receive accreditation by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). We feel that this definitely paved the way for greater op­ opportunities for all struggling students to receive placement consideration and acceptance at colleges and traditional boarding schools.

SACS is now known as AdvancED and our 5 year reaccreditation team has just left campus. We are very pleased that not only are they recommending us for continued accreditation but that they commended us for the remarkable commitment of all staff to the success of Ridge Creek School students. They were especially impressed by our professional atmosphere where students feel concern, care and respect from adults. All students who were interviewed said that they would rather be somewhere else especially during the first 6-8 weeks but when asked if in 3-5 years they would look back on this as a positive experience, all students interviewed resoundingly said "YES".

Ridge Creek School Welcomes 2 New Faculty Members

We, the faculty and staff Ridge Creek School, are excited to welcome Dr. Anne Edens and Keith Bishop to campus.

Dr. Anne Edens is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist who holds a Doctorate of Psychology from Baylor University, a Master of Science in Community Agency Counseling from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Georgia. Anne has over 30 years of experience across a variety of settings in the mental health field. As Director of Counseling, Anne is responsible for the supervision of the Counseling staff as well as Counseling and Psychology Interns. In her spare time, Anne is also a professional photographer and enjoys a variety of crafts and hobbies.

Keith Bishop is our Program Administrator and comes to RCS from Eckerd Outdoor Therapeutic Program where he served as Facility/Program Director and Master Counselor. Keith is a natural leader, who brings focus and innovation to all career endeavors, as can be seen by his many achievements and commendations earned while serving in the Air Force. While his primary focus here at RCS will be facility operation and organization, he is an avid outdoors man, who is dedicated to developing the wilderness/recreation curriculum at RCS. We are delighted to have his expertise as an addition to our talented staff.

Eagles Win in Final Seconds against ASD

Ridge Creek Eagles edge closer to playoffs

This evening, the Ridge Creek Eagles went to Clarkston to do battle in a rematch against the Atlanta School for the Deaf.  After losing last week 71-60, the Eagles were able to pull off the most thrilling victory of the season in the closest, highest scoring game of the season.  To open up the game, The Eagles went on a 9-0 run to take control of the game.  However, ineffective foul shooting and the inability to rebound the ball would keep the School for the Deaf in the game throughout.  The game went back and forth with Ridge Creek never losing the lead, but ASD inching ever closer to taking control of the game.  In what would become the most dramatic fourth quarter of the season, the Eagles eventually lost their lead.  ASD would go up by as many as four, but the Eagles would not be denied.  In the second half Amit S. got the hot hand and eventually scored 18 points to finish the game.  Christian J. would provide steady scoring throughout the game as he scored 14 points and would eventually get a double along with Amit S.  Shooting lights out in the fourth quarter and propelling the team to victory in a sensational performance was Michael T., scoring a game high, career high, team high, 33 points.  Two of those points came with less than 20 seconds in the game to have the Eagles go up 72-70 on a lay-up.  It was then that perhaps the smartest play of the game occurred.  ASD was fouled with less than 10 seconds to go and after making the first foul shot, missed the second one and Alex C. came up with the ball securing it, and refusing to move thus resulting in getting fouled with one second to go.  Alex C. would miss the shot, causing a long heave across the court by ASD that would miss the basket and send the Eagles to victory.  Before the game, the Eagles received news due to some fortunate games this week, their season. in terms of the playoffs, is not over yet.  They play a must-win game in Woodstock, GA tomorrow at 6pm against Ridge Creek’s rivals in basketball and soccer, Cherokee Christian.  Last time we played them was on our home court and we lost 59-56.  Should be a remarkable game, and I hope everyone can attend.