News & Announcements
In keeping with the restorative ethos of including all stakeholders in decision-making, the IIRP Graduate School sent a survey to prospective students worldwide to learn the best ways to deliver its course content. The overwhelming response was that students wanted to learn restorative practices, but they wanted more online and low-residency options so they could continue to live and work at home while they studied. Nationally, too, the trend in higher education throughout across the U.S. is toward more online and hybrid education. As the IIRP has developed opportunities for students to study restorative practices at the graduate level wherever they happen to live, a world-wide network of restorative learners and practitioners is being fostered.
Fully online courses, including introductory courses like RP 506, Restorative Practices: The Promise and the Challenge, allow students to connect with others around the world on their own time schedule. IIRP students who have taken the course talk about the advantages of working with diverse participants from different fields and places as far afield as the Netherlands, Canada, the Caribbean, South Africa, the U.S., Australia and Peru.
“When they use restorative practices, professionals suddenly get back their self-esteem,” says Vidia Negrea, director of Community Service Foundation of Hungary (CSF Hungary), in Budapest. “They see how worthy their work can be.”
Negrea was appointed this month by the International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) Board of Trustees as its newest member.
“I think of the IIRP as a restorative institution,” says Negrea. “The whole IIRP is a model of thinking and living in a restorative way. Even when the crises within politics and government make me very depressed, when I practice and people feel the effects of restorative practices, they start to regain their trust in themselves and the world.”
Across the state of Vermont, nearly 50 serious offenders, who are considered high-risk to reoffend, are meeting weekly with small teams of volunteers who have signed on to hold them accountable for their past criminal behavior and to support them to become contributing members of society. These offenders have very little family and community support, and Circles of Accountability, or CoSAs, are formed around the released offenders to help them make the transition back to the community.
For Derek Miodownik, Community and Restorative Justice Executive for Vermont Department of Corrections (DoC), the main issue is how the justice system and corrections can help reinstate the social contract. On the one hand, the community needs to know that it will be safe from further harm. On the other hand, offenders need to understand the benefits to them of becoming rehabilitated citizens.
Nicola Preston wears many hats, but they all involve restorative practices. She's a lecturer at the IIRP teaching online courses and a special education needs coordinator for a UK primary (elementary) school. She says that restorative practices have even made a big impact in her personal and family life.
Educational associate Harik Cofer didn’t “buy into” restorative practices at first. “Why would I do that fluffy stuff?” In his position — similar to middle school assistant principal — at National Academy Foundation School, in Baltimore, he was focused on closing the achievement gap through curriculum and academics. “Little did I know that if I did the community building first I could exceed expectations.”
Cofer says his school is probably one of the better educational institutions in Baltimore City, but there are still plenty of problems. In particular, he laments the loss of feelings of pride and community kids used to have about school.
An invitation to students, parents, teachers and community organizations
Introduction to Restorative Practices – An Educational Workshop
Two dates: 8:30 am–3:30 pm, Saturday, August 16 or 8:30 am–3:30 pm, Tuesday, August 26
Location: John Bartram High School, 2401 S. 67th St., Philadelphia, PA 19142
Natalie Medina, an actor who also teaches theater to youth in Panama with Fundación Amaneceres, discusses why kids like the combination of theater and circles, the importance of the talking piece and a play young refugees developed inspired during a circle discussion.
Last year, Jamaica, as a key component of implementing its National Restorative Justice Policy, opened seven Community Restorative Justice Centers working officially in 11 communities. In their first phase of implementation, these centers have begun to address community conflicts and complaints outside the formal justice system.
When teenagers turn to drugs and alcohol in ways that damage their lives and relationships, it’s challenging to help them turn their lives around. The choice to use alcohol and drugs can mask other underlying issues, including shame and other painful emotions, and can be exacerbated by the difficulties of communication. This article explores how everyday language can be used within a restorative framework to help parents of teens struggling with drug abuse and addiction to reintegrate in a healthy way with their families, schools, friends and communities.
Drug and alcohol counselor Elizabeth Smull, who has worked primarily with teens struggling with addiction and their families, uses the full range of restorative practices on a daily basis, especially many of the more informal practices, such as affective statements and questions. Beyond using these techniques, Smull actively teaches those she works with how to use these techniques themselves. This begins immediately after a teen has returned home from a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program or has been court-ordered to a period of juvenile probation.
El Instituto Latino Americano de Prácticas Restaurativas (ILAPR), afiliado al IIRP, con sede en Lima, Perú, ha venido trabajando durante tres años para promover el desarrollo de las prácticas restaurativas en todo Sudamérica y México. Jean Schmitz, director del ILAPR, y sus colegas, han proporcionado capacitación básica en prácticas restaurativas a aproximadamente 1,000 personas en siete países, incluyendo a Perú, Brasil, México, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador y Colombia. Este desarrollo profesional está comenzando a tener un impacto en los campos de la educación y la justicia penal.
Restorative Works Year in Review 2025 (PDF)
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