Thursday, April 12, 7PM, John Witherspoon Middle School Auditorium

There is a call to action to address the persistent gaps by race and special needs status in school suspension and expulsion. Schools are seeking ways to transform how they elicit student cooperation, manage conflict, and ensure a high-quality education for diverse students. Dr. Anne Gregory will offer a synthesis of the latest knowledge about reform efforts in school discipline and highlight programming to prevent conflict and intervene constructively once conflict has occurred. Specifically, she will describe the basic tenets of restorative justice initiatives in schools and the specific practices of community-building circles and restorative conferences.

Co-sponsored by Princeton Public Schools, Princeton Special Ed PTO, Princeton High School PTO, John Witherspoon Middle School PTO, Committed and Faithful Princetonians, and Not in Our Town Princeton.

AnneGregory

Dr. Anne Gregory, Ph.D

Anne Gregory is an associate professor in the School Psychology Department at Rutgers University. Her research has focused on the persistent trend that African American adolescents are issued school suspensions and expulsions at higher rates than adolescents from other groups. Through program development, implementation, and evaluation, she aims to address this trend by strengthening characteristics of teachers, classrooms, and schools associated with the successful schooling of diverse students. Her research interests also include understanding the promise of restorative approaches to school discipline. She has authored 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous book chapters. Dr. Gregory’s research has been supported by federal agencies and private foundations. She served on the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on Resiliency and Strength in Black Children and Adolescents and consults with the U.S. Department of Justice as a school discipline expert.