LaToya Fernandez

LaToya Fernandez is a restorative justice practitioner, peacebuilder, author and educator with over 15 years of experience advancing equity, healing, and community transformation. She is a consultant for the Connecticut School-Based Diversion Initiative (SBDI) and the founder of Beyond Circles, a restorative practices hub dedicated to training, dialogue, and healing-centered engagement.

A national leader in restorative justice and a Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, LaToya has facilitated dialogue, training, and systems-level change across K–12 schools, higher education, and communities throughout the United States. Her work centers on decolonizing restorative justice by integrating African ancestral traditions, somatic healing, and collective accountability.

As the creator of the Sankofa Reconciliation Circle model, LaToya brings a culturally rooted and embodied approach to healing and reconciliation, supporting individuals and institutions in building psychologically safe spaces grounded in empathy, belonging, and transformation. She is deeply committed to bridging systems and communities and advancing restorative justice as a pathway to liberation.

Aundrea Smiley, PhD

Aundrea Smiley, PhD, is a career educator and educational consultant with over 18 years of service in the field, as well as an RJ practitioner. She is a graduate of the Peacebuilding program at EMU, holding a graduate level certificate in RJE, and successfully completed her PhD from Liberty University, where her dissertation research was focused on RJE at the elementary level. Aundrea has previously served as a classroom teacher/building level reading coach as well as the Literacy Coach serving a Virginia school district in grades K-12.  She is a published author and education/beauty consultant. Currently, she is an assistant professor of Teacher Education/ RJE here in the Teacher Education Program at EMU. Aundrea enjoys spending time with friends, family, and loved ones as well as serving the community in various capacities.

Kendra Jones Carter

Kendra Jones Carter is the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Waynesboro Public Schools in Waynesboro, VA.  Kendra grew up in Staunton, VA and completed a Bachelor of Science in Education, Master of Teaching and Administration certification at the University of Virginia. During her time as Director, she has coordinated and/or provided positive coaching and professional development, advocated for equity programs that support marginalized students and is helping in developing a culture of culturally responsiveness within Waynesboro Public Schools.

Anita Wadhwa

Anita Wadhwa is a native Houstonian and daughter of Punjabi immigrants. She is Executive Director of Restorative Houston, and a former classroom teacher and restorative justice coordinator. She is author of Restorative Justice in Urban Schools: Disrupting the School to Prison Pipeline, co-author of The Little Book of Youth Engagement in Restorative Justice. and a contributor to Colorizing Restorative Justice. She hires and consults with former students to train in restorative practices. She owes everything to her parents, husband, and two lovely girls. She lives in Houston, Texas. 

Heather Bligh Manchester

Heather Bligh Manchester is an educator, trainer, and connector who integrates theater and movement into RJ and leadership programs in both rural and urban settings, including Oakland School District. She partners with youth and adults to foster meaningful engagement and build equitable, resilient communities. Through Creative Change Collaborative, she facilitates trainings on leadership, youth engagement, applied theater, and RJ, and coaches organizations to partner with young people as trainers, researchers, funders, and policymakers. She is a co-author of The Little Book of Youth Engagement in Restorative Justice. She lives in Oakland, California.

MJ Godinez

MJ Godinez is a first-generation, recent graduate of University of Houston.  She believes all students should have the resources to excel academically and beyond. This belief drives her to raise awareness about the inequities faced by undocumented and first-generation students. Maria advocates for addressing these disparities through community-led processes and restorative justice. Through mentorship, she fosters conversations to tackle students' daily challenges. She is passionate about empowering students from similar backgrounds to understand their identities and advocate for themselves in educational settings.

Evelin Aquino

Evelín Aquino is a cultural strategist/facilitator/coach with over 30 years experience of being a learner in Circle with elders, peers, youth and community. Committed to liberation and harmony, her work is grounded in love and sustaining healthy relationships with one another. She is a board member of The Encampment for Citizenship and was a longtime  Community’s Advisory Board Member of Pa’lante - Transformative Justice. She is a co-author of The Little Book of Youth Engagement in Restorative Justice. Evelín is a Boricua/Dominicana, first generation graduate of UMASS Amherst.

Alyssa Brennan

Alyssa Brennan (she/her) joins us from Conception Bay South, Newfoundland and Labrador, in the free and sovereign nation of Canada. Alyssa graduated from Memorial University NL with undergraduate degrees in Physical Education, Intermediate Secondary Education and Special Education and a graduate degree in Education focused on Social Justice and Restorative Justice. She currently teaches at Holy Trinity High in Torbay, NL where she is athletic director, lead of the school’s restorative justice team, social justice action committee and Game Changers group, Daily Physical Activity Champion, and head coach of the girls 17 U volleyball program. She is a mother of four beautiful children and deeply involved in her community. 

Eboni Rucker

Eboni Rucker is an educator who has been working in the field of Education for the last 17 years. She has worked in various capacities in the realm of education from private specialized centers for autism in Chicago, Illinois and Cincinnati, Ohio to public middle and high schools in the Chicagoland area. She attended Lincoln College, Eastern Illinois University, University of Phoenix and Governors State University. Eboni has a vigorous background in education, training in Applied Behavior Analysis, Social and Emotional Learning and Restorative Justice.

With a passion for supporting at-risk students, she has spent the last 8 years as a Restorative Justice Practitioner & SEL Coordinator for a high school in the Chicagoland area.  Restorative Rucker assisted in the creation of a school wide model that replaced in school suspension model with a period by period model that is exclusively based upon the practices of RJE.  She is a member of the Chicago City Wide Restorative Justice Committee and PEACE S2 – People Engaged in Advancement of Community Enrichment in the South Suburbs.

Restorative Rucker is also an educational consultant for Mindful Practices, where she works to assist all educators from special education classroom assistants to superintendents and school boards across the United State earn a CASEL approved certification in Social and Emotional Learning.

Eboni is also a proud member of the National Education Association (NEA) and Illinois Education Association (IEA) where she has been an elected delegate of the NEA and IEA Representative Assembly 2020-2023. She has attended the NEAs Conference on Racial and Social Justice, presented at the 2023 Educational Support Professionals Conference, The 1st National Conference on Restorative Justices in Education in Brazil and the 2024 NEA Leadership Summit. 

In her spare time, she enjoys reading, traveling, watching sports, volunteering and spending time with her family who all are huge football fans.

Martha Brown

Martha Brown resides in Faribault, MN and is president of RJAE Consulting and author of Creating Restorative Schools: Setting Schools Up to Succeed, available at Living Justice Press. Dr. Brown received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Florida Atlantic University. Her dissertation focused on restorative justice in two Oakland middle schools.  For the past three years, Dr. Brown has taught a course in Circle Processes at Eastern Mennonite University’s Summer Peacebuilding Institute. This summer, she joins the Graduate Teacher Education program at EMU as an adjunct professor, teaching Circle Processes there as well.  In 2021, she facilitated an eight-week online Circle training course for faculty and staff at James Madison University Libraries.

At RJAE Consulting, Martha assists schools, school districts, non-profit, cultural, community-based, educational, and correctional organizations with program design, readiness assessments, strategic planning, student assessments, monitoring implementation, and defining and measuring program outcomes.

Charlene Allen

Charlene Allen is a writer and activist who works with community organizations to heal trauma and fight injustice, especially the beast called mass incarceration. She has been a restorative and healing justice practitioner for over a decade and advocates for policy changes to expand the use of community-based restorative practices. With Purvi Shah, she co-facilitates the NYC Collaborative for Restoring Healing and Transforming Communities, which addresses intimate partner violence through community-centered restorative and healing approaches.

As a writer, Charlene’s debut novel, Play the Game, (HarperCollins, 2023), explores and advances restorative and healing justice practices. Angela Y. Davis says of Play the Game: “Fast-paced, insightful, and highly relevant, Allen’s novel illustrates the application of restorative justice practices to real life situations. A must read for all young people impacted by racism and those adults who love them.” Charlene’s new book,  My Fairy God Somebody, (HarperCollins, 2024), is a junior library guild gold standard book, and a 2025 one-book Baltimore city-wide selection. Visit Charlene at www.charleneallen.com

Purvi Shah

Purvi Shah Purvi Shah creates art and furthers anti-violence advocacy towards healing and transformation. With Charlene Allen, she currently co-facilitates the NYC Collaborative for Restoring Healing and Transforming Communities to address intimate violence with community-centered approaches. Purvi led first-hand stakeholder research and systems change facilitation toward authoring the report, Seeding Generations: New Strategies Towards Services for People who Abuse, which prompted a NYC community-based initiative addressing intimate violence.

Purvi served as Executive Director of Sakhi for South Asian Women and won a SONY South Asian Social Services Award for her community leadership against violence. Her expertise has been featured in The New York Times, New York Newsday, and on CNN, WABC in NYC, The Brian Lehrer Show at WNYC, New Delhi TV, and TV Asia. 

Purvi has led creative expression workshops with survivors. Her most recent poetry book, Miracle Marks, explores gender violence and sacred survivals. Purvi’s prize-winning debut, Terrain Tracks, plumbs migration and belonging. With artist Anjali Deshmukh, she creates interactive art at https://circlefor.com/.

Purvi relishes sparkly eyeshadow, raucous laughter, and seeking justice.

Iman Shabazz

Specialist and Subject Matter Expert
Lead Presenter

Patricia "Patty" Glasco

Director of People and Culture
Co-Presenter

Steve Korr

Director of Akoben, LLC
Co-Presenter

Dara Feldman

Dara Feldman has been an educator for four decades and walks the path of social justice with passion and commitment to the well-being of all people. As co-founder and CEO (Chief Enthusiast Officer) of Virtues Matter, she serves as a Virtues Project Master Facilitator, honored to share in the collective journey of personal, professional, and community transformation. Dara’s holistic approach is grounded in virtues-based strategies and the integration of Restorative Justice, Healing-Centered Engagement, Mindfulness, Social-Emotional Learning, Applied Neuroscience, and Culturally Respectful Practices. A Baha’i, her work honors the power of community and the oneness of humanity. Dara is the author of “The Heart of Education: Bringing Joy, Meaning, and Purpose Back to Teaching and Learning”.  She has been recognized for her contributions as an Apple Distinguished Educator, Disney's Outstanding Elementary Teacher of the Year, and Maryland’s Mother of the Year. She is deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve alongside her husband, Dave, and their children, Dani and Jake, who are also committed restorative educators.

Dr. Katie Mansfield

Dr. Katie Mansfield is a facilitator of participatory learning about trauma sensitivity, resilience, and creative approaches to peacebuilding. She has spent more than twenty years focused on peace and justice education in varied contexts, including as a collaborative trainer, researcher, writer, curriculum designer and teacher of healing-centered movement modalities. Her doctoral work in expressive arts and conflict transformation was anchored at EGS in Switzerland. Katie’s thesis was entitled “Re-friending the Body: Expressive Arts-based, Embodied Learning for Building Resilience.” Dancing and meditation are her daily medicines, including with the online Dancing Resilience community she and others established in 2020. She completed an MA in Peace Studies at Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute and her AB in History at Harvard-Radcliffe. She also spent eight years on a rather different career path working for Goldman Sachs in New York and London (1996-2004). She is originally from a New York suburb and is currently based in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

Hyojin Chang

Hyojin Chang, MA, is a teacher, facilitator, and researcher with a focus on peace education, restorative justice, and trauma awareness in peacebuilding. Before moving to the U.S., she worked with educators across South Korea, introducing restorative justice practices and leading circle processes in schools nationwide. Hyojin studied Conflict Transformation at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) and now teaches STAR at EMU.

Dr. Tonya Walls

Dr. Tonya Walls is an independent scholar and K-16+ educator who is equally passionate about teaching, service, and scholarship. Dr. Walls currently serves as Founding Visionary and Executive Director for Code Switch: Restorative Justice for Girls of Color where her work focuses on amplifying the voices and experiences of Black students, families, and communities, and dismantling systems of oppression rooted in race and racism. Her research interests include culturally relevant pedagogy, the school-to-prison pipeline, Black teacher counter spaces, racial justice for Black girls and women, and social justice leadership.

Naika Belizaire

Naika Belizaire is currently studying Political Science & Community Development as an undergraduate student at Howard University in Washington, DC. Raised in the West Side of Las Vegas, they graduated from Advanced Technologies Academy. Within Code Switch, they serve as the Co-Executive Director and are a member of the Youth Advisory Board. They stan for Black Girls and gender expansive youth because they are revolutionary and deserve to be protected, supported, and loved. Through their work with Code Switch, they hope to create a community and space that loves on our youth, uplifts our youth, and provides our youth with the resources, mentorship, and tools needed to tap into their fullest potential and achieve their revolutionary dreams.

Anaya Amara Wilson

Anaya Amara Wilson is currently a sophomore attending Howard University studying Elementary Education. She graduated from Monterey Trail High School in Elk Grove, California. In Code Switch, she is a Youth Justice Fellow and a part of the Youth Advisory Board. Her proudest accomplishment is moving across the country to pursue higher education. She stan for Black girls and gender expansive youth because they deserve to be valued like any of their peers. In her work with Code Switch, she hopes to make everyone she comes into contact with feel like they are valued.

G’Yanna Perry

G’Yanna Perry is a recent graduate of Advanced Technologies Academy High School where she double majored in Biomedical Engineering and Engineering. She is planning to attend Howard University where she will pursue studies in Biomedical Engineering. She has great passion for advocacy primarily for girls of color and various gender-expansive youth! When not advocating on behalf of the voiceless, she enjoys reading  all forms of literature, art and music. Her favorite book is Not Without Laughter by Langston Hughes!

Layla Juniel

Layla Juniel is a recent graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno where they studied Veterinary Science and Biochemistry. They are most proud of graduating with their second collegiate degree at the young age of 19. They stan for Black youth and gender expansive individuals because they want to provide the kind of opportunities and experiences they wish they had earlier growing up, and because they want to pour back into their community because they know they wouldn’t be where they are without them. Layla's freedom dream is to spread more of Code Switch’s work and mission across many communities and bring restorative justice to many other Black girls and gender expansive youth.

Heather Batchelor

Heather Batchelor, EdD Dr. is a veteran classroom teacher and practitioner of restorative justice at the P-K, higher education and community levels.  She currently works with pre-service teachers at Thomas College in Waterville, Maine, but has worked with schools across the country to support new teachers in creating caring, welcoming communities that engage in active conflict resolution. 

Dr. Virginia Dearani

Dr. Virginia Dearani is the Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education at Thomas College in Waterville, ME. She has her Doctorate in Literacy/Curriculum Design at University of Maine, Orono.  As a multi-dimensional woman, she has learned to navigate the world of teaching and learning with a perspective of pluralism, honoring the “both/and” in all her relations. Throughout the past 25+ years, Virginia has centered her life’s work in the areas of Whole Teacher/Whole Child; Intercultural Pedagogy; and Peace Education for children 3 years through adulthood.  She defines her teaching and learning approach as Embodied Radical Love Education and is an Interdisciplinary Curriculum Designer for Early Childhood through 8th grade classrooms.  She emphasizes the joy of partnering with children and youth to create communities of belonging, needed in our world today. She resides in Auburn, ME where she commits to playing daily with her two young boys, husband, and golden retriever. 

Dr. Robin McNair

Dr. Robin Lynette McNair, is an educator of 32 years and racial and social justice advocate, whose service and work to her community encompasses social justice, restorative justice in education, and peacemaking circles with the ultimate aim of creating communities of peace, particularly for minorities and the marginalized. A resident of Prince George’s County, Maryland, McNair’s work has been featured in NEA Today, MSEA Actionline, and TESOL. Other contributions include TEDx Gaithersburg, contribution to the book “Creating Classrooms of Peace in English Language Teaching,” for Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, During her tenure as a restorative educator, Dr. McNair established The Restorative Classroom, LLC, later to be changed to CenterPEACE, in order to provide training, consultation, and coaching to outside school districts and other organizations..

Armand King

Armand King, 43, is a transformative leader who draws on his lived experience with gangs, incarceration, and Urban Domestic Human Sex Trafficking to create impactful solutions and inspire change. Growing up in underserved communities in San Diego, California, he turned his challenges into a mission to guide others away from the streets and toward pathways of healing, growth, and opportunity.

As the author of multiple books and the creator of innovative curriculums, Armand has become a sought-after speaker and trainer for community-based organizations worldwide. He educates on human trafficking, gang awareness, prevention, and intervention, equipping communities with tools to address systemic challenges and support survivors.

With over 20 years of firsthand experience in Urban Domestic Human Sex Trafficking and gang involvement, Armand has developed groundbreaking programs for survivors, justice-impacted individuals, and at-risk youth. He has consulted with organizations globally and served on numerous boards addressing trafficking and victim advocacy.

Armand’s expertise extends to policy and systemic reform. He has helped allocate over $200 million to reentry programs through his service on California’s reentry grant committees. As a federal and state court expert, he has dedicated over 1,000 hours to providing insights on cases involving gangs, trafficking, and racial justice.

Through his writing, training, and leadership, Armand King empowers individuals and organizations to foster change. His unwavering commitment to breaking cycles of trauma and creating generational opportunities continues to inspire communities worldwide.

Jenny Finn

Jenny Finn has designed structures that foster vitality in people, communities, and organizations for nearly 30 years. She holds a Ph.D. in Sustainability Education and co-founded Springhouse– an intergenerational vitality-centered learning community in Southwest Virginia. Springhouse is inspired by a vision to live in a world where all life thrives. Our mission is to fundamentally transform the purpose and practice of education.

Jenny's work is personal to her and is informed by a deep call that she heard in her early 20s. Her research, mentoring, and teaching invites people to deepen the relationship they have with themselves in order to serve the world with greater clarity and compassion. Dr. Finn's work has taken many forms including non-profit leadership, trauma and hospice care, chaplaincy, clinical private practice, community building through the expressive arts, cultural design strategy, and education. With a dedicated and inspiring community, Jenny articulated Sourced Design– principles that take care of life in a person, community, and place. These principles are practiced at Springhouse and shared globally with those who wish to start vitality-centered learning communities in their places. She also articulated an educational approach called Sourced Education, with her colleague Sarah Stabler, that outlines a curriculum for cultural renewal.

Jenny lives in the middle of the mountains with her husband Andy and many furry friends, and is the grateful mother of Andrew and Lizzie.

Gigi Austin

Gigi Austin was raised an Appalachian Mountain girl and spent much of her childhood hunting, fishing, and farming in Southwest Virginia. Her dad instilled in her a deep love for Nature and its conservation. Her mother taught her social graces and grit. Gigi left her home after college and spent the next twenty years developing her career as a language instructor and facilitator of conscious travel communities. Some of the most treasured experiences she accrued during her seven years of wanderings include: walking the full Camino de Santiago,  living in a tent on the Uruguayan coast, raising baby goats on a ranch in Texas, couchsurfing the south of South America, leading people-to-people exchange programs in Cuba, leading 70-day Gap Year programs in Latin America, teaching yoga at a silent retreat center in the mountains of Guatemala, and evidencing her belief that most humans are kindhearted. Of the 24 countries where Spanish is an official language, Gigi has experienced 20 firsthand. She has recently returned to the ‘hollers and hills of the Virginia that raised her and looks forward to contributing to a cultural renovation of the area. Gigi will serve as the Language Immersion Director beginning in the summer of 2024.

Dr. Ariana Brazier

Ariana Denise Brazier, Ph.D. is a Black queer feminist and smiley sad mom-girl. She is a play-driven community-organizer and educator who is motivated to raise a joyous, free Black child. Ari received her doctoral degree in English, Critical & Cultural Studies from the University of Pittsburgh in April 2021. Ari has been described by the people she loves as southern, explosive, abstract, intricate, and awkward. As a researcher, Ari’s work is centered on Black children and families living in poverty in the southeast United States. She documents how Black child play functions as a grassroots method of community-based storytelling, teaching, and organizing. Motherhood continues to be a kaleidoscopic experience. All the while, her son, Remix, is the most evolutionary joy she has ever known. Ari is the founder, CEO & President of the 501c3 nonprofit ATL Parent Like A Boss, Inc. (Parent LAB). Parent LAB's mission is to enhance generational literacies through PLAY in underserved African American communities.

Sheba Gittens

Sheba Gittens is an anti-racist heArtivist, art educator, and creative consultant based in this iteration of the world. She is a trained Wellness Practitioner, Anti-Racist Raja Yoga Instructor, and Joy Facilitator. As a creative consultant she has supported numerous organizations and businesses nationally and internationally in manifesting events, programs, and workshops grounded in equity for humanity and that honor intersectionality. As an integrative multimedia heArtivist, she uses mixed media to educate and expand the consciousness of those she serves and currently works with the Ujamaa Collective, Balafon West African Dance Ensemble, and YogaRoots On Location. 

Dr. Amanda Gross

Dr. Amanda K. Gross is an artist, intersectional anti-racist organizer, and a weaver of people, ideas, and threads and creative director of Mistress Syndrome, LLC. Amanda has a PhD in Expressive Arts from the European Graduate School and an MA in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. She is certified at the 200 hour RYT level by YogaRoots On Location’s Anti-Racist Raja Yoga School. Her first full length book, White Women, Get Ready: How Healing Post-Traumatic Mistress Syndrome Leads to Anti-Racist Change was published in July 2024. She has a chapter in Resistance: Confronting Violence, Power and Abuse within Peace Churches and one in the forthcoming book, Bodies and Beliefs: Purity Culture and the Rhetoric of Religious Trauma.

Kimiko Lighty

Kimiko Lighty is the founding Executive Director and current Strategic Advisor to Restorative Arlington. An innovator in new techniques for peace building and conflict resolution, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a Master of Interdisciplinary Studies in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University. Kimiko holds certificates in Restorative Justice Facilitation, Peace Circle Keeping, Organizational Development and Conflict Resolution, and Mediation. During her time as ED, Kimiko led the design and implementation of RA’s Heart of Safety Restorative Justice Conferencing Program, an RJ diversion program serving Arlington County’s legal system, schools, and the community. As a Restorative Justice practitioner, Kimiko strives to embody Ubuntu, the profound interconnectedness that calls on us to cultivate empathy, mutual concern, and grace. Kimiko is proficient in French and familiar with basic Arabic. She is a practitioner of Nonviolent communication and original hot yoga, an avid knitter, and a native plant enthusiast.

Yazid Jackson

Yazid Jackson is an expert in leading change and implementing restorative justice (RJ) practices in schools. He brings 20  years of experience working in a variety of private, alternative, and public schools in suburban and urban communities. He was first introduced to RJ practices as a strategy for de-escalating conflict and reducing violence working in a school for adjudicated youth outside Philadelphia. In working with Yazid, youth have been able to find connection with someone who understands their personal traumas, learn to manage emotions and express themselves productively, and develop positive relationships.  In 2014, Yazid moved to D.C. Public Schools where the implementation of RJ practices resulted in improved climate and level of student support. 

As restorative justice  program director at SchoolTalk’s RestorativeDC team since 2018, he has helped to expand, and now oversees and manages, all elements of SchoolTalk’s RJ programming. Under his leadership, RestorativeDC has developed a comprehensive array of options designed to engage educators in understanding the power of RJ and how to design programs that meet their individual school and student needs. This includes supporting educators through professional development trainings and workshops, coaching and modeling,  targeted technical assistance, and whole school implementation, as well as youth-focused programming. In addition to school-level supports, Yazid and his team also provide youth-focused leadership and advocacy training to facilitate the role young people play in leading and supporting school culture change.

Since Yazid joined SchoolTalk, RestorativeDC’s network of public and charter schools has more than doubled. These partner schools report evidence of improved school climate and student engagement and decreased suspension and suspension days. Yazid has a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Temple University and is a certified trainer in restorative practices. He has an extensive history of community service and dedicates much of his free time volunteering at a wide range of youth organizations as a mentor and coach.
Yazid has a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Temple University and is a certified trainer in restorative practices and is considered to be a Content Expert in his field.  He has an extensive history of community service and dedicates much of his free time volunteering at a wide range of youth organizations as a mentor and coach.

Abdul-Malik Muhammad

Abdul-Malik Muhammad, Ed.D. has been serving both youth and adults as an educator, transformational leader, entrepreneur, and author for over three decades. His core message of the power of leadership to build healthy community functioning derives from his experience as a community, educational, and corporate leader. Throughout his journey, he has launched 18 schools and specialized programs, led a staff of 2,400 across 11 states and spoke on leadership and community building in 5 continents. He has been a faculty member of the Global Leadership Academy and Regional Leadership Academies of the Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO) since 2015. He is currently the founder and CEO of Akoben LLC, a professional development company, and Transforming Lives Inc., a provider of alternative education services. Through this work, he is continuing to diligently “transform lives, one community at a time.”  He is the author of The Restorative Journey – Book One: The Theory and Application of Restorative Practices and We Can Save Our Boys of Color: Part One – Promising Practices from the Field. He has a BA in International Affairs from Franklin Marshall College, an MA in Educational Leadership from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland, and an Ed.D in Educational Leadership from the University of Delaware. He is a proud father of two grown people and lives in Delaware with his wife, Dr. Christina Watlington, and their 2 dogs.

Duane E. Thomas

Duane E. Thomas, Ph.D. is a child psychologist and a professional trainer, coach and consultant for educators and school mental-health service providers.  He serves as a restorative practices specialist for Akoben, LLC and the Director of Clinical Services for Transforming Lives, Inc., an affiliated network of alternative education services.  He has helped to spearhead the implementation of trauma-informed and restorative practices in several public school districts.  Moreover, he has over 25 years of experience providing direct mental health services to children, youth and families, and specializes in working with marginalized groups and communities.   Prior to his current appointments, he was a research scientist and assistant professor in departments of public health or applied psychology in education at major research universities, where his research focused on risk and cultural protective factors impacting the socioemotional functioning of urban African American children and youth in schools and culturally-responsive approaches to school violence prevention.  His work has garnered funding from federal and private grants, and he has authored several book chapters and articles in peer-refereed journals.  

Dawn Molitor

With over 24 years of experience as a speech therapist and special educator, Dawn Molitor has devoted her career to supporting individuals from birth through age 22, addressing a wide range of communication, developmental, and educational needs. For the past 15 years, she has also been a dedicated restorative facilitator, leading inclusive and transformative circles across all settings and with people of all abilities and backgrounds.

She is the developer of a specialized Restorative Justice training for educators, designed to foster belonging across neurotypes and support understanding of ableism. This training emphasizes listening for understanding, identifying unmet needs, and bridging differences through a trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming lens. Drawing on principles of the double empathy model, it encourages mutual perspective-taking—highlighting how communication breakdowns often stem from mismatched neurocognitive experiences, rather than deficits.

As a late-diagnosed neurodivergent adult, Dawn brings invaluable lived experience, empathy, and authenticity to her work. Her approach centers on honoring individual strengths, cultivating meaningful connections, and building inclusive communities rooted in trust and compassion.

She lives in upstate New York with her husband, three children, two dogs, a cat, a bunny, a turtle, and an axolotl. She enjoys outdoor adventures and quiet moments with family and friends, finding balance in nature and connection.

Lauren Trout

Lauren Trout (they/them) is a restorative justice practitioner and subject matter expert who works in education, justice, and community sectors to provide training, coaching, and technical support. As a Senior Program Associate with the Resilient and Healthy Schools and Communities team, Trout’s work focuses on equity, climate and culture, conflict resolution, harm prevention, and comprehensive school safety. Trout specializes in supporting paradigm shifts at the individual, collective, and systemic levels in order to create climates that are inclusive, safe, and equitable. 

Trout’s body of work as an author and project lead focuses on school climate and safety, equity, systems of well-being, and initiative implementation integrity. Trout has also worked with state education agencies and federal education centers supporting their work in advancing nonpunitive discipline approaches. Trout has served as a keynote panelist and featured speaker and has presented in webinars and at conferences around the country.