Interim Findings from a Study on the Implementation and Impact of Restorative Practices within a Multicomponent School Safety Approach

• In Event: Shifting from Punishment to Restorative Practices in Criminal Justice and Education Settings

Abstract

Restorative practices have become a widely used tool for improving school safety, representing a departure for many schools from punitive approaches such as school resource officers and security staff. Schools often do not replace these existing school safety frameworks wholesale, but rather incorporate restorative practices alongside other strategies, raising questions of whether and how these contradictory approaches can be implemented within the same schools and districts. We are conducting a participatory, mixed-methods evaluation of approaches to incorporating restorative practices into multicomponent school safety plans, focusing on the implementation and impact of restorative practices on outcomes related to school safety, student behavior, educational attainment, and student wellbeing. We will examine restorative policies and practices in two school districts—Montclair Public Schools in New Jersey and Columbus City Schools in Ohio—through descriptive and quasi-experimental analysis of administrative and survey data, interviews with school personnel, and surveys and focus groups with parents and students. In each district, we will be guided by a School Research Team consisting of staff and students. Our presentation will describe our study design, our participatory research process with the School Research Teams to date , and our findings from a review of the relevant research literature.

Authors

• Walter Campbell, Urban Institute

• Leigh Courtney, Urban Institute

• Russell Rowe, Urban Institute, Justice and Safety Division

• Jackson Overton-Clark, Urban Institute

• Sam Bachman, The Urban Institute

• Lyndsey DeLouya, Urban Institute