Safe & Restorative Schools Learning Tour

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In Partnership with Transformative Changes, New Virginia Majority, The Commonwealth Institute, Legal Aid Justice Center, and the Fund Our Schools Coalition. 

We’re excited to share we received a $500 Spark Good local grant from our local Walmart Facility #7016! This grant will help support the Black Youth Mental Health Collaborative's Reimagining Justice: Safe and Restorative Schools Learning Tour. We are proud to spark good in our community! #SparkGood

Do you believe in our vision and have the capacity to financially contribute? Reach out to Carissa@tranformativechangs.org to donate towards this cause! 

During the 2022–2023 school year, Black students made up only about 22% of Virginia’s students but received 42% of all suspensions and law enforcement referrals. Students with disabilities also faced higher punishment rates, making things even harder for those who are both Black and disabled (Justice4All, 2024; Virginia Board for People with Disabilities [VBPD], 2022). They’re often punished for things like “disrespect,” which depends on an adult’s opinion rather than clear rules (VBPD, 2022).

Did you know Virginia ranks 48th in the country for how easy it is for young people to get mental health help (Mental Health America, 2024)? Almost 2 out of every 5 high school students in Virginia said they’ve felt sad or hopeless for at least two weeks straight, and 1 out of 5 said they’ve seriously thought about hurting themselves (Virginia Department of Health, 2023).

For Black youth, these numbers are even worse. Many of us deal with stress from racial bias, unfair discipline in schools, and less access to resources—especially in neighborhoods and schools that have been underfunded for decades.

Schools should be places where everyone feels safe, supported, and able to learn. But in Virginia, Black students—especially those with disabilities—are punished more harshly and given fewer chances to get help. This pattern is called the school-to-prison pipeline, which means unfair discipline can push students out of class and closer to the justice system (Justice4All, 2024).

Experts say that instead of punishment, schools should use restorative justice, which helps students repair harm and talk through conflict. But many schools in majority-Black areas don’t have enough counselors, therapists, or funding to make this work (Cline, 2025; The Commonwealth Institute, 2024). When Virginia invests in mental health support and restorative practices, it creates schools where every student can feel safe, seen, and supported—not pushed out.

That’s where the Safe & Restorative Schools Learning Tour comes in. It’s part of the Black Youth Mental Health Collaborative (BYMHC), and it’s all about creating schools that focus on healing, not punishment—and letting youth voices lead the change.

The Learning Tour brings together students, community leaders, and lawmakers to talk honestly about what safety and belonging really mean. Instead of lectures or panels, we sit in Restorative Healing Circles—open spaces for listening, sharing stories, and building understanding.

You will have the option to nominate youth facilitators for your restorative healing circle, choose a certified healing-centered engagement or restorative practitioner, or a combination of the two. Your leadership helps adults experience what a truly supportive and restorative school could look like. We’ll explore how mental health care, community support, and fair discipline can make schools safer and healthier for everyone.

Here’s what’s happening right now in 

Virginia:

• Black students are 22% of the population but make up more than 50% of all school suspensions (Justice4All, 2024).
• Suicide attempts among Black youth have gone up 80% in the past few decades (AAKOMA Project, 2022).
• Schools in mostly Black neighborhoods often have fewer counselors, psychologists, and restorative staff (The Commonwealth Institute, 2024).
• Schools with School Resource Officers (SROs) tend to have higher rates of suspensions and police referrals instead of support (Virginia Board for People with Disabilities, 2022).

These stats show something clear: youth don’t need more punishment—youth need more care, connection, and community.

The Safe and Restorative Schools Learning Tour will provide legislators with firsthand exposure to restorative practices through interactive healing circles. By centering Black youth ambassadors and youth-serving professionals, the tour will illuminate the supports necessary to build safe, restorative school environments. Through dialogue and lived experiences, participants will explore innovative approaches such as the Restorative Schools in Virginia pilot program, school-based mental health initiatives, and community schools.

The tour includes four Restorative Healing Circles across Virginia—Richmond, Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, and Southwest Virginia. Each event lasts about two hours and includes:

• Youth ambassadors (ages 13–18) leading conversations about what’s really going on in schools.
• A chance to speak honestly and be heard by decision-makers and adults who can make change.
• Learning about real programs—like the Restorative Schools in Virginia Pilot Program and community schools—that show what safer, more caring schools can be.
• A moment to share ideas for how schools can support mental health, stop harmful discipline, and help students feel like they belong.

Every voice matters—and yours can help shape what the future of Virginia’s schools looks like.

Youth Power

The Black Youth Mental Health Collaborative is a movement led by young people who are ready to turn pain into purpose. With support from Transformative Changes, ambassadors are trained to lead healing circles, build advocacy skills, and create art, stories, and campaigns that shift the way people think about Black youth and mental health.

You’ll be part of something bigger—helping design what real safety, care, and leadership look like for your generation.

If you’re between 13 and 18 years old and care about mental health, justice, and community—this is your space.

You’ll get to:

• Join other young leaders from across Virginia.
• Defy myths and shape a narrative around what safe and restorative schools look like. 
• Review policy solutions for 2026 and help shape policy solutions for 2027. 
• Speak your truth in front of people who make the rules.
• Learn how to lead change through storytelling, advocacy, and healing.
• Build friendships and confidence while shaping the future of your school and community.

Restorative Healing Circle Structure

Each regional Restorative Healing Circle includes no more than 10 participants (including volunteers and youth), and is supported by a coordinated team:

• 1–2 Circle Keepers (trained restorative or healing-centered practitioners)
• 3–4 Youth Ambassadors per region (share stories, frame needs, and lead parts of the circle)
• 1 Mental Health / Crisis Support
• 1 Cultural Facilitator
• 1 Somatic Support
• 1 Notetaker
• 2–3 Witnesses / Decision-Makers

Together, these roles create a space where youth lead, decision-makers listen, and communities co-create the conditions for safety and belonging in Virginia schools.

Steering Staff (Transformative Changes & The Commonwealth Institute)

• Oversee tour coordination, communications, and alignment across regions.
• Assist with logistics, communications, and ensuring each circle runs smoothly.

Logistics Support

Help with on-site coordination: greeting participants, timekeeping, set-up and break-down, and answering questions as people arrive.

1. Recruit: Help identify and recruit youth ambassadors, local leaders, and community partners to participate in your region’s Restorative Healing Circle.

2. Volunteer to Serve on the Support Team: Join as part of the facilitation and care team that helps hold the space and ensure a safe, restorative environment. 

Volunteer roles include:

• Mental Health / Crisis Support: Provide emotional grounding and crisis response if needed.
• Cultural Facilitator: Offer arts-based grounding (e.g., drumming, spoken word, music, or dance).
• Somatic Support: Lead mindful movement or breathwork to help participants regulate and stay present.
• Notetaker: Capture reflections, insights, and commitments that emerge during the circle.

3.  Serve as a Circle Keeper
Are you a restorative or healing-centered engagement practitioner?
 

Each Restorative Healing Circle includes:

• 1–2 Circle Keepers (trained restorative practitioners or healing-centered engagement practitioners, often with youth + adult co-facilitation).

4. Join as a Witness
Decision-makers are invited to bear witness — to listen deeply, acknowledge harm, and commit to repair.

Witness participants include:

• 2–3 Legislators or Guests – listen actively, reflect back, and identify pathways to policy change.
• 1–2 School Board Members – engage in dialogue and consider district-level implications.
• 2–3 Educators or Practitioners – administrators, teachers, school resource officers, safety officers, or counselors offering on-the-ground perspectives.

5. Donate or Sponsor the Tour
Support the movement financially or in-kind. You can:

• Donate your venue (school, community center, or faith-based space) for a regional circle.
• Sponsor youth participation stipend ($100 per youth), meals, materials, or transportation.
• Contribute financially to sustain the work of the Black Youth Mental Health Collaborative.

6. Advocate Beyond the Tour
Join us during the Virginia General Assembly session to advance policies that fund care, not punishment, and expand restorative, healing-centered school models statewide.

The Safe & Restorative Schools Learning Tour invites legislators, school leaders, mental health professionals, and community partners to participate in one of four regional circles this fall. 

Together, we will:

• Listen to the lived experiences of Black youth.
• Learn how restorative practices and culturally grounded mental health supports create safer, more inclusive schools.
• Lead with solutions that fund care, not punishment.

By joining this journey, participants will help shape the future of restorative education and youth mental health in Virginia—creating schools where Black youth can heal, belong, and lead.

October:

• Applications open for youth ambassadors (Oct 8).
• Interviews and selection by Transformative Changes (Oct 27 - Nov 5).

November:

• Storytelling & Advocacy Training (Nov 8 at 10 a.m.–12 p.m).
• Learning Tour Circles:
  • Nov 15 – Richmond & Northern Virginia (10 a.m.–12 p.m.)
  • Nov 22 – Hampton Roads & Southwest Virginia (10 a.m.–12 p.m.)

December:

• Virtual Reflection & Planning Meeting (Dec 6 at 10 a.m.–12 p.m).

January:

• Youth-Led Direct Action or Arts Campaign during the 2026 General Assembly (MLK Day or Presidents’ Day).

Reach out to Transformative Changes:

• Email Carissa, CO-ED at [carissa@transformativechanges.org]
• Email Chlo'e, Policy Director at [cedwards@newvirginiamajority.org]

Or visit www.transformativechanges.org.

AAKOMA Project. (2022). State of Mental Health of Youth of Color Report.
Justice4All. (2024). Suspended Progress 2024.
Mental Health America. (2024). State of Mental Health in America Report.
The Commonwealth Institute. (2024). Funding Inequities in Virginia’s Public Schools.
Virginia Board for People with Disabilities. (2022). The School-to-Prison Pipeline Assessment.
Virginia Department of Health. (2023). Youth Risk Behavior Survey.