Introduction to School Peacemaking Circles

1. Introduction to School Peacemaking Circles Lee Copenhagen, LCSW BARJ Project Trainer with the support of the Minnesota Department of Corrections and National Institute of Corrections

2. Overview of Circles (Pranis, 2005) • A Peacemaking circle is a way of bring people together in which: • Everyone is respected • Everyone gets a chance to talk w/o interruption • Everyone is equal • Spiritual and emotional aspects of individual experience are welcomed

3. Overview (cont.) • Peacemaking Circles are useful when two or more people: • need to make decisions together • have a disagreement • need to address an experience that resulted in harm to someone • want to work together as a team • wish to celebrate • wish to share difficulties • want to learn from each other

4. What Are School Peacemaking Circles? • A Process for bringing students/teachers/staff together as equals to talk about the offense • Provides an atmosphere of respect & concern for everyone • Face-to-face encounter to repair harm • Led by trained Circle Keepers • Participants decide Circle outcome

5. What are Circles? (cont.) • Voluntary for victim • Admission of responsibility by offender • Incident-based, behavior-based • Looks at underlying causes • Focuses on empowering participants • Comes to consensus agreement

6. Circles in Practice (Pranis , 2005) • Ceremony • Guidelines • Talking Piece • Facilitator or Keeper • Consensus Decision-Making

7. Old School Approach to Offenses: Questions asked: • What laws/rules were broken? • Who did it? • What punishment do they deserve?

8. New guiding questions • Who has been hurt? • What are their needs? • Whose obligations are they? • What are the causes? • Who has a ‘stake’ in this? • What is the appropriate process to involve the stakeholders to put things right? (Zehr, 2002).

9. Restorative discipline: • Recognizes the purpose of the misbehavior • Addresses the needs of those harmed • Works to put things right • Aims to improve the future • Seeks to heal • Uses the collaborative process Stutzman & Mullet, 2005).

10. Typical Stages of the Peacemaking Circle Process • Acceptance – • community & affected parties determine if circle is appropriate • Preparation - • separate circles for various interests are held • Gathering – • All parties brought together • Follow-up – • Regular communication and check-ins

11. VOM Peacemaking Circles KEEPER SUPPORTER COMMUNITY MEMBER VICTIM OFFENDER FAMILY MEMBER SUPPORTER POLICE OFFICER FAMILY MEMBER COMMUNITY MEMBER HUMAN SERVICES PROBATION OFFICER KEEPER

12. Where Circles Fit in Schools SUSPENSION CLASSROOM ROLEPLAYS, TEACH RJ SKILLS PRE- RETURN TO CLASS, PROGRAM Circle Opportunity ISS OR IMMEDIATELY EXPULSION RE-ENTRY TO DISTRICT

13. Applications for Schools • Managing classroom behavior • Handling school discipline • Repair teacher / student relationship after theft of Ipad • Repairing harms inflicted between students • Providing space to begin talking about long standing conflicts from middle school • Face to face talking in time of social networking & texting

14. New Applications for CA Schools • AB 1729 Chaptered September 12, 2012 • Amends Ed Code 48900 about bullying • Amends Ed Code 48900.5 adding specific alternatives to suspension, including: • Conferences • Referrals to counselor, psychologist, social worker CWA, and school support staff • Participation in a restorative justice program • Program for prosocial behavior or anger mgmt • A positive behavior approach with interventions

15. Crime is a wound. Justice should be healing.

16. Understanding the Participants Victim / Offender Mediation Circle Umbreit (2000)

17. Restorative Circles Addresses Shared Interests Offender Interests Victim Interests School Community Interests Victim/Offender/ School

18. Restorative Approach Questions (Zehr, 1990) • What is the harm? • What needs to be done to repair the harm? • Who is responsible for this repair?

19. Stakeholder Identification Questions • Who was harmed? • Who caused the harm? • Who else may have a stake in the process?

20. Understanding Victims: Four Major Impact Areas • Physical • Emotional • Psychological • Financial

21. Victims’ Physical Responses • Physical shock, disorientation, numbness • Physiological reaction to “fight or flight or freeze” instinct: • Adrenaline begins to pump • Body relieves itself of excess materials • Heart rate increases • Hyperventilation, sweating, etc • Heightened sensory perception • Exhaustion

22. TREAT WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT Needs of the Victim FOLLOW-UP REMAIN NON-JUDGMENTAL EMPOWER PROBLEMS & PLANS RETURN PHONE CALLS KEEP PROMISES PREDICT & PREPARE VENT & VALIDATE SAFETY & SECURITY

23. Helpful Responses • The problem is the problem • Support the victim • Reject stereotypes and myths • Appreciate natural and formal support systems • Actively collaborate • Examine your own attitudes, understanding and knowledge

24. Tolerate ambivalence, anger and roller coaster feelings Allow victim to work through his or her own problems Do offer support and information so victim can gain a sense of his or her own power Be willing to deal with complicated and difficult cases Be realistic in all aspects

25. Understanding Offenders: • What are your attitudes about adolescents & offenders? • Bazemore and Terry (1998) model suggests that the juvenile justice system has been dominated by two primary methods: • Rehabilitative • treatment models and approaches • Punitive • punish, control and contain

26. Restorative Goals To help the offender change: • What they think (content) • How they think (process) • How they behave (behavior)

27. Applying Restorative Theoryin Peacemaking Circles • Who are the offenders? • What might be the excuses they would use? • What should you be attentive to when preparing for the circle? • How might those who are related to the offender be affected?

28. School Community’s Role in Circles • Speak to how the community is affected • Hold the offender accountable • Support completion of agreements • Identify resources to contribute to agreements

29. School Community’s Role With Victims • Support them • Validate their experience • Hold offenders directly accountable

30. School Community’s Role With Offenders • Support them by looking at the behavior, not the individual • Help them understand how their behavior affects their community • Establish community norms • Provide a means for reintegration

31. School Community’s Role With Itself • Circle process builds community competency and problem solving - brings community together • School community members share the responsibility for dealing with school climate issues

32. Role of the Circle Keepers Minnesota Department of Corrections and National Institute of Corrections

33. Dynamics of Difference • White middle class (mainstream) culture has been imposed upon minorities • Used to judge intelligence, mental health, beauty, appropriate communication • Mainstream values applied to others draw mainstream conclusions

34. Cultural Competence . . . • Is the ability to work effectively with people whose culture is different from your own • Requires understanding your own biases • Requires understanding the differences of the people with whom you interact

35. Taking Care of Yourself As a Keeper: Being Centered enables you to focus through others’ pain, frustration, extreme feelings, and ability or inability to reach agreement

36. Roles of the Keepers • Create an atmosphere of respect and safety for all • Create a tone of hope and optimism for constructive solutions • Guide the process to remain true to underlying values • Articulate the progress and accomplishments of the circle as it proceeds • Clarify unresolved issues to focus the circle’s energy • Participate as a community member

37. Basic KeeperCommunication Skills • Eliminate distractions • Demonstrate active listening • Suspend judgement • Be empathetic • Try not to assume

38. Be aware and tolerant of differences in communication styles • Allow speakers to vent • Model and teach use of "I" statements • Be aware of your emotions and biases • Acknowledge the speaker's emotions as existing and legitimate

39. Body Language • Eye contact to all • Physically centered, sitting with body balanced, able to see everyone easily • Alert, but relaxed muscles • Use body and eye contact to direct speaker to talk to all

40. How to Give Feedback: Communication Checklist • The problem is the problem • Separate behavior from the person • Give suggestions of alternatives • Acknowledge skills well displayed • Be honest, but talk with the intention of helping to improve • Look to learn for yourself

41. Allowing Emotional Expression • Keep facial expressions neutral or supportive • Pass tissues to teary participants • Check in on all participants • Use silence: count 10 after a strong emotional expression • If participant expresses anger inappropriately, remind them of ground rules

42. Problematic Facilitation Techniques • Talking for participants • Interrupting • Low skilled communicators • Dominating participants’ discussion • Allowing participants to look at keeper and talk only to keeper

43. Co-Keeping • More difficult to coordinate scheduling • Increases safety • Allows hearing or seeing things one person would have missed • Helps facilitate difficult or complex sessions • Enables shared feedback, viewpoints

44. More thoughts of the Roles of the Keepers • Be compassionate, sincere, respectful • Listen! • Let people vent their emotions • Stay neutral (“equally partial”), while disapproving of harm done • Be a facilitator, not judge or negotiator • Do not be directive

45. Don’t counsel participants • Be aware of community resources • Model and teach communication skills • Be able to work independently • Be willing to keep records • Be able to do a very basic readiness check • Be willing to evaluate yourself and co-keeper

46. Stages of the Circle Process Circle Processes (Pranis, 2005)

47. Stage 1: Determining Suitability • Are key parties willing to participate? • Are trained facilitators available? • Will the situation allow the time required to use the Circle Process? • Can physical and emotional safety be maintained?

48. Stage 2 Preparation • Identify who needs to participate. Who has been impacted? Who has resources, skills, or knowledge that might be needed? • Familiarize parties with the process • Begin exploring the context of the issue

49. Stage 3: Convening all parties • Indentify shared values and develop guidelines • Engage storytelling to build relationships and connections • Share concerns and hopes • Express feelings • Probe underlying causes of conflict or harm • Generate ideas for addressing harm or resolving conflict • Determine areas of consensus for action • Develop agreement and clarify responsibilities

50. Stage 4: Follow-up • Assess progress on agreements. Are all parties fullfilling their obligations? • Probe for causes of any failure to fullfill n obligation, clarify responsibilites, and identify next steps if the failure continues • Adjust agreements as needed based on new information or developments • Celebrate successes