Paths to an Impact in Restorative Justice

About

When harm occurs—a crime, a campus conflict, an institutional failure—communities must decide how to respond. Traditional justice asks what rule was broken and what punishment is deserved; restorative justice asks who was harmed, what they need, and whose responsibility it is to repair it. This group forum takes that unsettled choice as its subject: what role should restorative justice play alongside—or instead of—traditional systems when harm occurs? Bringing together voices from criminal justice reform, clinical and public-health practice, community organizing, and lived experience of the justice system, panelists will offer opposing perspectives on whether restorative approaches can complement, reform, or replace conventional punishment; how mental health, crisis response, and reentry fit into the response to harm; and what genuine accountability requires. Presented in collaboration with UCF social work faculty member, Iradly Roche and the School of Social Work's student organization, Phi Alpha Social Work Honor Society - Nu Pi Chapter, the forum carries a practical, career-facing aim as well: to show students—especially social work students—concrete paths into policy work and advocacy as a means of changing the systems they will one day practice within. Open to students, faculty, staff, and the public.

In person Location: Barbara Ying Center, Room 140

Online Join Link: (link below)

Date: November 5, 2026 (Thursday)

Time: Doors open at 3:45 PM for check-in and food, Panel event from 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM