“I just re-read an article that said, “One year or two years in the off-the derech lifestyle pretty much guarantees a point of no return.” Do you think this is true? We are getting close to the 1 year mark where my son started to hang out with a ‘bad’ crowd, which eventually resulted in him not wanting to finish school. I know the sooner they come back, the better, but is there really a point of no return?”
That’s a nice theory but not true in the overwhelming majority of cases. Kids can be off for four to five years and still usually come back. Just keep doing what you’re doing and it WILL work out eventually. He’s still 17 and immature enough to not think too much about the consequences of his choices. He needs to grow up before you can expect more from him. He may or may not live the same hashkafa as the way he was raised but he will choose to live a life as a normal accomplishing adult, almost definitely within a frum framework.