The International Institute for Restorative Practices Graduate School (IIRP), based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is dedicated to the advanced education of professionals at the graduate level and to the conduct of research that can develop the growing field of restorative practices [1]
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The International Institute for Restorative Practices Graduate School grew out of the experience of the Community Service Foundation and Buxmont Academy (CSF Buxmont),[2] two Pennsylvania nonprofit organizations that have been providing education, counseling, residential and other services for troubled youth and their families in south eastern Pennsylvania since 1977.
In 1994 the strategies employed by CSF Buxmont were significantly influenced by a practice developed in New Zealand and Australia, originally called Family Group Conference, and by the criminal justice reform movement that began in North America called restorative justice. CSF Buxmont integrated those practices and philosophies into their own programs and then developed educational programs, websites, international conferences and publications in support of an emerging discipline that came to be known as restorative practices.
CSF Buxmont advanced the new field of restorative practices through the 1990s. In 1999 it decided to create a specialized scientific and educational institution to foster the development of restorative practices. The International Institute for Restorative Practices was incorporated in 2000 as a nonprofit organization in Pennsylvania. It received approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to become a specialized graduate degree-granting institution in 2006. In 2011, the IIRP was granted accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.[3]
The IIRP offers two master’s degrees: the Master of Restorative Practices and Education (MRPE) and the Master of Restorative Practices and Youth Counseling (MRPYC). Both programs are 30 credits and share a core curriculum.[4] The IIRP also offers an 18-credit Graduate Certificate in Restorative Practices.[5]
IIRP students include teachers, school counselors, social workers, youth counselors, school administrators, nurses, criminal justice professionals, clergy, nonprofit administrators, restorative justice professionals, management and other adult learners[6]
The underlying premise of restorative practices is simple: that human beings are happier, more productive and cooperative, and more likely to make positive changes in their behavior when those in positions of authority do things with them, rather than to them or for them. Punitive and authoritarian “to” styles or permissive and paternalistic “for” styles are not as effective as restorative and authoritative “with” styles — which encourage democratic participation and responsive leadership. Restorative practices have implications for education, counseling, parenting, social work, criminal justice, organizational management and regulating or managing any social phenomenon.[7]
The IIRP’s Continuing Education Division provides restorative practices training, consulting and educational materials throughout the world. The IIRP and its related organizations have trained thousands of individuals since its inception as the Real Justice program in 1995.[8] There are four programs:
The IIRP has produced educational materials, books and videos, illustrating the theory and processes of restorative practices.[13]
The IIRP has sponsored 14 world conferences on restorative practices since 1998 for professionals in education, criminal justice, social services and other fields, who are engaging in implementation and research in restorative practices. The 2011 IIRP World Conference,[14] in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, was attended by more than 500 participants.