Addiction Recovery at Texas Tech University : Where It All Began

While waiting out a delay on a fateful tarmac, Carl Andersen was mulling the challenges and possibilities of the path before him. Alcoholism had left its mark on his life and on his family. In spite of the disease, Carl managed to earn a PhD and receive an appointment as Chair of the Department of Family Studies.

But Carl’s mission wasn’t clear to him until he sat in a plane on the tarmac talking with his wife about the plight of young people in recovery. There are many such people, he observed, who couldn't go home for fear of relapse or who couldn’t go to college because of the drinking environment there.

Seeking to address this problem, the Center for the Study of Addiction and Recovery was born. It fused the classic twelve-step program popularized by Alcoholics Anonymous with scholarships and a supportive learning environment to provide an opportunity in higher education for people struggling with addiction.

Part history, part road map, part visionary, and part dream fulfillment, Addiction Recovery at Texas Tech University chronicles Carl’s own struggle with addiction and describes how he established the model at TTU that has been replicated in colleges and universities across the nation. The book also includes accounts from students who were impacted by the endeavor.

The pain of his past led Texas Tech University faculty member Carl Andersen to develop the first undergraduate curriculum in addiction and recovery. He also developed America's first comprehensive university support program for recovering addicts. These programs have been replicated in more than one hundred other universities and have brought hope to thousands. Dr. Andersen lives in Lubbock, Texas.