Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy is closing
Families plead with governor to save program for at-risk youth, including some from Ocala/Marion County.
Cadets show support during a recent Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day event. [Photo courtesy Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy]
Amanda Pfouts, an Ocala mother, was at her breaking point. Her son Kaiden Adkins was lying and stealing, she said, showing no respect to his parents and his constant yelling sparked arguments that left the household in turmoil.
“Things were just really bad,” Pfouts said.
The Pfoutses turned to the Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy (FLYCA), which is operated by the Florida National Guard at Camp Blanding in Starke, and often is seen as a last resort — and one that delivered real change.
Now, after nearly 25 years, the program that helped Kaiden and hundreds of other Central Florida youth is closing in June. Class 50 will be the final residential cohort.
National Guard officials announced the decision due to growing operational demands on its personnel.
“This decision was not made lightly,” a Florida National Guard spokesperson told “First Coast News” in an April 8 news story. The official emphasized that as the operational demands on the Florida National Guard continue to grow, leaders must refocus their resources on their primary missions.
Opened in 2001, FLYCA is a voluntary, military-style residential program for 16- to 18-year-old at-risk youth who have dropped out or fallen behind in school. It’s five-and-a-half-month residential phase that builds structure, discipline, academics (including GED preparation), leadership, physical fitness, community service, life skills and citizenship, followed by a post-residential mentoring phase.
The academy’s record boasts 6,258 graduates, 6,592 GEDs earned, 445,636 total service hours and more than $9 million in service value contributed.
“The Florida National Guard has been proud to operate one of the nation’s top youth ChalleNGe programs,” the spokesperson said, noting its role in strengthening families and communities across Florida.
Testimonials from Ocala and beyond
For Pfouts’ son Kaiden, the academy experience shifted his outlook. He gained better manners and attitude, learned respect for elders and formed lifelong bonds while staying in touch with three fellow cadets who became his best friends. Now 18, Kaiden is working toward his GED while earning more than many adults in a solid job.
Pfouts’ advice to other families is to “work” the program.
“It is going to be hard at times, you’ll miss your family, but it will be worth it in the end,” she said.
Pfouts said she wants Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to see the program’s value for at-risk teens heading toward school failure, crime or drugs.
“There were fellow classmates who were just going down a really rough road… and it helped change them,” she stated.
Michael Harrison, of Class 17, shared a similar turnaround.
Facing arrests and court cases, he found direction through FLYCA’s discipline and late-night conversations about life and responsibility. He became a squad leader and earned the Physical Fitness Award.
Today, Harrison manages more than $25 million in real estate projects, is married with two children and said that attending FLYCA “turned out to be the defining moment of my life.”
“The structure, the discipline and the expectations pushed me in ways I had never experienced before. What stayed with me the most were the long, late-night conversations, the moments where we talked about life, responsibility and what it really means to grow up. That’s where I became a man,” he continued.
“Today, I am a senior program manager at a Hyperscale Data Center Developer. The discipline, accountability and leadership I rely on in my career all trace back to what I learned during that time in my life. Looking back, I can say with complete honesty that FLYCA changed my life. Without it, I don’t believe I would be the man I am today, or a productive member of society. My journey is proof that with the right guidance, discipline and support, it’s possible to turn things around and build something meaningful out of even the most difficult beginnings,” he offered.
Amy Knight, Class of 2002, said she was a troubled teen and that the academy gave her the structure and discipline she needed to turn her life around.
“This program saved my life. It truly did. By the time I graduated, I was my best version of myself,” Knight said.
She became a certified nursing assistant and built a family.
Kameron Johns has also publicly credited the academy with shaping his path.
“I am a proud graduate of Class 45, 2023,” Johns stated.
“I didn’t have structure and I didn’t fully understand respect for others or for myself. The Florida Youth Challenge Academy gave me that structure. I know for a fact that without the academy, I would not be where I am today,” he continued.
Preservation push with local support
Crystal Heishman, a former cadet, launched a change.org petition (“Save and restructure the Florida Youth Challenge Academy”) on April 9, which has collected nearly 1,000 signatures. She is actively engaging DeSantis through formal proposals and a request that he tour the facility and meet the current class.
“For many families, this program has been the answer when nothing else worked,” Heishman said.
She said hundreds of parents have sent children to FLYCA because of its record of instilling structure, confidence and direction in a relatively short time.
“Families from all over Florida, from the Panhandle to Miami, have sent their children here because it works. They leave as completely different individuals,” Heishman said.
Heishman proposes a state-supported civilian partnership model that preserves the core residential and mentorship structure while adding workforce pathways, credentials, stronger oversight and long-term tracking.
“This is an opportunity for Florida not just to preserve this program but to lead a model that could be replicated nationwide,” Heishman said.
“At one point, the governor was considering using that base for another immigrant detention center and I’m trying to get the governor to see our proposal to preserve this program for our at-risk youth that have been traveling from all corners of Florida just to go here to change their lives. Not to mention the many workers at the program who have passed a level two background screening through the Department of Juvenile Justice that will be facing losing their jobs in June,” Heishman said.
According to “First Coast News,” DeSantis considered establishing a second immigration detention center at Camp Blanding in mid-2025. The proposal drew protests from hundreds of demonstrators in Clay County and was part of the state’s broader immigration enforcement efforts, including the controversial Alligator Alcatraz facility in the Everglades. DeSantis later placed the Camp Blanding plan on hold, saying he wanted to avoid partially filling multiple sites and would instead prioritize sending detainees to the Everglades location first.
The “Gazette” reached out to Gov. DeSantis’ office and was told that the governor had no statement on the matter.
William M.G. Manley, deputy communications director for the Department of Military Affairs/Florida National Guard, did confirm that Class 50 will be the final residential class at the academy.To learn more, go to floridayouthchallengeacademy.org
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