Renew Housing Announcement FAQ
- What is Renew Housing?
Renew Housing is a partnership between Eastside Academy and BelPres that, for fourteen years, provided a place of stability, belonging, accountability, and grace for students attending EA who needed additional support beyond the school day.
- What is changing?
After a season of discernment with deep gratitude for all that Renew has been, Eastside Academy and BelPres have jointly decided that the Renew Housing program will conclude operations on June 30, 2026.
- Why was this decision made?
The decision was not made lightly. It reflects three converging realities that, taken together, made continuing the program in its current form unsustainable.
Changing Student Needs
When Renew began fourteen years ago, the housing model was designed to support students who primarily needed structure, stability, and accountability in their recovery journey outside the school day.
Over time, the profile of student needs has shifted in three key ways:
o Greater intensity: More students now arrive with higher levels of mental health need, emotional dysregulation, trauma exposure, and crisis frequency. What was once episodic is now more constant and acute.
o Greater complexity: Needs are rarely singular. Mental health, family systems, developmental delays, and relational instability often intersect, requiring coordinated and specialized responses.
o Greater duration: These needs are not short-term. They require sustained, consistent, and highly skilled intervention over longer periods of time.
Taken together, this means the kind of care students now require exceeds what Renew’s original structure was designed to hold sustainably, even with a deeply committed and faithful staff.
This is not a judgment about students, families, or staff. It is an honest recognition that the work itself has changed.
Sustainability Pressures
Over time, the cost of operating the homes has increased in ways that could not be reliably absorbed within the existing model. Staffing requirements, insurance costs, and operational expenses became increasingly unpredictable, making long-term sustainability difficult without fundamentally changing the structure of the program.
Structural Uncertainty
At the same time, external and operational uncertainties, including the anticipated changes in regulatory and licensure expectations, introduced additional long-term questions for a model that was already under strain.
While these changes had not yet been fully enacted, their potential impact created uncertainty about the program’s ability to adapt responsibly and sustainably over time.
- Is this a sign that Eastside Academy or BelPres is struggling?
No. This decision is not representative of organizational struggle or financial instability. It is a strategic decision made with care, discernment, and responsibility, focused on honoring what Renew has uniquely accomplished and responding thoughtfully to changing circumstances.
- Does this mean Eastside Academy or BelPres is stepping away from each other?
No. BelPres remains committed to the ministry of Eastside Academy. This is a decision to conclude a specific program after many years of faithful impact, while recognizing that the current structure could not sustainably carry what is now required.
- What happens next?
Between now and June 30, 2026, the focus is on finishing well: caring for students with stability and dignity, supporting families as they plan for what comes next, and walking alongside staff through a thoughtful and honoring transition. At the same time, Eastside Academy and BelPres will take time to learn honestly from Renew. This season is about listening, assessment, and discernment, not rushing toward new programs or announcements. No specific future housing model or timeline is being announced at this time. For now, the commitment is clear: to care well for those most impacted, to honor Renew’s legacy, and to approach what comes next with humility, responsibility, and hope.
- How are students being cared for during this transition?
Eastside Academy and BelPres are committed to approaching this transition with care, responsibility, and respect for those most directly impacted. Communication with students, families, staff, and partners is being handled thoughtfully and intentionally by Eastside Academy, with student well-being at the forefront.
- How can the community honor Renew’s legacy?
By remembering the lives changed, the hope restored, and the futures made possible through Renew, and by giving thanks for the staff, volunteers, donors, congregation members, and partners who made this pioneering work possible.
- Who can I contact with questions?
Questions may be directed to Eastside Academy or BelPres leadership through their respective offices.
