About Green Hill Academic School
Green Hill Academic School, A New Path Forward
At Green Hill Academic School, we believe every young person deserves the opportunity to chart a new course. We provide rigorous, compassionate education that empowers students to discover their strengths, heal from past trauma and build the skills necessary for successful reintegration into their communities. Through individualized learning, restorative practices and wraparound support, we help students create new paths forward toward graduation, career readiness and meaningful futures.
Our work is grounded in the belief that education is transformative. We recognize that our students have faced significant challenges, and we meet them where they are with high expectations and unwavering support. We foster a culture of respect, accountability, and hope, where mistakes become learning opportunities and every achievement is celebrated.
We prepare students not just to return to society, but to thrive in it. By integrating academic instruction with social-emotional learning, vocational training and mental health support, we address the whole student so that when they leave our doors, they have the tools, confidence and connections to succeed in their new path forward.
Chehalis School District's Role at Green Hill
Green Hill School is a medium/maximum security facility for young men ages 17-25 run by the Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) that is located in the Chehalis School District boundaries.
DCYF works with partners to provide treatment, education and transition services for residents at Green Hill. Services can include skill-building through counseling, treatment groups, academics and vocational training. The Chehalis School District offers educational opportunities for residents at Green Hill School who have not yet completed their high school diploma or GED.
A separate jail facility, the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center, is located on the same 50-acre property as Green Hill School. Serving youth who are awaiting trial at the juvenile court, the facility can house up to 18 individuals for 10-30 days. Young people at Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center also have access to educational services provided by the Chehalis School District.
Educational programs at the Green Hill Academic School and Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center are funded through restricted state and federal funding that is tracked separately from the funding for the rest of the Chehalis School District's programs. Levy funds cannot be used to support the Green Hill Academic School or Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center.
The Chehalis School District’s academic program at Green HIll Academic School offers courses that are similar to what is used in any other classroom in Washington state. Green Hill residents have the opportunity to earn their GED or high school diploma.
Students who earn their diploma or GED at Green Hill School can also qualify for the opportunity to earn credit or further their education through several college and vocational programs. DCYF has partnerships with Centralia College, Evergreen State College, Seattle Central College and Culture Barber Academy. Vocational programs include: auto mechanics; auto bodywork; business management; welding; construction; and cosmetology.
Green Hill Academic School History
The historical roots of Green Hill School stretch back to the beginning of Washington State History. Founded in 1891, it was originally called the Washington State Reform School. It originally housed convicted or orphaned both boys and girls ages 8-18. It was an agricultural and trade school where inmates were required to perform physical labor.
Green Hill became a male-only facility in 1913, when the girls were sent to the girls-only reform school, Washington State School for Girls, which was later named Maple Lane. Maple Lane closed in 2011.
The facility was renamed the Washington State Training School in 1907 and continued to focus on reform based rehabilitation, which included physical discipline. In the late 1960s, that began to change when Washington state shifted towards a modern rehabilitation model for juvenile detention facilities. RCW 28A.190 at THIS LINK mandated that school districts must operate the academic components of state "residential schools" located within their geographic boundaries, so the Chehalis School District began offering educational services at the facility. The name Green Hill School became the facility’s official name n 1972 when it was annexed into the City of Chehalis boundaries.
The Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) became responsible for running Green Hill School in 2019, part of a statewide transfer of juvenile facilities from the state's Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). The Chehalis School District partners with DCYF to ensure Green Hill residents have access to educational opportunities that meet their needs and position them for success after rehabilitation.
