Photo by Jim Wilson at the New York Times
A second article this week, about a restorative justice program in schools in Oakland, California, has appeared in a national publication, this one in the New York Times. In a piece titled, "Opening up, students transform a vicious circle," Patricia Lee Brown writes, "The approach now taking root in 21 Oakland schools, and in Chicago, Denver and Portland, Ore., tries to nip problems and violence in the bud by forging closer, franker relationships among students, teachers and administrators." The entire piece may be found here.
IIRP President Ted Wachtel has responded to the piece in his blog column at the Huffington Post, advocating "Restorative justice practices in every classroom." He writes, "I was delighted to see another New York Times article about restorative justice. ... Just across the Bay, schools in San Francisco, as well as in Detroit, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and hundreds of other urban, suburban and rural communities, are adopting an approach that puts restorative practices in every classroom in the building." Read the entire piece here.
