Brookhaven Treatment and Learning Center was established in 1952 and is located in historic Chelsea, Vermont on 180 acres of beautiful land and woods. At Brookhaven we are committed to providing quality clinical and educational programming for boys with severe emotional/behavioral issues and learning difficulties.

Our comprehensive residential treatment program is designed specifically for boys whose difficulties have become so severe that removal from their home environment is essential to the treatment process. We provide these boys with therapeutic milieu services, intensive behavior management , individual, group and family therapy, case management services and psychopharmacological intervention. The residential program also includes our Family Retreat. This is a place for our residents and their families to come together on campus for overnights and intensive family focused treatment.

We also provide on site educational services (grades K-8) for our residents, as well as, day students from the community. Our Learning Center, a state licensed independent school, provides a therapeutically oriented academic curriculum. Our program serves boys who are able to continue residing in their home, but whose behavior/learning difficulties require more intensive services than are available in their local school.

Each summer Brookhaven offers a therapeutic day camp. Camp Haven runs for 6 weeks and is the Learning Center’s extended summer program. Our team of teachers, counselors and clinicians create a host of activities to enhance academic achievement and self-esteem in children with a history of failure and conflict.

In the current climate of uncertainty and anxiety, there is one thing that is certain, Brookhaven Treatment and Learning Center is essential for young men and families in need. We must continue to do what we have been doing for the last 57 years through these difficult times, and into the future.

In order to do this, we need you. Please consider a gift to Brookhaven as a part of your charitable endeavors this year. For more information, or to discuss gift giving options, please contact Mark Collier, our Development and Outreach Coordinator at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

With warmest regards,

Dr. Anthony N. Iazzo

When we are under stress the body goes into survival mode. It produces stress hormones, which gear us
up to respond to perceived danger. This has come to be known as the “fight or flight” response. In that
state, the heart rate increases, respiration becomes rapid and shallow, there is a rise in blood pressure,
and the brain itself moves into a primitive “survival” mode, suppressing normal thought functions
(evaluation, planning, deciding, encoding memory normally, etc.). The result of this is that we react rather
than being able to evaluate and plan a response to the stressor. Under certain circumstances, the body
may be in a constant state of “fight or flight,” which is exhausting and can contribute to the development
of physical stress-related disorders, such as cardiac problems, chronic high blood pressure, and
increased risk of stroke.

To read the full text of this excellent article from traumacenter.org, click here...

Intervening beyond the child: The intertwining nature of attachment and trauma

A. Margaret, E. Blaustein and Kristine AI. Kinniburgh

The role of the care giving system in child development Early childhood experiences playa crucial role in long-term outcomes. In normative development, the attachment system provides the safe container that allows children to cope with and filter the vast amount of new experiences they are exposed to on a daily basis. Within the safety of that attachment system, children are able to explore their worlds, and develop a range of skills, including the ability to regulate their body and emotions, build an early understanding of self and others, and, over time, develop an array of increasingly sophisticated developmental competencies (Schore, 2001). The attachment system may also act as a key resiliency factor for children who are exposed to distressing experiences (Shapiro & Levendosky, 1999). A secure attachment can act as a buffer to mitigate the impact of overwhelming stressors, and to support recovery and healing.

To read the full text of this excellent article from traumacenter.org, click here...