The Youth Restoration Project builds relationships and community, one creative interaction at a time.
YRP is a Rhode-Island based training and consulting group working with organizations to help them build interpersonal cultures where all people feel heard – where young and older, bosses and employees collaborate effectively, trust each other and their community, and have confidence they can handle conflict constructively.
YRP got its start working on school culture, shifting disciplinary systems to a restorative, healing model rather than rely on punishment, coercion, and “zero tolerance”. YRP has also worked with organizations as diverse as Rhode Island’s Department of Children, Youth and Families, social service agencies, arts groups and small businesses. Restorative practices are skills and concepts universally applicable to interpersonal relationships at work, home and play. They nurture cooperative rather than adversarial approaches. to accountability, as the key to creating pleasant, safe and respectful environments.
Our Mission
To shift the culture of our families, schools, organizations and communities toward a more peaceful and caring interpersonal environment that ensures all voices are heard. We do this by teaching restorative practices that focus on simple techniques to address conflict and harmful behavior, avoiding endless cycles of anger and retribution.
Our Services
Training in Restorative Justice Practices
- In-depth certificate training in three to five half-day sessions, sponsored in conjunction with The Sargent Center.
- On-site training tailored to the specific needs of your organization, school or community.
Implementation Consulting
- Working with groups on implementing Restorative Practices, from training the leadership team to strategic planning, developing systems and communicating with the larger community.
Restorative Conferencing
- Conferencing is a restorative protocol used internationally to get to the root of problems and collaborate on creative solutions that work for all parties. It can help organizations and communities focus on their core values, handle conflicts and forward initiatives efficiently and inclusively.
- We provide facilitators to conference difficult situations, as well as training those interested in developing these skills in their community.
#thank you’s
Michaela Bland, Skadden Fellow
Rhode Island Center for Justice:
“Restorative Justice is more than circling up every so often or using affirmative statements once in awhile. Restorative justice is a way of life- a concept Trinice Holden understands and actively practices. Trinice Holden challenged us to implement restorative practices into all facets of our lives, and the results, at least for me, have been transformative. Whether it’s at work or in my personal life, the tools I learned at YRP’s trainings have strengthened my relationships with others, enhanced my ability to clearly communicate, and reinforced healthy coping mechanisms. Thanks to YRP’s training, I am able to take the skills I have learned and teach these skills to others around me. Whether it is my coworkers, friends, or students I interact with, each leave with tools of their own to start living a restorative life.”
“I’m so happy that I’m hearing a common language being used throughout my class. Students know that’s it’s safe to share feelings.”
— Cory Howland, School Social Worker at Waddington Elementary School, East Providence, shown here with Debra Poplillo, 3rd grade teacher and Principal, Karen Goncalo.
