Conducting Circles Virtually: Restorative Work in Uncertian Times

Two-Day In-Person Restorative Practices Professional Learning Sessions for CT School Leaders and Their Team Members

This comprehensive basic training in Restorative Practices is conducted over two full days and facilitated by Jo Ann Freiberg and Pat Ciccone, School Climate Consultants, LLC. This highly interactive in-person training opportunity provides the necessary information for establishing the conditions for developing and nurturing a culture based on high-quality relationships among all school community members and positive, trauma-free community building. This is accomplished by focusing away from rules broken and punitive consequences to a deliberate focus on harms done and providing appropriate restorative consequences; as well as establishing the systems that are necessary to form, transform, repair, and support strong relationships among all school community members (students and adults). Working restoratively is a social/relational rather than a behaviorist model. Embracing restorative practices is not a program but rather a way of thinking, being, and operating in the day-to-day. The training includes concrete and practical strategies for establishing the appropriate classroom and school-based routines as well as conducting circles and conferences in primary prevention as well as intervention contexts.

Two-Day In-Person Restorative Practices Professional Learning Sessions for CT School Leaders and Their Team Members

This comprehensive basic training in Restorative Practices is conducted over two full days and facilitated by Jo Ann Freiberg and Pat Ciccone, School Climate Consultants, LLC. This highly interactive in-person training opportunity provides the necessary information for establishing the conditions for developing and nurturing a culture based on high-quality relationships among all school community members and positive, trauma-free community building. This is accomplished by focusing away from rules broken and punitive consequences to a deliberate focus on harms done and providing appropriate restorative consequences; as well as establishing the systems that are necessary to form, transform, repair, and support strong relationships among all school community members (students and adults). Working restoratively is a social/relational rather than a behaviorist model. Embracing restorative practices is not a program but rather a way of thinking, being, and operating in the day-to-day. The training includes concrete and practical strategies for establishing the appropriate classroom and school-based routines as well as conducting circles and conferences in primary prevention as well as intervention contexts.

This one-day Restorative Practices training provides the necessary information for establishing the requisite conditions to develop and nurture a school culture based on high quality relationships among all school community members. The goal of creating a positive community that is trauma-free, is of paramount importance because as educators know, all learning is relational. This training maps pathways to achieving and sustaining such a culture with theory and strategies that shift the focus from rules broken and delivering punitive consequences (which are context blind), to focus on the harms done in the breaking of rules and providing appropriate restorative consequences, which are far more equitable and context dependent when holding people accountable. This training also introduces the systems that are necessary to support strong relationships among all school community members (students and adults) and repair them when harms have been done; necessary to holding people accountable for their actions. Attendees will learn that working restoratively is a social/relational rather than a behaviorist model. Embracing restorative practices is not a program but rather a way of thinking, being and operating in the day-to-day. The training helps educators understand why the new CT legislation (P.A. 23-167, pages 56 – 67) which encourages schools/districts to work restoratively is an appropriate and positive direction toward improving student chances for success academically and behaviorally and includes concrete and practical strategies for establishing appropriate classroom and school-based routines as well as conducting circles and conferences in primary prevention as well as intervention contexts.

  Restorative Practices 2-Day Training (in Person)

This two-day Basic training in Restorative Practices provides the necessary information for establishing the conditions for developing and nurturing a culture based on high quality relationships among all school community members and positive community building that is trauma-free. This is accomplished by focusing not on rules broken and punitive consequences but rather on the harms done and providing appropriate restorative consequences and the systems that are necessary to repair and support strong relationships among all school community members (students and adults). Working restoratively is a social/relational rather than a behaviorist model. Embracing restorative practices is not a program but rather a way of thinking, being and operating in the day-to-day. The training includes concrete and practical strategies for establishing the appropriate classroom and school-based routines as well as conducting circles and conferences in primary prevention as well as intervention contexts.

Restorative Conference Training

This one-day training in Restorative Conferencing is a "part 2” of Restorative Practices Basic Training. Restorative Practices Basic Training (two-day) is a required prerequisite to attending this one-day session. The training is singularly focused on the formal restorative conferencing process and components that includes the theoretical foundation, conference planning, conducting the conference and creating conference agreements. Participants will be given the necessary tools and practice to be able to conduct successful restorative conferences in school and community settings. This is a highly interactive day which includes information sharing, video and a significant amount of practice through role-playing to ensure that participants not only know when and how to conduct formal restorative conferences but also feel comfortable using the conferencing script and related materials as well as fully understanding the purposes and outcomes of engaging in the conferencing process.

Adverse Childhood Experiences - ACEs

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are the largest public health crisis to be identified in the past thirty years. Traumatic childhood experiences (toxic stress/trauma) impact a child's daily life in the home, in school and the community as they grow. These adversities (injuries) in childhood also impact adult health and wellbeing, often identified as PTSD. Even when children are too young to remember the events (neglect, physical/emotional/sexual abuse, abandonment, violence, etc.), the body never "forgets.” Childhood adversity affects a child's ability to learn and behave in productive ways by changing brain chemistry and architecture thus impacting their ability to learn and behave "normally” in schools and other settings. And, if not appropriately treated, these injuries impact life and health outcomes into adulthood. All too often, children who are experiencing trauma, neglect and abuse in their homes and communities are identified in schools as having "special needs,” such as ADHD, ODD or EDD when in fact what they are experiencing is actually trauma/toxic stress. These life circumstances cause diminished executive functioning abilities, learning difficulties, and/or misbehavior.

Educators, as well as all other adults, need to be keenly aware of this body of research and practical school- home- and community-based remedies in order to mitigate the impact of toxic stress (ACEs) on successful child cognitive and emotional development, including impulsivity, learning difficulties and misbehavior, not to mention diminished physical health outcomes in adulthood. In this workshop, the critically important information about this life- and practice-changing body of research, including ACEs and the ACEs Scale, will be introduced and the clear and present pathways to healing will be presented. 

Cultural Competence and Educational Equity

Children/people of color (and special needs) are disproportionately treated inequitably in American society, and what we may see in our society begins in our schools. In Schools students of color are disciplined, suspended and expelled at far greater rates than their Caucasian peers. In community settings and in judicial/correctional proceedings, this is also the case. In this session, educators, among others will be introduced to key aspects that are required to become culturally competent adults/educators who embrace and practice equity. This highly interactive workshop includes the exploration of how and why racism and discrimination are so difficult to eliminate ("White Fragility”), the difference between Equity and Equality, the various notions of School Climate, School Culture and the wider Community Culture. In order to map the territory to reach a destination of far more equitable treatment for all, different ideologies of Cultural Diversity will be shared, as will the relationship between Racism and Discrimination, anti-racist perspectives, the differences between Explicit and Implicit Bias and ultimately, how we can impact our classrooms, schools, workplaces and all community settings to become truly equitable places to work, learn and socialize led by culturally competent , anti-racist and non-discriminatory individuals who function in institutions free from racism and discrimination.

 For full descriptions for the following Workshops click the link below to our Workshops Description Page

• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)/Toxic Stress/Trauma
• Cultural Competence and Educational Equity
• Intellectual Safety Professional Development

 For full descriptions for the following Trainings click the link below to our Trainings Description Page

• Advanced School Climate
• Basic School Climate
• Restorative Practices