A positive school climate that instills students with a sense of belonging can have a powerful impact on academic outcomes. However, many schools choose to embrace punitive discipline as a way of working through student disciplinary issues, resulting in the alienation of students, particularly students of color, from the school community. Data from the Office of Civil Rights in 2015 indicated that black students represented 24.5% of the New York City public school population, but accounted for 45.5% of in-school suspensions, 51% of out of school suspensions, and 60.7% of expulsions. This disproportionality needs to be addressed, and highlights broader misunderstanding of how to value students of color in school practices. Schools working in Restorative Practices quads will:

• Explore how to build a student-centered community that values student voice, through community circles and other restorative initiatives.

• Identify the individual needs of the members of the school community and build a culture that is responsive to and reflective of those needs.

• Create restorative interventions that facilitate healing rather than perpetuating further harm, through restorative circles, restorative conferencing, and de-escalation techniques.