{"id":29087,"date":"2016-07-12T09:53:15","date_gmt":"2016-07-12T13:53:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=29087"},"modified":"2016-07-19T11:27:19","modified_gmt":"2016-07-19T15:27:19","slug":"restorative-justice-education-academy-draws-educators-six-states-introduction-creating-socially-just-equitable-learning-environments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2016\/restorative-justice-education-academy-draws-educators-six-states-introduction-creating-socially-just-equitable-learning-environments\/","title":{"rendered":"Restorative Justice in Education Academy draws educators from six states for introduction into creating socially just, equitable learning environments"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jonathan Stith invoked civil rights leader Ella Baker in his keynote address<\/a> at Eastern Mennonite University\u2019s Restorative Justice in Education Academy last week. Stith, who is national coordinator at the Alliance for Educational Justice<\/a>, invoked Baker\u2019s metaphor to speak about restorative justice, educational equity, and the \u201cincreasing presence of \u201cblack and brown bodies in American classrooms today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not about the hamburger,\u201d he said, referencing her refrain during the 1960\u2019s diner sit-ins. \u201cIt\u2019s bigger than a hamburger<\/a>. We\u2019re not just interested in restorative justice as an alternative to school suspensions and to challenge the school-to-prison pipeline. We are working for more socially just and equitable learning environments for all children and we believe that restorative justice has huge potential to help us get there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Keynote<\/a>
Keynote speaker Jonathan Stith is national coordinator for the Alliance for Educational Equity. (Photo by Joaquin Sosa)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

More than 55 educators from five states, including Mississippi, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas and Florida, attended the June 27-28 conference. The range of demographics represent the growing interest in paying attention to educational equity \u2013 from public, private and charter schools serving elementary through secondary grade levels with diverse student populations in urban, suburban and rural areas.<\/p>\n

RJE benefits manifold<\/h3>\n

\u201cOur goals for this experience were to ask two big questions,\u201d said Sarah Armstrong<\/a>, director of the graduate education program<\/a> at EMU and a former superintendent, principal and teacher. \u201cWe wanted to discuss how RJE can assist us in addressing the needs of disenfranchised students and students on the fringe, and the challenges of poor attendance, graduation rates, low achievement and discipline concerns. Secondly, we wanted to share how RJE can benefit students, teachers and the overall school culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

Professor Kathy Evans<\/a>, lead faculty in EMU\u2019s new MA in Restorative Justice in Education program<\/a> (starting fall 2018), was pleased with the diverse group and the conference\u2019s potential to spread the ethos of restorative justice. [To read more about Kathy Evans and her interview in The Atlantic<\/em> about restorative justice, click here<\/a>.]<\/p>\n