Restorative Justice Proposal

Lucas A. Miller

Wright State University

 Restorative Justice Proposal

Restorative Justice can be used in student conduct in colleges and universities as an alternative
to the traditional punitive sanctioning model. Restorative Justice as a conduct tool provides students the
opportunity to understand their actions and claim responsibility for correcting their actions as well as
repairing potential damage to the campus community. Student Affairs Professionals are tasked with
educating students and developing them into educated leaders, but traditional punitive sanctioning
processes continue to instill in students the idea that the best way to deal with problematic people is to
punish the offender. The goal of restorative justice is to educate about the impact of actions and inform
students how to approach the consequences of their actions with the goal of repairing damage and
discontinue the behavior.

Restorative justice is a process in which a student who has violated the student code of conduct
is provided the opportunity to learn about the impacts their choices have on the community. The
restorative justice option for students allows students the opportunity to educate themselves and their
community about consequences of the chosen actions. This process would hold students accountable
for their actions and provide the opportunity for those impacted by situations to share how they were
impacted and create a culture of belonging and caring. Community Standards and Student Conduct is
relied upon for setting standards and correcting behavior.

Two universities in the region are known for their policies and procedures involving restorative
justice: Kent State University, and University of Michigan.

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan defines restorative justice as a response to a violation that focuses on
restoring the harms caused to those who are impacted by the infraction, holding respondents
accountable for the harm they have caused, and building peace within communities.

The University of Michigan has two options other than the traditional conduct conference as
options for addressing violations of the code of conduct or conflicts. The first of these options has the
ability to reduce the time required for some violations of the Student Code of Conduct which would
allow for more time to be spent administering the restorative justice process in the Adaptable Conflict
Resolution (ACR) section.

A. Acceptance of Responsibility and Entering into an Agreement

If the respondent is in general agreement with the allegations in the complaint, and is in general
agreement with the complainant and/or community (as represented by the Resolution
Coordinator (RC)) about how to resolve the conflict and restore the community, the respondent
has the option of entering into an agreement. In resolution by agreement the respondent
accepts responsibility for the alleged violation(s) of the Statement and agrees to fulfill
sanctions/interventions that are developed with the input of the respondent, the complainant,
and the RC. The respondent has the right to discuss potential sanctions/interventions before
entering into an agreement. Once an agreement has been reached, it may not be appealed. The
respondent also has the option of entering into an agreement by accepting responsibility for the
alleged violations of the Statement and requesting a hearing on the sanctions/interventions
under the procedures outlined in VI.2.C. Hearing.
B. Adaptable Conflict Resolution (including Mediation)

Informal and Adaptable Conflict Resolution (ACR) processes such as mediation, facilitated
dialogue, and restorative justice circles allow individuals involved in a conflict to have significant
influence over the resolution process and complete control of any outcome.

If (1) all persons personally and directly affected by the conflict agree to attempt resolution
through one of these processes, and (2) the RC believes that the process is an appropriate form
of resolution, then the RC will make arrangements for the chosen ACR pathway. The nature of
some conflicts, especially those involving violence, may render ACR inappropriate.

Participation in an ACR process is voluntary and may or may not result in an agreement or
resolution. When a mutually satisfactory resolution is reached by the parties, the case is resolved
and parties are encouraged to use the RC as a resource for future questions. Resolutions reached
through ACR may not be appealed.

If resolution is not achieved through an attempt at ACR and the matter involves a pending
Statement violation, the respondent has the choice of accepting responsibility and entering into
an agreement, or proceeding to a hearing.

Michigans use of restorative justice practices started with Jennifer Meyer Schrage, who is the author of
one the books in the reference list. (Dr. Dickstein owns the book)

Kent State University

Kent State University defines Alternative Conflict Resolution (ACR) as an informal option for
seeking redress with an issue(s).

Kent State University use ACR as an option alongside the traditional hearings and panels used to
determine responsibility in conduct situations. The system at Kent State is provided when all parties
involved in the situation agree to attempt the process, but only to the point where a conduct employee
decides the situation should not be resolved using ACR.

SECTION 12: ALTERNATIVE CONFLICT RESOLUTION

A. Alternative conflict resolution (ACR) is an informal option for seeking redress with an issue(s).
This may be available for issues pertaining to students or student organizations. If all persons or
student organizations personally and directly affected by the conflict agree to attempt resolution
through an alternative process (such as mediation, facilitated dialogue, etc.) AND the director of
student conduct (or designee) has not already assigned the formal student conduct process, than
an ACR process may be available. The nature of some conflicts, especially those involving
violence, are not be appropriate or permitted to be reviewed through ACR options.

B. Participation in an ACR process must be voluntary and may or may not result in an agreement
or resolution. When a mutually satisfactory resolution is reached, the situation is considered
resolved with no disciplinary record being maintained. Resolutions reached through ACR may not
be appealed. If a resolution is not achieved through an attempt at ACR and the matter involves a
potential violation of university policy, a complainant may initiate the formal disciplinary process
 from the University policy regarding administration of student conduct (4-02) and Section 4 of
this Code.

Wright State University Community Standards and Student Conduct would use a process similar to the
two described for first offense conduct situations where applicable. Some of the conduct situations, and
impact questions for each, where restorative justice could be used include:

First Time Alcohol- Laws prohibiting underage drinking. Impact alcohol has on the mind and
body. Impact on future goals and opportunities if legal action was taken.

Roommate & Suitemate Disagreements- After attempting to resolve the conflict with the help of
residence hall or apartment staff using mediation techniques. How does the disagreement affect
the relationship? How can each party make changes to assist relieving the conflict?

Quiet Hours- How does this impact the ability of the community to function as an institution of
higher education (study, sleep, learn). Who studies or sleeps in your community at the time you
are disturbing the community? Where could you go instead? What could you do instead?

Damage to Property- What resources (money, time, decoration, paint, etc.) will be needed in
order to repair or replace what was damaged? Work with staff to understand purpose of
damaged property (rec. space, study space, etc.). Work with facilities to understand repair time
and costs, or with building staff to understand time and effort which went toward damaged
property.

Cleanliness of Space- What does not cleaning attract to your space and the spaces around you?
What can be changed to keep spaces cleaner? Work with facilities to understand with types of
infestation which could occur as a result of dirty spaces or inappropriate disposal of waste.

Candles- What could happen if your candle fell or spread the fire to papers on the table or desk?
Work with local fire department to better understand spread of fire in a campus building. Work
with facilities to understand cost of building and repairing even small damage caused by fire.

Gambling- What is the state law? Work with CWS to understand the effects of gambling, and
why gambling is restricted to individuals over the age of 21?

The basic questions asked in a restorative justice model are: What happened? Who was affected? and
What are we going to do to make thing right? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcLuVeHlrSs

To create buy-in from the campus community, CSSC can exclude situations in which restorative
justice is used in the resolution process from the students official conduct record. Instead of the
incident being a documented first offense, it would appear in advocate as Closed- Resolved through
Restorative Justice. If a student comes back to the office for the same type of policy violation the
restorative justice option would not be available to the student. The student would then complete the
conduct process through the traditional Conduct Conference and sanctioning process.

Training Needs

Wright State University can ask institutions in the region for assistance with training staff on
restorative justice processes. Todd Kamenash, Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Student
Conduct at Kent State University, provided information about the program on the Kent Campus, and
would be an excellent source of information about the process. Mr. Kamenash explained that they have
seen lower recidivism rates for issues addressed using their ACR process. The office still sees the same
type of issues each year, but from different students. The University of Michigans restorative justice
program is also relatively close and would be an excellent reference for training on the process. Process
training videos could be created using students involved in student affairs functional areas. Creating
videos would allow for students and staff to learn more about the process while enabling future staff
members to learn from the videos. Conduct staff should attend training days at Michigan and Kent
during the summer months. Training during the summer would allow staff members to potentially stay
on the campus they are visiting which would save money on overnight accommodations. The conduct
staff members would provide training to conduct officers in other offices during their standard training.
Staff members outside the traditional conduct officers could receive training in restorative justice as
well. Training other individuals would provide the opportunity for offices to address conflicts in their
office in the same manner as the conduct office would.

The campus community could be notified through general education course, and first year
seminars. Students need to know this information coming into the university. Orientation would be a
great place for the information, but there is so much information and not much during orientation that
this would get lost in the shuffle and students would remember until they were already in trouble. UVC
classes are probably the best solution because it provides an audience of most of the incoming class and
normally conduct is discussed at some point during the course.

Wright State already participates in sanctioning along these lines with the educational sanctions,
but a more formal way to do this with a positive incentive for the responsible student may have a
stronger impact on students who participate in the conduct process. If we are teaching our staff to
report everything and not give any warnings, then I believe there should be a system in place for
warnings to informative conversations within the community. Our purpose is to educate students.
Allowing students to educate each other has a positive impact on the community!
References for restorative justice:

Books & Articles:

Clark, K. L. (2014). A Call for Restorative Justice in Higher Education Judicial Affairs. College Student
Journal, 48(4), 707-715.

Evans, K. R., Lester, J. N., & Anfara Jr., V. A. (2013). Restorative justice in education: What we know so
far. Middle School Journal, 44(5), 57-63.

Knott, K. (2016, October 28). At U. of Michigan, a Model Approach to Restorative Justice. Chronicle of
Higher Education. pp. A15-A16.

Lipka, S. (2009, April 17). With 'Restorative Justice,' Colleges Strive to Educate Student
Offenders. Chronicle of Higher Education. pp. A26-A28.

Pedreal, M. B. (2014). Restorative Justice Programs in Higher Education. Vermont Connection, 3537-46.

Schrage, J. M., & Giacomini, N. G. (2009). Reframing campus conflict: student conduct practice through a
social justice lens. Sterling, Va.: Stylus, 2009.

Zehr, H. (2002). Little Book of Restorative Justice. Little Book Of Restorative Justice.

Videos:

The potential impact restorative justice can have in the lives of those involved in the process.
Restorative Practices to Resolve Conflict/Build Relationships: Katy Hutchison at TEDxWestVancouverED
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcLuVeHlrSs

Restorative justice in secondary education.

Repairing our schools through restorative justice: Jean Klasovsky at TEDxWellsStreetED
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqktOiYG5NM

Basic idea of what is restorative justice.

Moving on - a short film about restorative justice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWtFtWY3Hh8

Actor portrayal of a restorative justice process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BUgyDVNbTI

Universities:

University of Michigan- Office of Student Conflict Resolution

https://oscr.umich.edu/

Kent State University- Office of Student Conduct

http://www.kent.edu/studentconduct