The YWCA in Madison used its grant to support healing for Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) and marginalized youth who experienced trauma due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This project focused on continuing, expanding and evaluating the YWCA Madison’s restorative justice programming in Dane County to support youth impacted by the social and emotional effects of the pandemic. Through school and community-based partnerships, the initiative created healing-centered spaces that affirm identity and rebuild relationships.
At the heart of the project were restorative justice circles, which were facilitated dialogues rooted in Indigenous practices that bring people together to build community, address harm and promote accountability without punishment. Youth were trained as Circle Keepers, leading peers in these practices and developing skills in deep listening. The project also offered alternatives to municipal court involvement by referring youth to restorative circles instead of punitive systems. Over two years, the project engaged more than 1,000 young people and 100 adults across schools, courts and community centers in restorative justice processes and training.
The Challenge
The social-emotional health impacts of COVID-19 on youth are vast, complex and contextual. Young people need spaces in schools, their communities, within families and friend groups to share their experiences, perspectives and needs. Through firsthand experiences and understanding of normal adolescent developmental responses, YWCA Madison anticipated an increase in conflicts between and among youth, adults, and the wider community as they began to re-enter public life.
Project Goals
Through continued investment in restorative justice practices in schools and throughout the community, the grantee aimed to:
Expand school-based restorative justice coordination and training in Madison Metropolitan and Monana Grove School Districts.
Sustain a community-based referral system for youth diverted from police and municipal court involvement.
Train youth leaders to become Circle Keepers – guides who lead their peers through spaces where people come together to share experiences and address conflict through a collective dialogue.
Bring restorative justice curriculum to community partner sites such as Elver Park, Warner Park and the Empowerment Center.
Build organizational capacity through an evaluation learning agenda to assess the long-term impact of restorative justice practices and ensure alignment with youth wellbeing and racial equity outcomes.
Results
The grantees successfully developed and completed their community Restorative Justice Program by implementing youth restorative justice communities of practice at four different community center sites in Madison. Circle Keepers were able to support youth who received municipal referrals by facilitating their Restorative Justice Circle and supporting them in creating their agreements. Additionally, they provided restorative justice knowledge and practice to adult community members, specifically parents at various community centers. Moreover, they continued their partnership with the Madison Metropolitan School District and the Monona Grove School District.
Lastly, they collaborated with the Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies at UW–Madison and Ubuntu Research and Evaluation. Ubuntu was able to use previously designed evaluation tools and engaged in several focus groups and interviews with partners and youth. They provided evaluation results for YMCA Madison to reflect on and use in their continued advocacy and program implementation work in school and community settings. Ubuntu also developed a school/site readiness tool YMCA Madison will be able to use to evaluate and decide whether a school/site is ready for Restorative Justice.
Lasting Impact
School implementation plans are now being drafted in a detailed and intentional manner before the school year begins. They successfully trained students, facilitated professional development, and worked toward a holistic, comprehensive implementation of a restorative justice culture in three middle schools within the Madison Metropolitan School District and the middle and upper campuses of the Monona Grove School District’s Liberal Arts Schools.
