SOUTH WHIDBEY SCHOOL DISTRICT: Answers to questions about Restorative Justice (VIP)
Ed. Note: The South Whidbey School District held a board of directors retreat on Jan. 11, 2023. The agenda for the meeting indicated that the board would be receiving Restorative Justice Training, but provided no documentation or further information. We emailed Joe Greenheron, the director in position 1 at the district, a few questions about this training, and he graciously sent the following replies.
What are Restorative Justice Practices?
Restorative Justice Practices are part of our ongoing work to instill a culture of care in our schools, where our goal is that each student and staff member feels heard, seen, and cared for.
Restorative Justice Practices are a shift in priority from punishment-based approaches to school discipline. The philosophy of Restorative Justice is to solve problems before they escalate, by focusing on repairing the harm done. This often takes the form of a “restorative circle”, bringing together the “victim” and the “offender”, along with parents, bystander students, and educators. It puts problem-solving power in the hands of those most affected by the behavior, empowering students. These practices are used in addition to (as opposed to a replacement for) traditional disciplinary actions, which are still in use for more serious behavior issues.
Have you received any information on studies showing the effectiveness of Restorative Practices vs. other approaches to school discipline?
Restorative Justice is considered “promising” by Washington State’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. Preliminary evidence yielded positive results (such as reductions in suspensions, expulsions, and discipline referrals; reductions in law enforcement involvement; and improved social skills and school engagement) which helped justify the expenditure of funding for additional research. In qualitative measures, participant perceptions on Restorative Justice were overwhelmingly positive across a range of potential benefits.
The National Education Policy Center (NEPC) has studied Restorative Justice in Education and recommends its use based on positive results when properly implemented and supported.
Anecdotally, South Whidbey School district has seen these and other positive changes since we began implementing RJ practices about four years ago. Interestingly, there seems to be an increase in positive changes this year, as we rolled out a more intensive RJ training for staff over the summer and for students this school year with continuing touch-points and trainings to ensure comfort with the process and proper usage.
See: this link from the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) on Student Discipline Training and this document, “Behavior: Menu of Best Practices and Strategies 2019,” from OSPI (pg 62-73, Outcomes are on pg 68-69 … page numbers as indicated on the pages themselves).
Also this link to a paper from the National Education Policy Center, The Starts and Stumbles of Restorative Justice in Education: Where Do We Go from Here.
Is this methodology something you’d use with your own children (if you have any)?
While each board member has a different parenting style and a different situation in their household, board members recognize the value of Restorative Justice practices in parenting, particularly when it comes to explaining the “why” of a decision or situation to encourage empathy. Restorative Justice practices of creating authentic relationships and discussing the impacts of decisions rather than just assigning consequences is readily applicable in both parenting and teaching.
You can see the district’s policy on student discipline at the district’s website. The other school districts in Island County (Coupeville, Oak Harbor, and Stanwood-Camano) use substantially similar policies; all are versions of the policy recommendations published by the Washington State School Directors’ Association.
Director Greenheron was appointed in Feb. 2022, following the resignation of Damian Greene. His position will appear on the ballot this fall; the winner will serve the remainder of Greene’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2023, and the succeeding four-year full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2027.
