Looking FORWARD: Disrupting School Violence Through Inclusive Disciplinary Practices

Austin Independent School District (AISD) proposes to pilot a restorative justice initiative at two middle schools that will: (1) Hire restorative justice support personnel to work directly with students that would otherwise be subject to discretionary suspensions for aggressive or violent disruptions. (2) Hire an integrated systems facilitator to support the restorative efforts at both locations, as well as coordinate and implement a brain-based professional development/learning series for school personnel, students, and caregivers on preventing violence and to improve school climate. The purpose of the program is to pilot FORWARD (Focusing on Reflections with Authentic Restorative Determination)—a scalable diversionary discipline alternative that will expand to secondary campuses district-wide, in alignment with AISD’s priorities and long-term plans to minimize exclusionary discipline and eliminate disproportionality in discipline referrals.