by Jan Jenner

Two Harrisonburg teenagers recently vandalized a neighbor's property. The neighbor was angry — and felt that the vandalism had religious and racial dimensions. The staff at Restorative Justice Initiatives brought the neighbor, the teenagers and their families together in a victim-offender conferencing session. Through this process, the teenagers realized the seriousness of their "goofing around" and agreed to repair the damage they had done. The neighbor was reassured that the boys had not targeted him because of his race or religion — and felt safe again in his home. This is one example of the work of Restorative Justice Initiatives (RJI), a Harrisonburg-based organization begun and staffed by graduates of EMU's Conflict Transformation Program. Restorative justice, which emphasizes the needs of victims and the responsibilities of offenders, rather than punishment or retribution, is an important part of CTP's teaching and practice.

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RJI works at restoring relationships and dealing with victims and offenders in ways that heal. Currently, three CTP graduates run the program — Tim Ruebke, Nathan Barge and Jeff Heie (pictured above, left to right). Several CTP students have served as volunteers.

Much of RJI's work deals with the criminal justice system. Cases are referred by attorneys, judges or probation officers. RJI has also worked with local schools, helping to develop "restorative discipline" policies and procedures. Other referrals have come from churches and social service agencies.

The project was begun in 1997 by Nathan Barge, then a CTP graduate student. His first task was to conduct a listening project, finding out the interests and needs of a large number of local groups — various parts of the criminal justice system, schools, churches and civic organizations. Tim Ruebke, a CTP graduate and employee of Harrisonburg's Community Mediation Center, worked with Nathan on this project. Howard Zehr, professor of restorative justice at EMU, provided oversight and guidance.

The results of the listening project convinced Barge and Ruebke that the time was right to begin the work. A number of churches and other groups provided start-up funds, Community Mennonite Church donated office space and RJI opened its doors to work at restoring relationships and dealing with victims and offenders in ways that heal. After operating independently for two years, RJI became a part of Community Mediation Center.

Recently, RJI sponsored the first-ever state-wide meeting of restorative justice programs. Eleven of the 14 Virginia-based programs sent representatives. Jeff Heie said he was grateful to see the respect with which RJI is held by other programs because of its ties to CTP, which they see as the premier restorative justice training and education program in the country.

What's next for RJI? Lots more work within the community, explaining the purpose and the possibilities for restorative justice in many settings, and many more opportunities to bring together offenders and victims in processes that lead to understanding and healing for all involved.

Jan Jenner works with EMU's Institute for Justice & Peacebuilding and is a grants writer for CTP. She is a 1999 graduate of the master's program.