Instructors
Our professional development instructors are engaging restorative practitioners that bring years of experience in studying, teaching, and applying restorative practices in a variety of settings.
Keisha N. Allen, D.Min.
Instructor
Keisha Allen serves as the Executive Director of Black Family Development Inc. Training Institute (BTI) in Detroit, Michigan. Her mission to restore civil societies...
Mike Azzalina, M. Ed.
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Mike Azzalina is an IIRP Instructor and Implementation Coach. He has spent over 16 years in public education as an elementary school teacher...
Sarah Barbour, M.S.
Instructor
Sarah Barbour supports the design and implementation of school-wide behavioral support systems and restorative discipline processes for independent and public school...
Tawio Barksdale, Ed.D.
Instructor
Dr. Tawio Barksdale is an IIRP instructor, author, educational consultant, and has served in various roles in K-12 public schools for over 20 years. His passion is...
Bill Boyle, M.A.T.
Instructor
Bill Boyle is an experienced, certified restorative practitioner and facilitator of equity and inclusion learning experiences. He has worked diligently to form schools that...
Ashley L. Brown, Ed.D.
Instructor
Dr. Ashley L. Brown, is an IIRP Instructor, the Director of the Student Center for Social Justice and Identity at Vanderbilt University, and a DEIB consultant for...
Nikki Chamblee, Ph.D.
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Nikki Chamblee, Ph.D has been an educator for over 19 years. Currently she serves as an Instructor and Implementation Coach for the IIRP. In this...
Jennifer Coker, M.A.
Instructor
Jennifer Coker is an IIRP Instructor, Adjunct Professor at College of Charleston, and Leadership Coach. Throughout her three decades in K-12 public education...
Kiyaana Cox Jones, M.S.
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Kiyaana Cox Jones is an IIRP Instructor and Implementation Coach. In her role as Assistant Director of Multicultural life at Muhlenberg...
Joseph Devlin, M.R.P.Y.C.
Instructor
Joseph Devlin is an IIRP instructor, adjunct professor at Bucks County Community College, and founder of Family Sobriety Now. He has more than 20 years of experience in the...
Sheryl Douglas, B.A.
Instructor
Sheryl Douglas started her life-long career in education as an English Language Arts teacher and later transitioned into educational consulting. For over two decades she...
Graciella Drew, M.A.Ed.
Instructor
Graciella Drew is a restorative practices trainer, providing training and/or consulting in multiple urban and suburban school districts throughout the United States. She...
Dara Feldman, M.Ed., NBCT
Instructor
Dara is an educator, speaker, author, coach and consultant whose lifelong goal is to transform schools, and the systems that support them, into environments that are...
Chad Ferguson, M. Ed.
Instructor
Chad Ferguson is an IIRP instructor and educational consultant, working with school and district teams to reflect on their practice and plan and implement strategic school...
Steve Fiedeldey, M.A.
Instructor
Steve Fiedeldey is a restorative practitioner who has a diverse background in education. He is a passionate and dedicated advocate for children, with experience as an...
Shermont Robert Fox, Sr., M.A.
Instructor
Shermont Fox has over 35 years of experience transforming the lives of students and families with schools all over the country. He has been a teacher at the School District...
Jeremias Garcia, M.S.
Instructor
Jeremias Garcia is an IIRP instructor, as well as the Assistant Administrator for Diakon Youth Services in Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania, a Basketball Official...
Julia Getty, M.S.
Instructor
Julia Getty is a full-time instructor with the IIRP. Her first career was in retail management where, by working with staff and customers in high-volume stores in...
Jeff Godowski, M.Ed.
Instructor
Jeff Godowski is a IIRP instructor, Assistant Dean at Cornell University, and owner of JP Godowski Consulting, LLC. Jeff was introduced to the IIRP and Restorative...
Victoria Goodson, M.A.
Instructor
Victoria Goodson is the Coordinator for Student Conduct and Restorative Justice at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Oregon. She began her association with the...
Ashleigh Hala, MSW
Instructor
Ashleigh Hala is an IIRP Instructor and the Director for the Office of Wellbeing at Wake Forest University. She has experience in higher education, social work...
Trio! Harris
Instructor
Trio! is a consultant, coach, conflict mediator and instructor at the IIRP. They currently work with the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) as a Restorative Justice...
Peter Heineman, M.S.
Instructor
Peter Heineman has been an urban elementary, middle and high school educator for over 30 years. He currently works at Green Street Academy in West Baltimore...
Jennifer Hiestand
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Jennifer Hiestand is an Instructor and Implementation Coach with the International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP). Previously, Jennifer...
Whitney Howarth, Ph.D.
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Dr. Whitney Howarth is an Instructor and Implementation Coach with more than 20 years of experience in the field of education. She holds a...
Matthew Johnson, MPA
Instructor and Implementation Coach
Matthew Johnson is an Instructor and Implementation Coach with the IIRP. His passion is collaborating with schools to create restorative...
Lynne Lang, M.S.
Instructor
Lynne Lang has worked for over 30 years in public health, managing community coalitions, and developing school health and safety curriculum. In 2009, she developed...
Julie Malloy, M.P.A., M.R.P.Y.C.
Instructor
Julie Malloy has nearly 20 years of experience in management consulting and direct service. She has trained adults in restorative practices and strategy development in New...
Karen Salama McCain, MSW, LSW
Instructor
Karen Salama McCain is the founder of GoHively, which partners with schools to build out systems and practical interventions for school mental health, PBIS/MTSS-B...
Fabien McGill, M. Ed.
Instructor
Fabien McGill is currently an elementary school Assistant Principal, with a background as a middle school Mathematics teacher and athletic director. Fabien is invested in...
Stephanie Natera, MSW, LCSW
Instructor
Stephanie Natera has over 15 years of experience in various roles in mental health and education settings. As a licensed clinical social worker, school social worker and...
Suzanne Petersen, M.A.
Instructor
Suzanne has worked as a mental health counselor for over 30 years in a variety of settings, including schools, community mental health and inpatient behavioral health...
Eric Rainey, M.A
Instructor
Eric Rainey has over 25 years of experience in a variety of roles in the fields of education and childcare services, including graduation coach, classroom teacher...
Neil Ray, M.S.
Instructor
Neil Ray has served in communities and schools of the Greater Philadelphia Metropolitan Area for over 15 years in various capacities, including school social worker...
Gabriel Rodríguez
Instructor
Gabriel Rodríguez is an IIRP Instructor, has several years of experience within management roles, and is passionate about leadership, relationships, and...
Lee Rush, M.Ed.
Instructor
Lee draws on over 45 years of business experience in the fields of education, healthcare and non-profit management. During this time, he has served in a range of...
Dawn Schantz, M.S.
Instructor
Dawn Schantz has more than 30 years of experience in Pennsylvania’s juvenile justice system, from Juvenile Probation Officer to counselor with the IIRP model program...
Kate Shapero, M.S.
Instructor
Kate Shapero is a science teacher at The Miquon School, a private elementary school in Philadelphia. As a lifelong learner, Kate has been honing her restorative practices...
Jeannette Siemers
Instructor
Jeannette Siemers is cofounder and lead Restorative Practices Facilitator for Together in This, LLC and currently serves as an Assistant Principal at a...
Gina Sweet-Comrie, M.Ed.
Instructor
Gina Sweet-Comrie has dedicated more than 20 years to working with special education students residing in Philadelphia, PA and surrounding counties. She is certified...
LeTicia F. Taylor
Instructor
LeTicia F. Taylor has worked in education for 18 years. She was introduced to restorative practices in 2012 while assisting an initiative to implement restorative processes...
Trisha N. Tinsley, B.A.
Instructor
Trisha Tinsley has 20 years of experience in social services and community organizing. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Seattle University and...
Rodney Toulson, J.D.
Instructor
Rodney Toulson has extensive experience working and training in inner city schools. He is a former Director of Restorative Practices in Baltimore City Public Schools...
Melissa Ugarte, M.S.
Instructor
Melissa Ugarte has been an educator for over a decade, having held positions in counseling, behavior management and leadership. Ms. Ugarte founded The Educated Edge, LLC, a...
Deanna L. Webb, M.S.
Instructor
Deanna Webb has dedicated over 15 years to working as a special education teacher across grade levels in public and alternative schools and 10 years to training adult...
Jen Williams, M.S.
Instructor
Jen Williams is a Middle School Counselor in Pennsylvania and is a 2016 alumni of the IIRP Master of Science program. Her passion for restorative practices started...
Susan Willson, M.S.
Instructor
Susan Wilson has over 20 years of experience using a restorative lens in her work to promote individual voice and advocacy and support building community. She is the...
Kris Wraight, M.S.
Instructor
Kris Wraight taught Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and Teen Dating Violence Prevention to students in southeastern Connecticut for over a decade. Since attending...