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CITY OF SOUTH BEND OFFICE OF THE CLERK find a coordinated approach. This is not something that can stand alone in a silo. I've seen too many communities where a restorative justice program gets started and it struggles, and it lives on the margin and it dies due to the lack of stable support. I'm committed to the notion that, if we are going to do this in South Bend,we need to really do it well. So,what you have in front of you,this resolution lays out the connection between restorative justice and public safety. It talks a little bit about restorative justice as an evidence-based and trauma-informed approach. It suggests we have a vision for a coordinated approach that would be sustainable and supportable. We would like to start with a one (1) year pilot. Cathy Streeter, 20608 Johnson Road, stated, I am the Restorative Justice Coordinator at Jefferson Middle School. I'm the chair of the District team and the liaison for the District for restorative justice. This is a perfect example of a community partnership. I've been partnering with Susan, I've been partnering with IUSB and teaching as an adjunct there and managing restorative practice in my classroom. We have people in our District team from neighborhood centers. We have professors from Notre Dame and it is quite the group of partners. We've come together because of the community. All the seeds have been planted in the community that last eight(8) years and they are really coming to fruition. People are calling for this. We held an event at Robinson Community Center in January and we had forty (40) people come in a snow storm, including our Deputy Superintendent. We were all there to see how we can come together for the good of the children and how we could come together for the community as a whole because it's not just about children. It is about all people being in a good relationship. If you want to talk to me about school safety, I will talk to you about people that belong and know their sense of belonging. It is very hard to teach a child without a friend. So, the first (1St) level at the school of restorative justice is community building, good relationships and forming connections with each other. We've done the same thing in our District team. We've built relationships and have formed connections with each other. Nobody misses a meeting. They want to come and be in this type of relationship, as principals and District leaders, to talk about how to be better together and change the paradigm shift. She continued,But,it is counter-cultural. So,to do this kind of work,we have to have a community hub. It's not a program. When I started at Jefferson, it takes three (3) to five (5) years and this is only the second (2°d) year. It is so counter-cultural. It's not a program where you can just roll out a manual and say start Monday. It is something you have to do by building and developing relationships. So, we are very excited about this because this proposal has been called for by the community, asked for, and developed with a group of community members over several months since that January meeting. It rolled out of that. Weekly meetings have happened, and we ask for your support from the City to prevent violence. Ms. Sharp stated, The traction we've gained by working together in getting restorative justice implemented in schools,Cathy is the only full-time Restorative Justice Coordinator in the District, but there are several schools that are implementing the practices to the extent that they can. As we've done this work, the people in the schools have been very clear in saying that we've got to have this work done in concert with the community. As we meet with community members who are interested in supporting this,they are saying the same thing and saying we have to partner with the schools. As Cathy just said, the work in the schools, we've learned, needs to start with establishing a foundation. A community building foundation that teaches values, approaches, builds a sense of connection and invites people to think about what it means to be a just community. And, that has been very successful in the schools that are doing it. We need to echo that in the community, as well. So, that is where the pilot project gets involved. It is training community EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION ; EMPOWERMENT 455 County-City Building 227 W.Jefferson Bvld South Bend,Indiana 46601 p 574.235.9221 f574.235.9173 111)574.235.5567 www.southbendin.gov 3