Restorative Justice Proficiency Certificate

Description:

The Restorative Justice Proficiency Certificate grounds students in the expanding global social movement toward community justice approaches that empower impacted people to take accountability for harm and healing. These approaches contrast with those of systems and institutions that do justice to or for responsible and harmed people without involving them in the process. The program provides students with both the philosophical and practical knowledge to facilitate and advocate for restorative processes such as community-building and harm response circles and conferences in community, education, human resources, legal, and justice settings. This cohort program connects students as a community of learners and provides research, volunteer, experiential learning, and mentorship opportunities within restorative justice initiatives in Philadelphia.

Program Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of the Restorative Justice Proficiency Certificate, students will be able to:

• Describe the philosophies and practices of restorative justice and compare restorative justice’s goals and consequences with those of retributive justice.
• Connect the origins and present-day practices of restorative justice and relate individual stories and lived experiences to these philosophies and practices.
• Review and assess the effectiveness of restorative justice processes through various methods such as participating in role plays, examining case studies, facilitating in class and in the community, and evaluating local and national programs.
• Participate in and co-facilitate community-building and harm-response processes.
• Complete a field experience practicum applying restorative justice philosophy and practices.

Program Entry Requirements:

New students are required to apply to the college and complete the College's placement test prior to their enrollment. In addition, students must also complete a program application and attend an information session or individual interview with the program coordinator to obtain approval to register for this program. Students who are identified as needing developmental coursework must satisfactorily complete the appropriate English courses as part of the certificate when applicable. 

Program of Study and Graduation Requirements:

To qualify for the Proficiency Certificate in Restorative Justice, a student must complete a minimum of 16 credits as described in the following course sequence. In addition, the student must have a cumulative grade point average of 2.0, and a minimum grade of "C" in all restorative justice courses.

While enrolled in this certificate program, students agree to uphold the values and ethical standards embraced by restorative justice practitioners in their interactions with students, faculty, and practitioners. Through self-reflection and feedback activities, students will consider their own readiness to plan for and facilitate these processes in a community setting with support from their instructors and/or the program coordinator.

Students whose actions are repeatedly inconsistent with the values and standards of the field may be required to exit the program, and they will receive support and intervention from their instructors, program coordinator, and/or department head during this process.

Course Sequence:

Minimum Credits Needed to Graduate:

16

Choose 2 courses of interest and relevance to your career goals from the list below OR by working with the program coordinator to select another related course. Courses with a prerequisite requirement would increase the total number of credits obtained.

Behavioral Health and Human Services

• BHHS 102 - Social Determinants of Behavioral Health
• BHHS 105 - Introduction to Group Dynamics
• BHHS 191 - Introduction to Trauma and Trauma-Informed Care

Black Studies

• BLAS 101
• BLAS 102 (prerequisite: BLAS 101)

Communication and Media Studies

• ENGL 116 - Interpersonal Communication
• CMS 180 - Social Media & Digital Cultures

Gender Studies

• GS 110 - Global Perspectives in Gender Studies (To enroll in this course, students must place into English 098 or above)

Global Studies

• GLS 101 - Intro to Global Studies (To enroll in this course, students must place into English 098 or above)

Legal/Justice

• JUS 101 - Survey of Criminal Justice
• JUS 171 - Juvenile Justice
• PLS 101 - Introduction to Paralegal Studies
• JUS 122 - Race and Justice (prerequisite: JUS 101)
• JUS 191 - Victimology and Trauma (prerequisite, may be taken concurrently: JUS 101)

Psychology

• PSYC 101 - Introduction to Psychology
• PSYC 209 - Adolescent Psychology (To enroll in this course, students must place into ENGL 098 or above)

Sociology

• SOC 101 - Introduction to Sociology
• SOC 105 - Health and Society
• SOC 215 - Criminology (prerequisite: SOC 101 or ANTH 112)
• SOC 233 - Race, Ethnicity and Social Inequalities (prerequisite: SOC 101 or ANTH 112)

For More Information, Contact:

The Division of Liberal Studies, Room BR-21, 1700 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, PA 19130, Telephone (215) 751-8450 or the College Information Center (215) 751-8010.