Foster positive classroom and school culture

Building and strengthening relationships and community is a critical component of school culture. Restorative practices is an essential process for creating a positive learning environment, building social capital, and resolving relational issues.

During this two-day introductory experience, you will learn the fundamental theory and practices for engaging with students, staff, and parents in your school setting.

Topics include the importance of being explicit about practice, how to set high expectations while being supportive, and ways to build community in your setting. We will discuss giving direct feedback and asking questions that foster accountability, as well as utilizing effective methods to resolve common conflicts.

You will learn to apply the restorative practices continuum, understanding which restorative processes are best for achieving certain goals or responding to particular situations. We will focus specifically on facilitating circles, an essential process for creating a positive learning environment and school culture. Circles can be used both proactively and responsively to build social capital, sustain relationships, address social problems, and respond when harm occurs. Participants will spend time planning circles to use in their schools immediately.

Designed for:

K-12 teachers, staff, administrators. This experience is applicable to other audiences,
but school-based examples are used.

Learning Format Options:

• Online: Two consecutive 4.5-hour days of live instruction via Zoom.
  (2 hours of pre-work required prior to each session.)
• In Person: Two consecutive 8-hour days of live instruction (two breaks and time for lunch included).

Note:

In conjunction with Restorative Justice Conferencing, this event can be applied to the blended RP 500 Basic Restorative Practices course at the IIRP Graduate School. Trainings are limited in capacity and fill up quickly. Please do not book any travel or accommodations for in-person trainings until the registration is confirmed.

Price: $450

Upcoming Events

Increase community connectedness, staff and family retention, and student success

When independent schools integrate restorative practices into their administrative and academic methods, they establish a culture of collaborative leadership that increases voice, agency, and belonging for all community members and provides students with transferrable leadership skills that are crucial to functioning in a diverse world.

During this two-day introductory experience, you will learn fundamental theory and practices for engaging with students, staff, and parents using restorative practices.

The learning experience focuses on creating systems that promote equity and inclusion for students and adults. General topics include:

• Striking a balance between setting high expectations and providing support
• Understanding the role of emotions as catalysts for words and actions
• Providing direct feedback and asking questions that foster accountability
• Using the most effective methods to resolve common conflicts

Participants learn strategies to:

• Proactively build relationships
• Create an authentic sense of community and belonging
• Practice participatory decision-making
• Speak from experience
• Listen to others
• Connect through our similarities
• Learn from our differences
• Work through conflict in a mutually respectful way

Participants also learn to facilitate circles, an essential process for creating a positive learning environment and school culture. Circles may be used to build social capital, resolve social tension, and respond when relational or community harm occurs.

Designed for: PK-12 teachers, staff, and administrators working in independent schools.

Learning Format

This experience is led by an experienced IIRP instructor who is familiar with the independent school world. This event is interactive. Individual participation throughout is highly encouraged and will greatly increase the benefits you receive.

• Online: Two consecutive 4.5-hour days of live instruction.
  (2 hours of pre-work required prior to each session.)
• In Person: Two consecutive 8-hour days of live instruction (two breaks and time for lunch included).

In conjunction with Restorative Justice Conferencing, this event can be applied to the blended RP 500 Basic Restorative Practices course at the IIRP Graduate School. Trainings are limited in capacity and fill up quickly. Please do not book any travel or accommodations for in-person training until the registration is confirmed.

Price: $450

Upcoming Events

Bring together those impacted to resolve conflict

Incidents of conflict, wrongdoing, and harm occur everywhere, every day in schools, workplaces, college campuses, neighborhoods, and families. The restorative justice conference provides a way to engage with those who cause and experience harm, along with the related community.

Restorative Justice Conferencing covers the fundamentals of facilitating a formal conference in response to an incident of wrongdoing or harm. You will then be able to utilize those skills to create deeper interpersonal understanding and repair relationships among those involved or affected by such an incident.

Designed for:

K-16 teachers, staff, and administrators, members of the criminal justice field, and other organizations. This experience is applicable to other audiences, but examples used come from school and criminal justice settings.

Learning Format Options:

• Online: Two consecutive 4.5-hour days of live instruction.
  (2 hours of pre-work required prior to each session.)
• In Person: Two consecutive 8-hour days of live instruction (two breaks and time for lunch included).

Note:

In conjunction with Restorative Practices for Educators, this event can be applied to the blended RP 500 Basic Restorative Practices course at the IIRP Graduate School. Trainings are limited in capacity and fill up quickly. Please do not book any travel or accommodations for in-person trainings until the registration is confirmed.

Price: $450

Upcoming Events

For Advanced Practitioners

Students thrive in a school where they feel welcomed and accepted. This event is designed for restorative practitioners who have had previous training or classroom experience in restorative practices and will help you foster a spirit of shared ownership and responsibility within your classroom.  The content of the workshop is based on the book Advanced Practitioner Series: Intentional Classroom Engagement by IIRP Senior Advisor to the President and Assistant Professor Craig W. Adamson.

For the best experience possible, we strongly recommend purchasing and reviewing the book prior to this training.

Led by an experienced instructor, you will develop advanced skills and competencies for engaging with students. During each online session, you will explore a different aspect of intentional classroom engagement.

• Session 1 – Building Relationships – Examine areas for improvement in your professional practice and interpersonal influence in order to build relationships and community so that all feel included.
• Session 2 – Self-Reflection – Explore the role of self-reflection in building relationships in order to advance your practice and identify personal biases as a means to overcoming barriers to change.
• Session 3 – Maintaining Relationships – Cultivate a brave and safe space to foster vulnerability and authenticity, allowing students to genuinely express their identity, thoughts, and feelings.
• Session 4 – Responding to Harm and Reintegration – Explore the meaning and purpose of reintegration by examining ways to address harm and welcome students back into the classroom community.

Learning Format

This workshop is offered in different formats at different times of the year as noted in the course schedule below.

• Format 1: Four two-hour interactive online Zoom sessions.
• Format 2: Two four-hour interactive online Zoom sessions (Note: This format is typically offered in the summer semester.)

Learning is highly experiential. Each session includes specific instruction along with interactive breakouts where you will engage in practical exercises and discuss topics with fellow participants.

There will be no pre- or post-work for this event.

Price: $325

Upcoming Events

Advanced Training and Essential Skills for Facilitators

What is a listening circle?

Listening circles are a specific type of circle designed to help people process an event or issue that poses a challenge or harm to their community or has impacted people in a significant way. They are voluntary, community-oriented forums aimed at providing an equitable opportunity for all attendees to have voice. Listening circles and can be used in a variety of settings including communities, workplaces, schools, organizations, neighborhoods, universities, and within families. They have roots in indigenous cultures and are backed by research in interdisciplinary studies.

They are not focused on problem solving, dialogue, or debating. They are meant for creating a space for expressing, listening, processing, and community building.

Why are skilled facilitators crucial for leading listening circles?

Just like any tool that is improperly used, harm can be done. Since listening circles cover topics that may evoke strong emotion from participants, having the proper training on crafting questions, keeping participants on track, and creating spaces for people to confidently express themselves is key.

What are the benefits of listening circles?

• Opportunities to connect and increase understanding
• Process an event as a community
• Empower community members to build capacity for listening
• Cultivate empathy anda shared sense of understanding
• Build emotional connection among the participants

Learning Format

In this highly interactive online experience, you will learn the skills and important considerations to becoming a highly skilled listening circle facilitator. Led by two expert facilitators, the training interweaves learning, practice and reflection and is accompanied by practical documents and tools such as sample scripts and emails to prepare participants.

The training will focus on a real-life issue or challenge to make the experience relevant and incorporates individual pre-work, live Zoom sessions and threaded discussions.

• Begin your learning with videos, readings, and reflection questions to familiarize yourself with listening circles and prepare to listen empathically. (One hour of individual prework preparation)
• Experience a listening circle and explore the role of the facilitator, as well as barriers to listening, in preparation to facilitate your own circle. (4.5-hour live Zoom session, breaks included)
• Apply your learning, ask questions, and reflect on your experience. (Participants have two weeks to implement a listening circle and engage in threaded discussions.)
• Debrief and learn from others’ experiences so you will feel prepared to implement circles in a variety of contexts. (2.5-hour live Zoom session, breaks included)

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Understand the importance of listening
• Describe the listening circle process
• Comprehend the fundamentals for leading effective listening circles
• Explore how to use listening circles in their settings
• Participants will prepare and facilitate a listening circle

This professional development learning experience is open to anyone, regardless of your prior familiarity with restorative practices.

Notes:

• The skill building and information presented in the Facilitating Listening Circles event is the same for each event. The only difference in each event is the example topic for the listening circle experience.
• This event considers the possible use of restorative practices in cases of traumatic situations. We strongly advise facilitators to consult and prepare with the utmost care in these cases. Participants in these highly sensitive circles should be urged to establish their own emotional support system while participating in this event.

Price: $450

Upcoming Events

The most valuable resource educators have is each other.

Are you invested in creating stronger relationships in your educational environment through the use of restorative practices?

This collaborative online professional learning community explores what works, what doesn’t, how and why.

Four live weekly Zoom sessions provide opportunities to practice the full range of restorative practices:

• Session 1 — Take inventory of successes and challenges and establish personal learning goals.
• Session 2 — Strategize what it means to set high expectations while also providing high levels of support in your setting.
• Session 3 — Delve deeply into proactive community building, including practical ways to foster positive relationships with students, staff and parents.
• Session 4 — Explore responses to harm and how to utilize restorative problem-solving strategies to address needs that arise among any group in the school community.

During each live session, participants may ask relevant questions, share their experiences, receive valuable feedback from their instructor and peers, and develop strategies for effective teaching and leadership.

This event is recommended for those wanting to gain the practical experience needed to Become a Restorative Practices Trainer.

Learning format

Designed for school and district leaders, teachers, counselors and paraprofessionals, each session is facilitated by one of our engaging instructors — experienced restorative practitioners who clearly articulate key concepts and field your questions. You will join them in a professional learning community with up to 20 passionate educators from schools around the country.

• You will participate in four 90-minute live Zoom sessions.
• Threaded discussions provide opportunities to reflect on your strengths and challenges, propose action steps and solicit feedback.

A basic familiarity with restorative practices is expected of participants.

Price: $595

Upcoming Events

Develop and advance circle facilitation skills and competencies through self-reflection and practice.

Sharpen your skills for the facilitation of all circles, including proactive community building circles and responsive circles that address tensions and conflict.

This collaborative online professional learning community explores what works, what doesn’t, how and why.

Four live weekly Zoom sessions provide opportunities to practice the full range of restorative practices:

• Session 1 — Examine the dynamic competencies of circle facilitators and self-reflect on current facilitation competencies.
• Session 2 — Effectively use circles to build and advance relationships, team, and communities, including using circles to manage conflict and tensions.
• Session 3 — Explore applications of circle approaches in various aspects of work, such as projects, programs, procedures, and curriculum.
• Session 4 — Determine how to be an effective circle facilitator when addressing serious situations.

During each live session, participants may ask relevant questions, share their experiences, receive valuable feedback from their instructor and peers, and develop strategies for effective circle facilitation skill development and experience.

Learning format

Designed for circle facilitators in any field or industry, each session is facilitated by one of our engaging instructors — experienced restorative practitioners who clearly articulate key concepts and field your questions. You will join them in a professional learning community with up to 20 passionate circle facilitators

• You will participate in four 90-minute live Zoom sessions.
• Threaded discussions provide opportunities to reflect on your strengths and challenges, propose action steps and solicit feedback.

A basic familiarity with restorative practices and facilitation of restorative circles is expected of participants.

Price: $595

Upcoming Events

Cultivate change and improve well-being across your higher education setting. 

We recognize that every campus is unique. In-person, off-campus and virtual academic life is vast and diverse. Encouraging deeper relationships between individuals and promoting social connections within the campus community strengthens equity, belonging, and collective efficacy. This leads to happier, healthier, and more productive campus communities. 

In this professional development event, you will learn ways to foster and facilitate engagement and build positive relationships, whatever your sphere of influence on campus. This event is applicable to all members of the higher education community, including academic affairs, student life, faculty, staff, and students. 

Learning Outcomes

• Describe restorative practices concepts and principles. 
• Describe how restorative practices can improve leadership and interpersonal influence. 
• Reflect on your relational culture, professional practice and interpersonal influence. 
• Identify areas for improvement in professional practice and interpersonal influence. 
• Demonstrate the restorative practices continuum. 

Learning Format

This online event is interactive with participant engagement highly encouraged throughout. Led by an experienced IIRP instructor, you will learn and practice restorative concepts over two 4.5-hour days from 12:30 – 5:00pm EST.

Price: $495

Upcoming Events