A training held on Zoom
Starting back in January, more than 40 people began taking part in virtual trainings to expand their knowledge around restorative justice, including sessions on conflict resolution and trauma sensitivity, as part of Alianza’s Community Justice Campaign.
The group included parents, caregivers, and students (along with other partners) and a major goal was to help families bring the restorative justice practices young people are using at school into their home life.
“The Community Justice Campaign has worked for years to expand restorative justice in the school,” said Alianza Project Manager Patricia Carrillo. “We recognize that it’s important that the practices be brought into homes and the wider community.”
The training was possible thanks to funding from the RAP Foundation, and the California Conference for Equality and Justice (CCEJ) led the sessions. Participants attended as many as four sessions a month and recently finished the program. A graduation celebration is in the works!
Carrillo said the most rewarding feedback has been from parents who began considering how their own trauma has affected how they interact with their kids and learned ways to improve communication within the family.
Now those parents and other partners are ready to lead trainings on their own and expand the knowledge and practices even wider into the community.
“The trainings helped me to grow as a person, in daily life,” said Anita, one of the parents who participated. “I lost the fear of expressing myself in my own way, and I can apply the tips given in situations where they are needed.”
