Public Policy Event: 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 who is responsible for repairing 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. This event is open to students, faculty, staff and the public.

Panelists:

• Rick Brunson is a senior instructor of journalism at UCF and an award-winning journalist with more than 40 years of professional experience. Through his work in news media and community storytelling, he brings a perspective on how journalism shapes public understanding of crime, punishment, accountability and reform.

• Walter Dunn is an associate at UCF and a partner in the Florida Coalition for Higher Education in Prison. After his wrongful conviction was overturned, he became an advocate for criminal justice reform, reentry and educational access, bringing firsthand experience with the justice system's impacts.

• Lady Pérez is a psychotherapist, public health practitioner and researcher affiliated with the University of Michigan. Her work focuses on mental health crisis response, trauma-informed care and support for justice-involved individuals, offering a public health and clinical perspective on responding to harm.

• Michael Kostis is the Statewide Coordinator for the Florida Coalition for Higher Education in Prison and a community organizer focused on criminal justice reform. His work centers on advocacy, coalition-building, and policy change efforts that expand educational opportunities and support successful reentry after incarceration.