Paradigm Shifts to Bring About a New Era of Restorative Practice in Higher Education

Restorative practice was first introduced to higher education as an alternative to traditional disciplinary processes. While this philosophical shift in student conduct was beneficial to the field, one unintended consequence has been restorative processes have become, in the minds of many in higher education, indelibly tied to specific offices and practitioners responsible for discipline. Restorative practice as a set of principles and processes has the most impact when supported as foundational to the work of the institution as a whole. We envision a higher education environment that emphasizes restorative practice as a comprehensive, proactive, and preventive approach to building and maintaining campus community as well as developing a healthy and productive approach to conflict resolution. To this end, we invite practitioners across the field of higher education to shift how restorative practice is implemented in four specific ways: from primarily responsive to primarily proactive; from an individual to a collective focus; from a compartmentalized to a comprehensive approach; and from a singular learning experience to an immersive learning experience.