Dominique Morisseau’s drama looks at systems of racism and discrimination in both public and independent high schools, and dovetails with the BLM @ School campaign’s goal to civically engage students and build their empathy, collaboration, and agency so they are able to thrive. A closing event for the 2020 Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action ((February 3-7, 2020) in D.C., coordinated by D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice, a project of Teaching for Change.
Panelists:
Allyson Criner Brown, MPA, the associate director of Teaching for Change and an educator, facilitator, public speaker, advocate, and seasoned practitioner who is nationally known for her work at the intersection of racial equity and family engagement.
Ashley Williams, an American History and US Government teacher at Maya Angelou Public Charter High School, an active member of Black Lives Matter DC, Black Educators for Social Justice, and Black Youth Project 100, an organization of Black abolitionists who organize, protest, and create to fight for Black liberation in the DC area.
Resources:
If you joined Studio for our conversation with Teaching for Change about Black Lives Matter at School, you heard us reference the following organizations and their work. And if you had to miss it, here are resources we discussed:
Teaching for Change provides teachers and parents with the tools to create schools where students learn to read, write, and change the world.
DC Area Educators for Social Justice is a network of educators who seek to strengthen and deepen social justice teaching.
Resources for and teaching stories from the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action, which promotes a set of national demands based in the Black Lives Matter guiding principles that focus on improving the school experience for students of color.
BYP100, (Black Youth Project 100) is a member-based organization of Black youth activists creating justice and freedom for all Black people.
Panelists:
Samantha Paige Davis, Founder & Executive Director of the Black Swan Academy
Eduardo Ferrer, a Visiting Professor of Law in the Georgetown Juvenile Justice Clinic and Policy Director of the Georgetown Juvenile Justice Initiative
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, playwright, director, teaching artist, and arts administrator who currently serves as Vice President and Artistic Director of Social Impact at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Michael Feldman (moderator), co-facilitator of the Theater and Policy Salon and Principal at Transitions International.
Resources:
Our panelists discussed these resources and organizations working on the juvenile justice system in DC and nationwide:
Before changing city or nation-wide policy, panelist Marc Bamuthi Joseph says, we should change our personal policies. Bamuthi invited everyone to follow #BlackJoy on Instagram, to change the images we all take in, the images of Black lives we engage, and the world we imagine with and for Black people.
The Breaking School Rules Report is a groundbreaking statewide study of nearly 1 million Texas public secondary school students, followed for at least six years. Funded by the Atlantic Philanthropies and the Open Society Foundations, this study found that when students are suspended or expelled, the likelihood that they will repeat a grade, not graduate, and/or become involved in the juvenile justice system increases significantly. African American students and children with particular educational disabilities who qualify for special education were suspended and expelled at especially high rates.
A summary of DC’s Student Fair Access to School Act (2018) which aims to reduce the use of exclusionary discipline by limiting out-of-school suspension of students to serious safety incidents and bans its utilization in high school for minor offenses.
"The State of School Discipline," a 2018 report from DC’s Office of the State Superintendent of Education, which shows that the number of students receiving out-of-school suspensions has fallen over the prior three years.
And by comparison, a report, "District Discipline: The Overuse of School Suspension and Expulsion in The District Of Columbia," from the 2011-2012 School Year
Local organizations working on juvenile justice reform in schools:
Advocates for Justice and Education
Georgetown Juvenile Justice Clinic & Initiative
This conversation discussed Restorative Justice as an alternative discipline practice, and introduced the work of RestorativeDC, which supports selected DCPS and public charter schools in whole-school implementation of Restorative Justice practices and culture change through intensive, trauma-informed, collaborative, customized, onsite, and locally based technical support in order to lower incidents of conflict and harm, reduce the use of suspensions and expulsions, increase school performance, and center the school community around relationships, inclusivity, and accountability.
Panelist:
Tarek Maassarani founded and supports Restorative DC, a program to catalyze Restorative Justice in schools, the juvenile justice system, and youth-serving agencies.
Relevant Organizations:
National Association for Community and Restorative Justice is the national association that hosts the largest annual RJ conference in the summer and lots of resources on their website.
Center for Justice and Peacebuilding and the Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice at Eastern Mennonite University offers courses, workshops, and webinars on circle processes, trauma awareness and resilience, and a variety of other RJ related topics.
International Institute for Restorative Practices, PA-based graduate school offering degrees, training, and consultation in restorative practices.
Youth and Families in Crisis, DC-based company offering RJ training and consultation.
Restorative DC, a project of SchoolTalk, aims to raise awareness and deepen implementation of Restorative Justice in schools, families, organizations, and communities in the District. Currently, Restorative DC offers intensive onsite technical assistance for whole-school restorative implementation; monthly District-wide professional development workshops and peer-learning sessions known as the Community of Practice; customized training and technical assistance for interested agencies and organizations; and restorative diversionary alternatives to juvenile justice agencies. See the bottom of our homepage to subscribe to our newsletter and receive regular updates on events, jobs, trainings, articles, and other resources related to RJ in the District.
Books:
Circle Forward by Kay Pranis and Carolyn Boyes-Watson provides an overview of the peacemaking circle model and a large compendium of detailed, off-the-shelf "lesson plans". Restorative DC has ordered this in bulk, so can offer copies at a 40% discount.
Connecting Across Differences by Dr. Jane Conner (member of the Restorative DC team) and Dian Killian is a detailed book and workbook to enhance communication skills through the basic Nonviolent Communication (NVC) model, as well as more advanced NVC practices
50 Dramatic Engagements for Learning and Performance by Dr. Carmen White and Lennie Smith (members of the Restorative DC team)
The Little Book series on Restorative Justice topics present, in a highly accessible form, key concepts and practices from the field of restorative justice. Written by leaders in this field, they are designed for practitioners, students, and anyone interested in restorative justice.
Restorative Practices Design Kit by CircleUp includes the Relationship Building Design Guide binder, three colorful circle planning sheets, multi-colored design cut outs, and three large circle planning posters to teach students and staff how to design and facilitate Relationship Building Circle Practices.
Creating Restorative Schools: Setting Schools Up to Succeed by Martha A. Brown draws lessons from two Oakland Middle Schools to map the route from zero tolerance to healthy and vibrant relational ecologies at all levels.
Circle Solutions for Student Wellbeing by Sue Roffey puts research on wellbeing and social emotional learning into practice.
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is a powerful true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to fix our broken system of justice an lawyer of our time.
Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen is a moving story for young and old of a youth who agrees to participate in a sentencing alternative based on the native American Circle Justice.
Peacemaking Circles and Urban Youth: Bringing Justice Home by Carolyn Boyes-Watson explores how Circle process is being used with immigrant, gang, and street youth at a center outside Boston.
Implementation Guides:
Restorative DC Whole School Implementation Guide
School-Wide Restorative Practices:Step by Step (Denver Public Schools)
Oakland Unified School District: Restorative Justice Implementation Guide, A Whole School Approach
San Francisco Unified School District Restorative Practices Whole-School Implementation Guide
Restorative Justice: A Working Guide for Schools (Alameda County Health Care Services Agency)
Videos:
Student-led Community Building Circle in Oakland Unified School District https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdKhcQrLD1w
Restorative Welcome and Reentry Circle in Oakland Unified School District https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiLtFVHR8Q0
Why We Need Restorative Justice is an interesting video concept that pieces together 9 different segments together taken from publicly available (youtube) sources by theme and then has prompts along the way to pause the video and discuss what has been watched. The flow of the video is roughly as follows with the individual video clips lifted out here:
Zero tolerance discipline and the school-to-prison pipeline
Arne Duncan - Educators as part of the problem
How the School to Prison Pipeline ruins lives before they start
Empathy, modeling, and relationships
Under the surface (I found this one to be a particularly powerful clip that helps connect empathically with what lays beneath student behavior)
Children see, children do
The custodian who became a counselor
Restorative Justice
Restorative Justice, it's elementary! (Lansing, MI)
Restorative practices in schools: Parent Peace Rooms (Chicago)
Websites:
SF Unified School District has lots of video and written resources: http://www.healthiersf.org/RestorativePractices/
A video about restorative practices with footage from their program: https://vimeo.com/47159849
The International Institute for Restorative Practice's (IIRP) research study on restorative justice in schools: http://www.iirp.edu/pdf/IIRP-Improving-School-Climate.pdf
IIRP's school-based programs with a variety of resources and information: http://www.safersanerschools.org/
Edutopia's resource page on RJ with a number of case studies and guidelines: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/restorative-justice-resources-matt-davis
Another clearinghouse website with lots of information: http://www.restorativejustice.org/
Codes and Policies:
Dignity in Schools Campaign Model Code on Education and Dignity: comprehensive code governing discipline from a human rights approach, accompanied by the Dignity in Schools Campaign comparison tool for gauging how your disciplinary policy compares to the above model policy.
Advancement Projects Model Disciplinary Policy based on best practices from a variety of the above school districts
Loudoun County Report Ensuring Equitable Discipline: Practices & Policies