A Restorative Justice (RJ) Conference is one of the Alternative Resolution (AR) options that students involved in a low-to-moderate level incident may opt into in lieu of the Student Conduct Process. Incidents not eligible for this AR include incidents that had they been adjudicated and student was found ‘Responsible’, may have resulted in a high-level sanction, such as suspension or dismissal from the University (i.e., drug distribution, abusive or threatening conduct, etc.). Incidents eligible for this AR will be determined by the OSC.
An RJ Conference is a voluntary meeting where all parties involved in an incident have the opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue to better understand what occurred, address the impact, repair the harm caused, and identify strategies to prevent potential future incidents from happening.
Students offered the opportunity to engage with parties involved in the incident and resolve the concerns through an RJ Conference will be invited to learn more about the process before opting in or they may decline the invitation by requesting to continue with the Student Conduct process.
If parties involved voluntarily agree to participate in an RJ Conference, they will be individually invited to participate in a Pre-Conference in preparation for the RJ Conference.
Potential benefits of participating in an RJ Conference include:
Impacted Party
- Have direct input in the outcome of the process
- Opportunity to meet with person responsible in a safe environment
- Chance to express how they were/are affected
- Learn about who the Responding Party is beyond the incident
- Gain insight related to the misconduct directly from person responsible
- Opportunity to play a critical key role in this process
Responding Party
- Have direct input in the outcome of the process
- Opportunity to share what happened from own perspective
- Chance to express remorse and take responsibility
- Ability to share who they are beyond the incident
- Learn about the impact their actions had on others
- Resolution without a disciplinary record
For questions, see the “Contact Us” page for details on how to contact the Office of Student Conduct.