800-784-1361
I went here. I get it. My mom wanted to do right by me, help me as a struggling kid. But for the love of the lord, this place made it worse. Kids screaming, slamming their head against the wall and the staff just standing idly by. They would use more force on a yelling kid t ...
About Nexus Family Healing
Gerard Academy is located in a private, homey setting offering ample opportunities for outdoor recreation and relaxation. The campus features community gardens and comfortable common areas, as well as a state accredited K through 12 day school. The grounds are located adjacent to a nature preserve, and wildlife can frequently be seen on the center’s property.
The inpatient program is designed to help individuals achieve recovery through mental, emotional, and physical wellness. Children and their families receive trauma informed, CBT based individual, group, and family counseling. Evidence based complementary approaches like EMDR are available to support trauma recovery. Education and life skills development are also prioritized to support long term health and sobriety. Courses are offered in self care, coping, problem solving, communication, relapse prevention, and family and community reintegration.
When clients complete treatment, aftercare services provide ongoing support. This continuing care can include academic and vocational training and transitional support. Social services, medical and mental health, and addiction recovery referrals are also provided to facilitate clients’ successful reintegration into their home community.
Facility Overview
16 Number of Available Beds
Latest Reviews
I was here when I was 14 and seeing all the 1 star reviews makes my heart happy. I was here for a total of 5 days before my parents discharged me after hearing things about this place and to this day it was the best thing they ever could have done for me. The staff did not care, there was a lot of bullying and verbal harassment happening between the patients and they completely overlooked it. There’s absolutely no therapy at all in my 5 days there and the days are not structured at all. I was in my room most of the time except for during meals. The food is terrible and I would refuse to eat it because of how gross it was and they accused me of having an eating disorder. There was an opossum outside and the staff allowed the patients to take the end of a broom, stick it out the door and poke the poor animal. The “spacious” rooms they talk about on their website are no bigger than a closet. Go anywhere but here please!! People deserve so much better than this when they are struggling. ❤️
We’re sorry to hear this was your experience. Our goal is always to provide a healing path forward for the youth in our care. We share all feedback with leadership teams to consistently assess and make changes. If you would like to talk further about your past experience, please email us at ndudycha@nexusfamilyhealing.org.
Response from the owner3 weeks ago
Hi Shaelyn,We’re sorry to hear this was your experience. Our goal is always to provide a healing path forward for the youth in our care. We share all feedback with leadership teams to consistently assess and make changes. If you would like to talk further about your past experience, please email us at ndudycha@nexusfamilyhealing.org.
Anonymous
Reviewed on 09/26/2025
I went here. I get it. My mom wanted to do right by me, help me as a struggling kid. But for the love of the lord, this place made it worse. Kids screaming, slamming their head against the wall and the staff just standing idly by. They would use more force on a yelling kid than one who was harming themselves. 4 grown adults laying on top of a 10 yr old kid? Ridiculous. Seeing suicide attempts, staff caring more about sitting at their table typing/on their phone. Moldy Milk, activites supposed to make us feel "normal" were having to raise our hands to read a book. Ask permission to color in a coloring book. Using punishments like halt or reset when they dont like something we did or didn't do. Using silence and isolation as the punishment. the staff sucked, and they are not equipped to handle kids who have genuine mental health struggles. Send them here if they are annoying and you can't afford military camp. Don't send them here for any other reason.
I went here when I was 15 and only had a 9 month stay. I’m still working through the trauma from HERE. Most of the people I stayed in contact with never made it out of the bad place they were in! I saw the most unprofessional people being hired while other staff STRUGGLED due to the dorms being SO overcrowded and Dysregulation. Gerards hiring process does NOT have an accurate screening (I watched as a staff member casually scroll through pornographic Material) I Living with 14 other girls dealing with similar issues and the Environment was so toxicIt made everyone worse and STRAINED ALL THE STAFF. I’m in college now and I’m STILL trying to work through the ptsd, Please look elsewhere and do your research? This place will not benefit your child! DHS has investigated them to research! This place will make your child WORSE do your own research and find a place to benefit them the most. Nexus Gerrard failed me and all the other children that went there.
We are sorry you did not find your experience beneficial. The work we do is critical to those struggling with mental health and behavioral challenges and we have strong policies in place to ensure we are creating a safe, trauma-informed environment for those in care. If you would like to share more about your experience, please reach out to ndudycha@nexusfamilyhealing.org.
Response from the owner1 month ago
Hi Lauren,We are sorry you did not find your experience beneficial. The work we do is critical to those struggling with mental health and behavioral challenges and we have strong policies in place to ensure we are creating a safe, trauma-informed environment for those in care. If you would like to share more about your experience, please reach out to ndudycha@nexusfamilyhealing.org.
Rehab Score
Our Methodology
Scoring is assigned by a proprietary system which helps surface key metrics that determine quality. The 10-point scale factors in categories such as operations, customer satisfaction, and trust metrics. Read Full Methodology
5.9 / 10
Gallery
Accepted Insurance
Other Forms of Payment
Private insurance refers to any kind of healthcare coverage that isn't from the state or federal government. This includes individual and family plans offered by an employer or purchased from the Insurance Marketplace. Every plan will have different requirements and out of pocket costs so be sure to get the full details before you start treatment.
Self-pay involves paying for treatment out of your own pocket. You can use savings or credit, get a personal loan, or receive help from family and friends to fund your treatment. If you don't have insurance or your insurance plan doesn't cover a specific program, self-pay can help ensure you still get the care you need.
Addiction Treatments
Levels of Care
Inpatient
Residential treatment programs are those that offer housing and meals in addition to substance abuse treatment. Rehab facilities that offer residential treatment allow patients to focus solely on recovery, in an environment totally separate from their lives. Some rehab centers specialize in short-term residential treatment (a few days to a week or two), while others solely provide treatment on a long-term basis (several weeks to months). Some offer both, and tailor treatment to the patient's individual requirements.
Treatments
Mental health rehabs focus on helping individuals recover from mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, clinical depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and more. Mental health professionals at these facilities are trained to understand and treat mental health issues, both in individual and group settings.
Clinical Services
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a therapy modality that focuses on the relationship between one's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is used to establish and allow for healthy responses to thoughts and feelings (instead of unhealthy responses, like using drugs or alcohol). CBT has been proven effective for recovering addicts of all kinds, and is used to strengthen a patient's own self-awareness and ability to self-regulate. CBT allows individuals to monitor their own emotional state, become more adept at communicating with others, and manage stress without needing to engage in substance abuse.
Group therapy is any therapeutic work that happens in a group (not one-on-one). There are a number of different group therapy modalities, including support groups, experiential therapy, psycho-education, and more. Group therapy involves treatment as well as processing interaction between group members.
In individual therapy, a patient meets one-on-one with a trained psychologist or counselor. Therapy is a pivotal part of effective substance abuse treatment, as it often covers root causes of addiction, including challenges faced by the patient in their social, family, and work/school life.
Trauma therapy addresses traumatic incidents from a client's past that are likely affecting their present-day experience. Trauma is often one of the primary triggers and potential causes of addiction, and can stem from child sexual abuse, domestic violence, having a parent with a mental illness, losing one or both parents at a young age, teenage or adult sexual assault, or any number of other factors. The purpose of trauma therapy is to allow a patient to process trauma and move through and past it, with the help of trained and compassionate mental health professionals.
Amenities
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Residential Setting
Staff
Dr. Michelle K. Murray
CEO & President
Bobbi Kochevar
COO
Scott McGuire
CFO
Jennifer McIntosh
Chief Human Resources Officer
Contact Information
1111 28th Street NE
Austin, MN 55912
Get Help Now - 507-218-9846
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Fact checked and written by:
Kerry Nenn, BSW
Edited by:
Terri Beth Miller, PhD
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