Learning to have better conversations with the help of restorative justice

“South Bend Community Talks Restorative Justice, Trust at First Healing Circle”

If you want to understand a social issue, you have to get close to it. The Eric Logan shooting was devastating for a lot of our South Bend neighbors. This article recounts a “healing circle” that we held afterward to help bring the community back together.

“The Neuroscience of Restorative Justice”

Dan Reisel studies the biology of change, including our ability to rewire our own brains. In this TED Talk, he asks a big question: Instead of warehousing criminals, shouldn't we be using what we know about the brain to help them rehabilitate?

“Restorative Circles: Creating a Safe Environment for Students to Reflect”

What if instead of sending students to the principal’s office, we gave them a space to reflect on their behavior and find positive ways to resolve conflicts? That’s exactly what they did at this high school in Nashville. I loved seeing the results in this video from Edutopia, a site that spotlights what’s working in education.

“Incorporating Restorative Justice in Schools”

What I appreciate about Leila Fakhoury’s TEDx Talk is her perspective. She speaks about the value of incorporating restorative justice into the school system from the point of view of someone who is part of the system herself, a student.

The Little Book of Restorative Justice in Education

Slowly but surely, restorative justice is being taught in schools. This how-to guide is written by two education scholars, Katherine Evans and Dorothy Vaandering. Evans teaches at Eastern Mennonite University, one of the few insitutitions with a graduate program in restorative justice.