Purpose

The  Georgia National Guard ChalleNGe Academy, a preventive rather than remedial youth-at-risk program, targets participants who are unemployed, drug-free and law-free high-school dropouts, 16 to 18 years of age. Core components of the program are citizenship, academic excellence (GED attainment), life-coping skills, community service, health and hygiene, skills training, leadership followership, and physical training. The five-month Residential Phase, which includes the Pre-ChalleNGe Phase, is followed by a year-long mentoring relationship with a specially trained member from each youth's community.

Core Components
The ChalleNGe Program is designed as an intervention model built on Eight Core Components needed for successful living. The Core Components of this model focus on the holistic development of the participants. Much of a cadet's skills development process is based on deliberate experiential learning situations created by the staff. The Core Components and performance measures associated with each component are listed below.

Life Coping Skills
Component includes Post-Residential Action Plan and Career Search.

Educational Excellence
Component includes Test for Adult Basic Education (T.A.B.E.) and preparation for the General Educational Development diploma (GED).

Responsible Citizenship
Component includes Student Government Association, Voter registration and Selective Service Registration.

Health, Hygiene and Sex Education
Component includes classes in Nutrition, First Aid and CPR training.

Skills Training
Component includes Job Shadowing, Personal Resume and Interviewing Skills, and the Job Core Curriculum in basic building construction skills.

Physical Fitness
Component includes intense Physical Training in preparation for the President's Physical Fitness Test, team sports, and optional training for the military.

Leadership and Followership
Component includes evaluation of performance in leadership and followership positions within the cadet command structure.

Community Service
Component includes a minimum of 40 hours per cadet of service projects in helping others and gaining job experience, i.e. Fort Stewart  Elementarty School, Child care Service also locator Hinesville business.