Restorative Practice

Background

JCPS began implementation of Restorative Practice (RP) in 2016, when the Jefferson County Board of Education (JCBE) approved an approximately $3,000,000 investment in training and supporting schools in the implementation of the Behavior Support Systems Model. In 2016-17, the focus of implementation was two-fold. First was the partnership between JCPS, the International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP), and the Midwest PBIS Network to create the model, which was an integration of RP and Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Second was the creation of a District Leadership Team, which consisted of representatives from Student Relations, the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Behavior Team, Exceptional Child Education (ECE), the state PBIS director, the assistant superintendent for Culture and Climate, and three school principals (elementary, middle, and high). Over the year, this team was trained by IIRP in Introduction to Restorative Practice, Introduction to Circles, Facilitating Restorative Conferences, Restorative Approaches to Adversity, Family Engagement, and Basic School Climate. The team also went through Training of Trainers (TOT) in Introduction to Restorative Practices, Introduction to Circles, Facilitating Restorative Conferences, and Basic School Climate. In the summer of 2017, ten JCPS schools were trained in Introduction to Restorative Practice and Circles. This two-day training was whole-school, meaning all staff (teachers, administrators, nutrition, housekeeping, classified, bus drivers) were a part of the training. These schools then began implementing RP 2017-18. With additional schools having trained in summer 2018, and 10 schools accepted into Cohort 2 and being trained in summer 2019, by the 2019-20 school year, a total of 30 schools will be implementing RP.

Program Evaluation and Data

Restorative Practices in JCPS Documents

  • JCPS worked with IIRP to create an Implementation Guide. This guide provides information to schools implementing RP on what the different elements look like in JCPS. In addition, it contains coaching documents that the IIRP staff and district resource teachers have used to coach teachers and staff in implementing RP.
  • The Behavior Support Systems Model Year-at-a-Glance document provides schools with a snapshot of important events and tasks they should be working on at any given point of the year.

Becoming a Restorative Practices School

JCPS is committed to wall-to-wall training and implementation of RP at the school level. This means that over the summer, all adults in the building spend two days receiving training: teachers, classified staff, nutrition, housekeeping, administration, and bus drivers. Each spring, schools can go through the application process to become an RP school. This involves communicating to stakeholders and School-Based Decision Making (SBDM) approval. Once accepted, schools spend the following school year strengthening their tier 1 behavior systems and training administration in RP. They then go through whole-school training the following summer. While all schools are encouraged to view discipline through a restorative lens, it is this schoolwide training and implementation of both proactive and reactive elements of RP that significantly impact a school's climate and culture.

Return to MTSS Behavior