Restorative Justice System and Peer Judicial Panel

Student behavior is often combative when students are not active participants in the rules that govern them.  When students are empowered through a systematic approach, they take ownership for their behavior and community.

                  Restorative Justice Advocacy

A central component to address bullying and harassment is the development of the Restorative Justice Advocacy (RJA) to empower students to be productive and contributing citizens through an integrated student accountability system. RJA contributes to school conflict resolution in a variety of ways including:  involvement of all parties in conflict resolution through a fair process, a focus on repairing relationships and trust, rather than on retribution or punishment, a focus on sharing views and experiences and developing empathy for others in the school community.

Goal

• To reduce the negative impact that is caused by conflicts, which damage the school culture.
• To reduce the number of negative incidents that is a result of student behaviors on the school campus, which lead to the exclusion of students from learning.
• To increase the number of positive interactions that students encounter from their peers; this will lead to increased student achievement.
• To build a student-led community where students take ownership of, and are accountable for, creating positive relationships and a positive culture throughout the greater school community.

   Program Objectives

     To empower students to take ownership in building a school culture that is committed to creating, maintaining and repairing positive relationships with all members in the school community. 

• Increase student voice in the governance of school policy.
• Offer ways to enhance the school environment to prevent conflict and restore relationships after conflict arises.
• Create a system where students are accountable to themselves and others.
• Build strong positive relationships among students

     Restorative Justice – Trained student leaders will be working collaboratively with students who have been harmed and students who have caused harm to one or more people, to resolve conflicts. 

• Students will be trained in peer mediation
• Students will mediate non-egregious conflicts, which occur on campus or extend into the community, that affect relationships on the school campus.
• Students will work diligently to engage all active members in restoring relationships.

     Peer Judicial Panel – A diverse panel of students, selected by staff and peers, will act as a collaborative compliance panel to make decisions based on the harm the student(s) has (have) done to others. 

• Three-person panel will hear the circumstances that surround the students who are being accountable.
• Three-person panel will collaborate on the recommendation of two options of ownership, a corrected behavior and a consequence.
• Three-person panel will analyze conflicts to ensure the most appropriate actions are taken to restore relationship while supporting students to be accountable.
• All panel members will be responsible to the school to ensure communication is brought forth to the student body about the success of the program, areas needing improvement, meetings and supports.

                  Students engaging in behavior that does not support learning may receive one or more consequences listed below:

• Detention (during lunch or after school)
• Community Service (within the confines of the school grounds)
• Campus clean-up and beautification of the campus
• Social probation (which means students may not participate in extracurricular activities) which includes no practice/games in sports, no dances, no assets program, graduation, etc.
• Alternative consequence agreed by panel

After a teacher or staff member completes a PJP referral, it is submitted to the PJP Director Freddie Bryant who reviews the case with the PJP students. A hearing is held with the panel and referred student. Panelists debrief and send their recommendations to the Vice Principal's Office.