Horizon Community Middle School

Restorative Practices (RP)

Meet with an RP Coach

At Horizon Community Middle School, restorative practices are used as both a prevention and intervention tool to assist students in building relationships and repairing relationships when harm is caused. Each grade level is assigned a Restorative Practice coach that facilitates conversations between students when conflict arises. Through the restorative process, students have the opportunity to share their perspective, identify who was harmed, own their part, and work collaboratively to create future agreements to prevent further harm. Restorative practices work in conjunction with the discipline system, and our RP Coaches work closely with our deans to best support students, however, RP coaches do not assign consequences for behavior. This allows students the opportunity to take honest responsibility for their part and work collaboratively to repair harm. ​

Restorative practices is a culture of people who have caused harm, acknowledge wrongdoing, take responsibility, repair harm to the extent possible to those whom they have caused harm, and are welcomed back into the community.

~ The Conflict Center of Denver

The Five R’s of Restorative Practices

Relationship

Strong relationships are key to creating communities and leading a fulfilling life. At the heart of every restorative process is a damaged relationship. The RP process focuses on mending relationships. Once the person who caused harm becomes accountable for their actions and begins to make amends, the relationship can start to heal.

Respect

Respect keeps the RP process safe. All involved parties are trusted to show respect for themselves and for others. Deep listening is employed so the focus is on what is being said, instead of our assumptions or the stories we make up that may or may not be true.  Even when we disagree with someone’s thinking, we respect their perspective.

Responsibility

In order for restorative justice to be effective, everyone must grapple with their own personal responsibility. We ask that everyone is honest with themselves and searches deeply in their hearts to discover how they might have had a hand in the matter. Even if the harm was unintentional, the person who caused harm needs to take responsibility for their actions. Taking responsibility needs to be a personal choice and cannot be imposed on someone unwillingly. 

Repair

The person who caused harm is expected to repair the harm that they did to the fullest extent possible, knowing well that not all of the harm can be repaired. It is through working to repair the situation that the person who caused harm is able to regain their self-respect and respect for and from others.

Reintegration

Reintegration encourages collaboration of the community and the person who caused harm rather than turning toward coercion and isolation. This process recognizes the assets the person who caused harm brings to the table and what they have learned through the process. By accepting responsibility and agreeing to repair the harm, the person who caused harm creates space and trust to be reintegrated into the community.