Director of Student Life at Boulder Creek Academy in Idaho, Lisa Hester was invited by L. A. Talk Radio host Lon Woodbury to discuss restorative justice circles in therapeutic boarding school and to describe how this therapeutic procedure had contributed to changing her whole school in 2012. Despite some initial resistance by teachers to this healing modality, it proved useful in significantly improving discipline in the school.
Lisa Hester
Lisa Hester completed her undergraduate studies at Central Michigan University, where she obtained a bachelor's degree in Sociology, with a minor emphasis in Psychology. She later went on to get a master's degree in social work from the University of Denver. She has worked with children for more than 25 years, including participating in the child welfare system, offering sexual abuse therapy and family mediation. She has also worked as a coordinator in the foster care system.
Boulder Creek Academy
Boulder Creek Academy was created in 1993 to help struggling adolescent boys and girls whose demands were not being satisfied in traditional institutions. The therapeutic boarding school has a special education program that helps those pupils with academic, mental and emotional challenges. It is located on 180-acres at the base of the magnificent Cabinet Mountains in north Idaho. The institution serves students from around the United States, and it also has some international students.
Restorative Justice Circles in Therapeutic Boarding Schools
During the radio meeting, Lisa Hester explained exactly how Boulder Creek Academy is using restorative justice circles to assist students when they can't get along with each other. The restorative technique affirms the fundamental worth of every child; and the process holds students accountable, while making them responsible for settling their own conflicts. Corrective justice offers students an important tool for mutual understanding and collaboration.
Corrective justice circles in therapeutic boarding institutions, she explained, are a substitute to punitive treatment for student misbehavior. These dialogue-based programs motivate young people to take responsibility for their activities, repair damage done to others, and improve and reinforce peer relationships. Zero-tolerance policies, she pointed out, only antagonizes students and staff.
Hester described the various components that go into the program. For example, circles are usually formed to talk about disciplinary problems, including disrespectful behavior, acting out in class, and creating incidents that could be considered bullying by others. Those with poorly established social skills are taught to use compassion and compromise. Besides describing the procedure of restorative justice circles in therapeutic boarding institutions, she shared stories where the program had been able to stop problems between students from escalating.
Lisa Hester
Lisa Hester completed her undergraduate studies at Central Michigan University, where she obtained a bachelor's degree in Sociology, with a minor emphasis in Psychology. She later went on to get a master's degree in social work from the University of Denver. She has worked with children for more than 25 years, including participating in the child welfare system, offering sexual abuse therapy and family mediation. She has also worked as a coordinator in the foster care system.
Boulder Creek Academy
Boulder Creek Academy was created in 1993 to help struggling adolescent boys and girls whose demands were not being satisfied in traditional institutions. The therapeutic boarding school has a special education program that helps those pupils with academic, mental and emotional challenges. It is located on 180-acres at the base of the magnificent Cabinet Mountains in north Idaho. The institution serves students from around the United States, and it also has some international students.
Restorative Justice Circles in Therapeutic Boarding Schools
During the radio meeting, Lisa Hester explained exactly how Boulder Creek Academy is using restorative justice circles to assist students when they can't get along with each other. The restorative technique affirms the fundamental worth of every child; and the process holds students accountable, while making them responsible for settling their own conflicts. Corrective justice offers students an important tool for mutual understanding and collaboration.
Corrective justice circles in therapeutic boarding institutions, she explained, are a substitute to punitive treatment for student misbehavior. These dialogue-based programs motivate young people to take responsibility for their activities, repair damage done to others, and improve and reinforce peer relationships. Zero-tolerance policies, she pointed out, only antagonizes students and staff.
Hester described the various components that go into the program. For example, circles are usually formed to talk about disciplinary problems, including disrespectful behavior, acting out in class, and creating incidents that could be considered bullying by others. Those with poorly established social skills are taught to use compassion and compromise. Besides describing the procedure of restorative justice circles in therapeutic boarding institutions, she shared stories where the program had been able to stop problems between students from escalating.
About the Author:
Lon Woodbury created Struggling Teens to help families. He has recorded the entire interview on his L.A. Talk Radio show for easy access at any time.
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