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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by High School Student from Yaya Network and Dignity in Schools on Restorative Justice Practices in Schools
6:23:33
·
3 min
A high school junior testifies about the importance of restorative justice practices in schools and the need for continued support and funding. She shares personal experiences with peer mediation and highlights the challenges faced due to limited resources.
- Emphasizes that restorative justice builds community bonds and prevents harmful punishments like suspensions
- Describes a specific case where lack of follow-through in mediation led to further disciplinary actions
- Urges the committee to prioritize and protect funding for restorative justice programs, even in the face of budget cuts
High School Student
6:23:33
Good afternoon, Chair Joseph and committee members.
6:23:37
Thank you for having me here.
6:23:38
I am Ivelyn Nunez, a high school junior from District 7.
6:23:42
I am here with the IAD Network and Dignity in Schools to thank you all for the efforts you have made towards restorative justices and reminding you of the all the work that we still need to do.
6:23:52
We understand that the sacrosities of our current political climate are limited, but that doesn't mean that there are that these practices should be neglected.
6:24:01
Restorative justice practices have been a pillar in my community.
6:24:03
From exciting events to peer mediation program at my school students have taken advantage of daily.
6:24:09
These practices aren't just a different way to discipline students.
6:24:12
It's building community resources and bonds so strong that when a problem does arise, we are there to support the students when they fall back on us.
6:24:19
It's a way to understand the issues students are facing in prevent in preventing these issues, decreasing the amount of harmful punishments like suspensions that only take away learning time from the students.
6:24:30
At the beginning of the school year, I had to mediate the situation between a small friend group of four students.
6:24:36
This dispute resulted in two getting suspended, so when they came back to classes as part of the program, we decided to have discussions with them while we mediated them.
6:24:47
We had discussions about their their issues in front of a counselor so we can get them back into their regular schedule with a new page.
6:24:54
Unfortunately, we only met twice.
6:24:57
Out of the five to eight meetings we were supposed to have, you may wonder why, why did this happen, but to my peers this concept is not foreign.
6:25:05
My counselor was busy, not with regular work but with three other different groups who had the same situation.
6:25:11
Ultimately, she decided to move on our time to other students deeming the first group as not an emergency, I quote.
6:25:18
And you wanna know what happened to this non emergency group?
6:25:21
Three got suspended and the other one had to had a safety transfer.
6:25:25
This issue wasn't about students not getting enough discipline.
6:25:28
It was about having them to giving them a safe space to so they can have a moderated discussion while figuring out their problems.
6:25:35
And you best believe I made this point clear to my counselor, but to her respond I quote, it was in the first two meetings they did pretty well, but well isn't enough.
6:25:44
These practices to work, we need them to have time and dedication to build structures.
6:25:48
As I asked my counselor, I asked you not to see these practices as a one time thing, but embrace them.
6:25:53
Not just a way to make yourself look more progressive, but actively heal and restore in by learning environments.
6:25:59
Not just for me, but for this many students who walk these hallways as I call my own.
6:26:03
But in order for this to happen, we need to continue advocating and actively fighting for these programs.
6:26:08
They can't be the first to be brought up when budget cuts are mentioned.
6:26:11
We need these programs and initiatives.
6:26:13
We see the work.
6:26:14
They see we see that they work.
6:26:16
So why should they be this jeopardized when budget cuts arises?
6:26:20
I understand that just like my counselor, you have million things to do, and that under you're under pressure from all sides of the table, but I beg of you, keep making sure that our voices are heard and that restorative justice isn't just brushed under the rug every time a budget cut arises.