Division: Educational Services

Office:   Student Support Services

View Published NGO Document (Microsoft Word) 

Purpose: 

The purpose of the Restorative Justice in Education Pilot Program is to implement trauma-informed restorative justice practices in public schools. “Restorative justice,” as defined in the legislation, means “a system of dispute resolution tools that allow all parties of a dispute to be involved in defining the harm and devising remedies while giving the necessary attention to community safety, victims’ needs, and the need for offender accountability.” Restorative justice practices include, but need not be limited to, student or community court, restorative circles, mediation, and conferencing. A “trauma-informed approach,” as defined in the legislation, means “an approach that recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in students, families, staff, and others, and which responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices for the purposes of promoting resiliency and healing, resisting the recurrence of trauma, and improving educational outcomes.”

Conditions addressed under this Pilot Program:

1. Reduce racial disparities in school discipline which result in an inequitable loss of classroom time among certain student groups, thereby boosting the academic outcomes of these students.
2. Improve the socioemotional and behavioral responses of students through more appropriate and less punitive interventions, thereby establishing a more supportive and inclusive school culture.
3. Reduce recidivism rates among students who violate the school district code of conduct through more effective and targeted restorative justice interventions.

The New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) has established a three-year grant program. This year three continuation grant is open to Kean University, the applicant selected through a competitive process in year one. The applicant may apply for up to $500,000.

Based on the availability of FY23 state appropriations, this third year of this three-year grant program will begin April 1, 2023 and will end on August 31, 2024.

Eligible Agencies: Kean University

Approximate Number of Awards: 1  Grant Program Type:  Continuation

Total Amt. Available:$500,000         Application Due Date: 3/9/2023