Programs Promoting Peace
We believe that disrupting harmful systems requires a comprehensive, intersectional approach. Each of our learning opportunities can stand alone or be paired with other domains to take participants’ learning deeper. Members of our staff can help your organization build a meaningful, intersectional plan for learning.
Implicit Bias
Intro to Implicit Bias
This introductory workshop is 1.5 hours and focuses on building a basic awareness and general understanding of its impact. Participants will also be guided through self-reflection around how bias may show up in their lives.
Implicit Bias for Adults
This 4.5-hour workshop will guide participants from a basic awareness of implicit bias to a contextualized understanding of the concept during the first part of the workshop. From there, participants will be able to dive deeper by exploring tools for measuring their own implicit bias. They will also be provided with the knowledge and strategies necessary to disrupt implicit bias in their own lives.
Implicit Bias for Health Care Workers
This 4.5-hour workshop contains many of the same essential components as our general implicit bias workshop. However, it contextualizes participants’ understanding through a health care lens and provides strategies specific to the field.
Implicit Bias for Teens
This 1.5-hour workshop will build on teens’ understanding of stereotypes to build awareness of implicit bias, its impact, and how it can be disrupted.
Interrupting Microaggressions
This 2-hour workshop will define the term “microaggressions” and lead participants through a discussion that unpacks the term, its history, and its present impact. Participants will also be informed on ways to disrupt microaggressions in their lives.
Critical Conversations
This 2-hour workshop brings together foundations of SEL with an equity focus to inform participants on how to have challenging values-based conversations about issues of identity and bias. Participants will learn what helps and what hinders healthy dialogue, and they will be given time to practice skills for interrupting bias/prejudice/bigotry.
Equity Circles for Educators
Educators who engage with this 2-hour workshop will build their competency and confidence in leading proactive, content-based circles in their classroom. Participants should have attended prior training in restorative practices and antiracism.
Equity Dialogue Circles
This roughly 2-hour experience makes space for peers, neighbors, or colleagues to discuss a variety of topics with an equity focus. Dialogue circles meld practices from proactive circles and Civic Reflection. Our staff will work with group organizers to identify relevant topics and sources.
Analyzing Power for Equity
This 6.5-hour workshop identifies and defines power and oppression and analyzes how it is used in a variety of contexts. Participants will learn about the 4 I’s of Oppression and how power impacts different groups. The workshop asks participants to apply their power analysis to the institutions they connect with and their own roles, identifying opportunities to work for Equity. This workshop acts a foundational workshop for equity work. It can be completed in two 3-hour sessions or one full day.
Social Justice Leadership Camp
This two-week-long summer offering is for teens, and focuses on analyzing and building power. Over the course of the camp, participants will discuss topics of human rights and -isms and how they connect with communities in central Indiana. Participants will be connected with various resources and organizations in Indianapolis in order to encourage youth leadership.
Social Justice Leadership Workshops
These 1.5-hour workshops bring the Social Justice Leadership Camp experience into your classroom or out-of-school program. Over the course of 9 to 13 sessions, participants will be introduced to the same concepts as those explored during our summer offering. You can also choose from the list of offerings to complement your ongoing curriculum, in a one-time to 13-time experience. These can be done in-class or as a field trip to PLC.
We have over 20 Family Learning modules that can be facilitated with both small and large groups in a variety of settings. If you’re interested, please fill out the form below and a member of our staff will be in touch!
Restorative Practices 101
A 1 hour workshop that answers the questions “what are Restorative Practices?” and “why do people choose to use them?”
Level 1 Restorative Practices
This full-day workshop, which can be offered in two parts, focuses on the social-emotional basics and mindset needed to engage in restorative work. It will also inform participants on proactive strategies, relationship building, and community building. Participants will learn how to hold restorative chats, an informal way to problem solve.
Level 2 Restorative Practices
This full-day workshop, which can be offered in two parts, builds upon learning from Level 1 to inform participants about the use of Responsive Circles and Formal Restorative Conferencing.
Restorative Practices Implementation
This 3-hour workshop focuses on implementing restorative practices in a school context for practitioners who want to spend time tackling the work it takes to institutionalize these practices.
Train the Trainer
This 4.5 day workshop series guides participants through sessions dedicated to the basics of Restorative Justice, implementation, and Restorative Conferencing. Time will also be spent learning about implicit bias and its role in Restorative Practices. Finally, participants will be given specific guidance on implementing Restorative Practices in their context and provided with the resources necessary to train others.
Self-Paced Individual or Group Learning
Restorative Module 1 & Restorative Module 2 are each 2-hour videos that cover restorative practice basics. Each module has an accompanying reflection journal.
Refresher Workshop
A 2-hour training for groups who have been fully trained, but need some review and practice in knowing which restorative strategy to choose for various situations.
SEL for Adults Series
Every module will offer opportunities for Investigation, Reflection, Identification, Application. Participants are encouraged to move through each module sequentially but are not necessarily required to do so.
Each workshop is 2 hours long. An educator-specific version of this series is also available.
Module 1: Building a Foundation for Social-emotional Wellness
Participants will be introduced to the basic aspects of Social Emotional Learning and learn about why SEL is beneficial to people of all ages.
Module 2: Exploration of Self
Participants will engage in identity work, reflect on their current competencies, and become acquainted with factors that contribute positively and negatively to their personal and professional lives.
Module 3: Exploration of Systems
Participants will explore how inequity/bias harm all members of a community, and how effective SEL initiatives operate on a systemic level.
Module 4: Strategies to Support Self
Participants will learn about and have the chance to practice strategies related to self-care, resilience, and reflection.
Module 5: Strategies for Inclusion
Participants will learn about and have the chance to practice strategies related to building meaningful relationships and authentic connections.
Module 6: Strategies for Influence
Participants will learn about and have the chance to practice strategies related to conflict resolution and appreciating differences.
Module 7: Strategies for Community
Participants will learn about and have the chance to practice strategies related to disrupting systemic inequity and creating a culture of community care.
Culturally Relevant/Responsive Practices Workshops
Participants are not required to complete all workshops in the series. However, CRP 101 must be completed before attending any other CRP workshop. These workshops are intended for educators and school or district administrators.
CRP 101
A 1 to 2-hour introductory workshop that helps educators understand both cultural relevance and cultural responsiveness, explore their own identities, and learn about basic CR practices.
Creating a Culturally Relevant Classroom Community
This 2 to 3-hour workshop will provide the opportunity for guided reflection about existing classroom cultures, and introduce actionable ways that educators can honor and include students’ varied identities.
How to Incorporate CRP into Your Curriculum
This 2 to 3-hour workshop will build off of elements of earlier CRP learning opportunities, allowing more time for guided application of CRP principles in the creation or modification of an academic unit of study.
Schoolwide Implementation of Culturally Responsive Practices
In 2 to 3 hours, participants will learn the importance of systemic change, and the various forms it can take. The workshop will culminate in the sharing of actionable ways that administrators and school leaders can facilitate cultural change.
SEL-Academic Integration Workshop
Educators will gain knowledge about the importance of infusing academic units of study with opportunities to practice SEL competencies. A structured time to begin modifying an existing unit of study or to create a new unit of study can be offered if time allows.
Peace Learning Circles Implementation Courses (SIC & ASPIC)
Each module of this 24-hour course must be completed in sequential order. A variety of course structures are available, and the time between modules can be modified to fit the needs of the participating organization.
Please note that 16-course-hours will be spent in a synchronous class setting and 8-course-hours will be dedicated to outside application and reflection.
Module 1: Building Strong Foundations
- Participants will be introduced to the research used to build the Peace Learning Circles framework.
- Participants will be guided through several inquiry activities to help assess their own understanding of SEL and any assumptions they may be bringing into the course.
- Participants will be introduced to foundational elements like the Peace Learning Circles agreements, the stages of group development, and how the process aligns with major SEL competencies.
- Facilitators will lead participants through various scenarios to practice identifying the stages of group development, and the practices that support that stage of development.
- Participants will explore the concept of Multiple Intelligences and complete a self-inventory of their own learning preferences.
Module 2: Promoting Inclusion
- Participants will debrief on any application of concepts or reflections that they completed since the last course meeting.
- Participants will explore the role that personal and community identity plays in creating an inclusive learning environment.
- Participants will do a deep dive into the stage of inclusion, and explore specific strategies and practices that support community-building.
- Participants will explore how culturally responsive practices can help build stronger relationships with youth.
- Participants will be given explicit instruction on how to create Circles (small group communities within the larger learning community).
Module 3: Strengthening Influence
- Participants will again debrief on their experiences with applying what they have learned in their own context.
- Participants will explore the stage of influence, and how it can play a role in empowering youth voice and resolving conflict in the learning community.
- Participants will have the opportunity to practice conflict resolution strategies in small groups.
- Participants will gain an understanding of how the principles of influence can align with academic and afterschool standards.
- Participants will be coached on how to navigate critical conversations around inequity, racism, and bias that may arise as youth move into the group stage of influence.
Module 4: Sustaining Community
- Participants will debrief their experiences applying influence strategies in their context, and reflect on their current comfort level with implementing Peace Learning Circles without the direct support of facilitators.
- Participants will synthesize learning from earlier modules to understand how the community can be sustained long-term.
- Participants will learn how sustaining community and meaningful relationships will facilitate deeper learning.
- Participants will be given structured time to build their own learning experiences and seek feedback from peers and facilitators.
- Participants will be equipped with the tools and knowledge necessary to bring about more widespread change in their organization to sustain Peace Learning Circles long-term.
All Modules
- Participants will be given opportunities for small group discussion and to apply what they have learned.
- Course activities will model and/or incorporate various practices and strategies from the framework, like energizers and inclusion-building activities.
- Each module will address how to implement Peace Learning Circles in an equitable and developmentally appropriate manner.
- Courses will also focus on how to directly align Peace Learning Circles with academic, afterschool, and/or state SEL competencies.*
- All participants will receive a digital course workbook, a physical implementation book, and online access to supplemental materials.
*Open or community courses will base this portion of the course on CASEL competencies, while academic standards will be spoken about more generally.
Peace Learning Circles Train the Trainer
More information about this course is forthcoming. Current or recently lapsed trainers from the Tribes Learning Communities program will receive email correspondence from our staff with guidelines on how to proceed.
Conflict Styles & Resolution
Conflict resolution encourages productive means of resolving conflicts and disagreements. This 2-hour workshop allows participants to explore causes of conflict, how people communicate during conflict, and then equips them with specific strategies for resolution.
Peers Making Peace
This youth-serving program is centered on evidence-based prevention and resiliency strategies. School and afterschool staff will be trained on how to appropriately implement a peer mediation program in their own setting. PMP can help students build social competence, equip them with personal problem-solving skills, foster a sense of autonomy, and provides many opportunities for meaningful participation. It is best suited for students in grades 7 – 12.
Field Trips
Please fill out an interest form to learn more about our field trips and summer offerings.
“The training was an eye opener. [Our school] is becoming a more positive and supportive environment. A lot of the changes are the direct result of the work of the wonderful people at Peace Learning Center.”
“I have seen a real change in her and she is very proud to be a part of SJC and PLC and to have the knowledge she has gained from her times with camp and with you…She was in a bad place and you helped her find her voice and helped her believe in the ability to change her own life by caring and contributing to others’.”