2024 Winter Fundraising Campaign Letter

December 2, 2024

As we enter this season of gratitude, we simultaneously (and excitedly!) inhabit a season of growth and development.  Since August we have hired Mikhayla Smith as Senior Program Coordinator and two UGA School of Social Work interns chose placements with us for this academic year. Since writing to you last year, GCC  won two Athens-Clarke County (ACC) grants to help fund our Restorative Justice Diversion (RJD) work, and we were awarded a multi-year contract to support restorative practices training and implementation support at all 23 Clarke County Schools.  You may remember that last year our RJD work was unfunded, though we were receiving and facilitating case referrals from the District Attorney’s Office on a pro-bono basis.  It is because of your generosity and ongoing support that we find ourselves on solid ground taking steps toward our vision of a just and equitable community, where all can prosper and thrive, in Athens and beyond.

L to R:  Jo Barnes, Mikhayla Smith, Journey Perkins, Emma Wilson, and Danny Malec

Last year we’d received 7 RJD case referrals and had successfully completed our first 2 cases.  Since then, we have received 12 more referrals and have successfully completed 9 cases, including our first adult case referred by the ACC Solicitor General’s Office.  

With ACC funding and your continued support, we aim to more than double our case referrals to at least 25 RJD case referrals in 2025.

This is important because each case means at least one youth who will avoid incarceration, probation and/or parole, while receiving increased support for their family and their schooling. They will also have the chance to be directly accountable to and with the people that were harmed; all at the cost of less than $5,000 per case versus an estimated cost of $400,000 per youth incarcerated per year.

Restorative justice-aligned approaches to criminal law systems, communities, schools and workplaces build more positive cultures and work through conflict with increased accountability. Restorative (versus retributive) practices show higher individual engagement, trust, psychological safety, and productivity in every context.

Over our 2023-24 winter fundraising campaign, you helped us reach our goal of $30,000. This year, we ask you to help us raise $40,000 by January 31, 2025.

Your  donations will directly help us:

  • Expand our RJD program capacity
  • Fund a professionally, locally produced video to increase GCC awareness
  • Support a full-time (currently part-time) Operations Manager position
  • Help us meet rising insurance expenses

Will you consider increasing your support this winter and invite a friend or two to also support GCC?

Please donate by visiting us at https://georgiaconflictcenter-bloom.kindful.com/

Or include a check in the remittance envelope and send to:

Georgia Conflict Center

P.O. Box 82024

Athens, GA 30608

In deep gratitude,

Danny Malec, GCC Executive Director

other blogs and recommended reading

Opinion

Where Is the Forgiveness and Grace in Cancel Culture?

A link to an editorial written on 12/28/21 in the New York Times from Michael Eric Dyson, reflecting on Bishop Tutu's approach to apartheid and the limited value of punishment or banishment.

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What GCC Means to Us at Global Village Project

Hannah Edber, director of eduction, at Global Village Project shares how the infusion of restorative practices benefits a school that embraces multiple cultures.

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Cash From Criminal Wrong-Doing Will Now Help Coquitlam Kids

Two unique programs that support Tri-City students are getting nearly $60,000 combined, thanks to proceeds of criminal activity.

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NYC Expands RJ programs

The Bronx community center is one of 16 organizations in New York City receiving a combined $6.5 million over the next year for programs to bolster public safety using restorative justice — a philosophy that aims to build community and mediate arguments through conversation, rather than through discipline or criminal charges. It’s sometimes used as a way for crime victims and perpetrators to make peace. But it can also be used as a tool to help people feel comfortable having difficult discussions. Some New York City school administrators, court officials and nonprofits are already using restorative justice to mediate disputes.

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School-base Restorative Practices Implementation

Black CPS teens benefit most from shift from suspensions toward restorative practices

A new study finds moving to restorative practices to respond to student misconduct has led to a significant reduction in suspensions and arrests.

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RJ and Gender-based Violence

Restorative Approaches for Gender-based Violence

This blog explores restorative approaches to gender-based violence and the relationship between the restorative justice and transformative justice movements.

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