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Anchor formation formation
PAX 532 Formation for Peacebuilding Practice (3 SH)
| formation | |
| formation |
As individuals working for peace, social justice, reduction of violence, and the possibility of reconciliation, we are the instruments of the work. How can we best prepare ourselves to take constructive action whether in a professional role or in a personal relationship? This course will explore four areas of awareness and accountability essential for effectiveness in our action efforts. These areas of content and engagement, described more fully in the syllabus, are self-awareness, self-assessment, self-management, and self- and community care.
In focusing on these four areas, we’ll consider the roles we play, the skills we have and need, and the processes available to us for doing the work. The intensive online on-line experience will make use of in-person instruction and conversation, video inputs, personal action and reflection, paired and plenary discussion, demonstration/presentation and a sampling of non-traditional forms of learning and integration (e.g. arts-based methods, play, music/rhythm, etc.). We will also plan and practice (as appropriate) selected strategies for structuring conversations and decision-making. Course participants will strengthen their abilities to understand and manage self, attend to self/communal care, and assess appropriateness of action. And in this unusual time globally, we will practice and reflect on physical, intellectual, emotional, social , and spiritual elements of well-being and growth. This course is being offered for 3 graduate academic credits. It cannot be taken for reduced credit or as training.
This course is taught during our annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute and will take place online in 2021 (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
Anchor analysis analysis
PAX 533 Analysis: Understanding Conflict (3 SH)
| analysis | |
| analysis |
Analysis Analysis focuses on understanding the factors that cause conflict and violence and those that support peacebuilding and social justice. Good conflict and injustice analysis skills are a central component of designing effective strategies for conflict transformation and constructive promoting social change that transforms conflicts and supports justice.
In this unusual global time, it is especially important to consider the social systems and other variables that contribute to inequities, instability, and conflict as we determine ways to respond. We’re offering this online course to provide practical tools for understanding and planning. We will highlight course, we will engage with each other and with course materials to develop and refine our skills for analyzing situations of conflict and injustice in order to identify opportunities for transformative action. We will use a variety of analytical models or lenses, including identity (gender, religion, nationality, etc.) culture and worldview; social systems and structures; power, influence and domination; human needs, human rights, and dignity; narratives and discoursenarrative, power, culture, worldview, and others to understand conflict. We will engage with each other and with course materials (readings, video, assignments and activities) both simultaneously in real time (synchronous) and on our own schedule (asynchronous).Case studies of conflicts/social injustice will provide content and an opportunity to practice analysis skills. also work with case studies of conflicts at multiple social levels (personal, relational, structural, and cultural) to practice our analysis skills and identify opportunities to take action.
Participants will also practice self-analysis skills by paying attention to their own roles and biases in conflict conflicts and how that affects their ability to “see” and describe situations conflict from multiple different perspectives and plan for change. The class will include practical also focus on research strategies for gathering and organizing data and will utilize developing theories of change as an intermediate step from analysis to the design of designing effective social change. For the final project, participants will select a situation and conduct their own analysis. This course is taught during our annual
The course will be taught using a combination of asynchronous (self-paced) activities and synchronous activities. This course is for academic credit only. It requires participation in synchronous sessions on Mondays and Wednesdays May 17 – June 16 and follow-up assignments due in July and August. Course work to be completed by August 20.
This course is taught during our annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute and will take place online in 2021 (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
Anchor foundations foundations
PAX 534 Foundations for Justice & Peacebuilding 1 (6 SH)
| foundations | |
| foundations |
...
Fall 2020's iteration of the course will be taught in an asynchronous format via Voice Thread. Course participants will need to create a VoiceThread account (full name and email address required).
This is a core requirements for MA in Restorative Justice students. This course is offered every fall and in the Summer Peacebuilding Institute.
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This is one of several seminar courses that are geared primarily to second year graduate students at the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding. They require that a student have taken Foundations 1 & 2 unless otherwise noted. These seminar courses will be capped at 15 students, with up to 18 students with special instructor permission. Students from other graduate programs should meet with the professor to determine the suitability of the course for their learning goals. In order to participate in this particular advanced seminar, students will be required to have completed either PAX 534 Foundations 1 (offered by CJP) OR MBA 564 Organizational OLS 530 Organizational Behavior (offered byEMU’s MBA Organizational Leadersthip program).
Anchor foundationstwo foundationstwo
PAX 634 Foundations for Justice & Peacebuilding 2 (6 SH)
| foundationstwo | |
| foundationstwo |
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In this course we explore why sexual harm has become normalized in contemporary society and how we can generate change through practical actions that build more accountable and restorative environments. We scrutinize the power dynamics vested in institutions and organizational protocols looking at their impacts on norms, standards, and responses to sexual violence. We also examine best practices for addressing harms done and facilitating education for prevention. The goals for our time together are to become more proficient at facilitating spaces for truth-telling, justice-building, post-traumatic healing, and resilience-making. Through arts-based exercises, case studies, circle processes, media sharing, and guided reflection, we examine how to proactively break cycles of sexual harm. This course will be taught next at Summer Peacebuilding Institute in 2021 (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
Anchor
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circle
| circle |
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circle
PAX
| circle |
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“Truth-telling” is paramount in the quest for justice, particularly against the backdrop of silenced historical harm. This course grapples with the form and function of truth telling in the pursuit of justice and critically explores linkages between the two. We will survey and analyze historical approaches to truth-telling in the international context, whether in the context of truth commissions or indigenous practices. Of particular interest in this course are the emerging truth-telling, racial healing and reparations initiatives in the United States to address racial violence against African-Americans. Together, using restorative justice-based and critical race pedagogical approaches, we will grapple with the following questions and more:
- What does truth-telling mean in the quest for justice?
- How has truth-telling looked in historical international contexts and how is it looking in the contemporary domestic context?
- What form have truth and reconciliation processes taken historically?
- How do we distinguish restorative justice-based truth-telling processes from historical transitional justice processes?
- How might we envision a restorative justice-based truth, racial healing and reparations process to address racial violence in the US against African-Americans?
This course is taught during our annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
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This course will introduce participants to the peacemaking circle process and explore:
- foundational values and philosophy of peacemaking circles,
- conflict as opportunity to build relationships,
- creating safe, respectful space for dialog
- consensus decision making,
- structure of the circle process,
- facilitation of the circle process
- practical applications of circle process,
- problems and challenges in circles.
This course will use the peacemaking circle process as the primary form of group work.
This course is intended to provide experience in the circle process as well as an understanding of the foundational values and key structural elements for designing and conducting peacemaking circles. The class will prepare students to design and facilitate peacemaking circles in a variety of situations.
3 SH version of this class is offered during our annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
...
Course work undertaken through independent study must be approved by the student’s academic advisor and completed in collaboration with a supervising instructor.
Please note: Directed/independent study courses will only be approved for students who have demonstrated the ability to do independent work (and therefore not approved in the first semester of a student’s program). See the registrar or your advisor to learn about independent study options.
...
Restorative Justice originated as a practice-based discipline. However, the field has experienced exponential growth in the theory and research of RJ in the last decade. The course will be framed by four essential values of RJ: encounter, amends, reintegration and inclusion. The content of the course will be embedded in the key practice models that drive the Restorative Justice field – VOC/VOD, FGC, and Circle Processes. The class will also explore structural applications of RJ practice in the workplace, schools, prisons, dealing with historical harms, and in transitional justice processes globally. Conducted in a seminar format, students will have ample lab time to exercise the skills, complete assignments that are directly related to in-field competencies (e.g. policy reviews, writing program concept and funding documents, facilitating training sessions and engaging in self and peer assessments), as well as grapple with the theory and ethics that drive RJ practice. For MA in Conflict Transformation students this course satisfies the skills assessment course requirement if taken for 3 credits. It is a required course for all students enrolled in the MA and Certificate in Restorative Justice programs. PAX 571 Restorative Justice is a prerequisite for this class unless special permission granted.
...
The recent expansion of the Restorative Justice (RJ) field is almost breathtaking. We are now seeing an exponential volume of research, writing and practice exploding on the scene. This is exciting on one hand, daunting on another. There is general consensus that RJ as a field is at the edge of a totally new level of impact and influence. While controversial, many leaders in the field feel that RJ will either fade away, or be co-opted by the legal system as long as we view it as only one more "social service reform.” However, if we understand it as a “social justice movement” and study and apply it as such it has a great potential for both serious interpersonal and structural transformation. This course is geared toward empowering RJ practitioners and thinkers who are prepared to position themselves (both internally and externally) as change agents for political, legal and social justice systems shifts. Through intensive reading, structured debates, tailor-made research on critical and emerging RJ issues, and interaction with leaders in the field, we will explore whole system applications of RJ in public violence contexts, in realigning societal institutions such as in schools, prisons, courts, and governance structures, and in post-war reconstruction efforts through hybrid transitional justice processes.
Each student is required to identify a particular “real-time” case scenario that they will use as their source material for developing a comprehensive whole systems RJ approach to structural change. The Emergent-Adaptive Systems model introduced and used in Foundations I & II, along with the work around Human Systems Dynamics (HSD) - www.hsdinstitute.org/ will provide the primary frameworks for this course. Key terms and concepts that will be utilized to guide our thinking are:
- Chaos, disorganization & self-organizing theory
- Social capital networks and interdependencies (Network Weaving)
- Coalition building, social mobilization, and social movement theory & practice
- Systemic inputs & outputs, and
- Structural Information & Communication feedback loops.
The course is facilitated in a high-flex seminar format (both in-person and online) using student-led reading summaries & discussions, progressive portfolio presentations, group analysis & brainstorming (e.g. a think-tank model) and virtual interaction with various practice leaders in the fields of emergent-adaptive systems and restorative justice.
This is one of several seminar courses that are geared primarily to second year graduate students in the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding. These seminar courses will be capped at 15 students, with up to 18 students with special instructor permission. Students from other graduate programs should meet with the professor to determine the suitability of the course for their learning goals. In order to participate in this advanced seminar, students will be required to have completed either the Foundations 1 and 2 courses (offered by CJP) OR for MAED students either PAX 571 or PAX 676. This course satisfies a core requirement for MA in RJ students.
...
The Center for Justice & Peacebuilding is a practice-oriented academic program. The theories of change and the practice skills offered at CJP are meant to prepare individuals for a career in real world settings of complex conflict and injustice. The practicum is a time for learning and preparing for a career through personal involvement in and reflection on initiatives in actual situations. It is also a time to learn new theories and practice skills at the practicum site. Overall this hands on experience, with extensive interaction with people outside the classroom, and in organizations dealing with the subjects of students’ specializations, provides first-time or additional work experience for CJP students. Their experience is critical to employers as well as overall career development. Therefore, being prepared academically and having additional work experience through a practicum strengthens the individual student’s ability and capacity to offer a full range of experience to the people they will eventually work for and serve. In addition to doing an organizational practicum, CJP students may do a research-based practicum (independent or nested within an organization). For more information, refer to the practicum webpage. The practicum is required for MA in Conflict Transformation and MA in Restorative Justice students. In very select cases, a student may be granted permission to pursue a thesis (PAX 683 described below) in lieu of a practicum.
...
CJP MA in Restorative Justice or MA in Conflict Transformation full-time, residential students are able to petition the Academic Committee for an exception to the general rule that all students will do a practicum (PAX 682). Students will be vetted based on their experience and the quality of their proposal. A maximum of two persons per year will be granted this thesis option. This option is normally available only for those students planning on doing their practicum/thesis in the spring of their second year and for those that will be in residence. An exception to these guidelines will be considered for a student who has proven themselves to be both an excellent writer and a self-initiator. A student can make the case to write from a distance or on an alternate time table if they have:
- Demonstrated capacity (at CJP) to complete complex research and writing projects in a timely manner.
- Adequate access to Internet and technology to support the process.
- Strong writing and editing skills so that there is limited or no need for writing support.
Applicants for a thesis option should identify their area of focus by the end of their second semester and should select seminar courses and electives in their third semester so that they are completing a robust literature review prior to the thesis semester. Once granted permission to do a thesis in lieu of a practicum, the student will:
- Formally ask two professors to serve as their thesis advisors (the student should have preliminary conversations with faculty members to gauge their interest).
- Research and write a publishable master’s level thesis (for example, 40-50 pages for 6 credits).
- Present the thesis (both a thesis defense and capstone to broader CJP and EMU community).
- Submit thesis to be bound and placed in the EMU library collection.
...
CJP attempts to offer a wide variety of courses on critical issues and skills needed in the peacebuilding field. Especially in our Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI) each May and June, we offer new topics courses based on what we are hearing is needed most out in the field. These topics courses are one time offerings that may or may not be offered again but are not a required part of the graduate program (though students may take these courses as elective credits). Recent offerings include those listed below.
...
Get ready to engage with activists and scholars advancing feminist, queer, and anti-racist perspectives through their books, zines, digital stories, webinars, blog posts, art, toolkits and workshop curricula! This course introduces students to the rich body of thinking and practice emerging from feminist, antiracist and LGBTQ anti-violence movements. Using resources from these movements, we will examine critical, intersectional approaches for understanding interpersonal violence, systemic oppression, and institutional harm. We will also explore strategies for addressing interpersonal violence that involve grassroots organizing, cultural activism, and nonviolent collective action. We will place this work within the context of feminist activism led by women of color in the Global South and North, and draw further inspiration from indigenous movement-building to reclaim one’s own traditions.
We will give special attention to the analysis, principles and practices emerging from the contemporary transformative justice and community accountability movement. The transformative justice movement works to prevent, intervene and respond to harm without reliance on incarceration, policing, and other punitive interventions. Transformative justice (TJ) is an approach that seeks safety, healing and accountability by addressing root causes of violence, while building personal and collective capacity for transformation that furthers individual and social change. TJ shares principles and values of restorative justice, but is also distinctive in its origins, analysis, social vision and key areas of focus. While much of this praxis emerges from and focuses on U.S. and North American spaces in the 21st century, we will also be attentive to its implications for other geographic, social and political contexts.
As an advanced seminar course, most class time will be spent in learner-centered discussion.
This course will be offered for the first time in fall 2020 as an advanced seminar course available to students who have taken PAX 634 Foundations 2 or have received permission of the instructor.
...
Many of the systems in which we live and work are dysfunctional and mired in conflict. One strategy for transforming them is through deliberative dialogue processes that engage the whole system: whether community, organization or society. Such processes can enable us to respond creatively to our most complex challenges and move us toward more equitable, just and positive relationships and structures. Through this class, we will explore how complexity and identity theories, conflict analysis, and power assessment inform collaborative process design. We ask tough questions about what kind of processes are relevant for cultivating different phases of change and explore ethics underpinning the praxis of process design rooted in awareness of our ‘positionality’ in the system. We will learn about many process methodologies such as Appreciative Inquiry, Courageous Conversations, Emergent Strategies, Narrative Practice, Open Space, Polarity Management, Transformative Scenario Planning, World Café, and others. We will critically explore their underlying theories of change and theories of practice in ways that enable participants to become more creative and astute process designers. This class will be most appropriate for participants who already have some familiarity working with groups and is ideal for those with some facilitation practice experience.
...
Caste is an ancient concept that has taken newer forms. In today’s context, it has transformed itself into something dehumanizing. Gender is another aspect of our lives that determines our social order. Being on the lower rung of caste and gender leaves one most vulnerable. This course will look at the intersection of gender and caste and its implications.
...
The Bible has often been used to justify war and other forms of violence. The biblical story has also been read and interpreted as pertaining to only personal beliefs and behavior rather than communal concerns or social issues. The intent of this course is to explore the biblical story and what it says about issues of violence, justice, and peace. How are people who embrace the biblical story called to apply these understandings to their lives, personally and collectively? How have Christian communities around the world made use of the biblical story as a core component of their efforts to work for safety, emancipation, self-determination, and healing? How can we use biblical narratives in our work to build peace and justice within communities? As we examine these questions, we will center perspectives and traditions of reading the Bible birthed by people experiencing direct violence and oppression. This course is an elective at EMS and CJP. It will not be offered in the 2020-21 academic year.
...
672 Circle Processes (1 SH)
This course will introduce participants to the peacemaking circle process and explore:
- foundational values and philosophy of peacemaking circles,
- conflict as opportunity to build relationships,
- creating safe, respectful space for dialog
- consensus decision making,
- structure of the circle process,
- facilitation of the circle process
- practical applications of circle process,
- problems and challenges in circles.
This course will use the peacemaking circle process as the primary form of group work.
This course is intended to provide experience in the circle process as well as an understanding of the foundational values and key structural elements for designing and conducting peacemaking circles. The class will prepare students to design and facilitate peacemaking circles in a variety of situations.
3 SH version of this class is offered during our annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute (www.emu.edu/cjp/spi/).
Anchor independent independent
PAX 673 Independent Study (1-3 SH)
| independent | |
| independent |
Course work undertaken through independent study must be approved by the student’s academic advisor and completed in collaboration with a supervising instructor.
Please note: Directed/independent study courses will only be approved for students who have demonstrated the ability to do independent work (and therefore not approved in the first semester of a student’s program). See the registrar or your advisor to learn about independent study options.
Anchor rjpractices rjpractices
PAX 676 Restorative Justice Practices (3 SH)
| rjpractices | |
| rjpractices |
Restorative Justice originated as a practice-based discipline. However, the field has experienced exponential growth in the theory and research of RJ in the last decade. The course will be framed by four essential values of RJ: encounter, amends, reintegration and inclusion. The content of the course will be embedded in the key practice models that drive the Restorative Justice field – VOC/VOD, FGC, and Circle Processes. The class will also explore structural applications of RJ practice in the workplace, schools, prisons, dealing with historical harms, and in transitional justice processes globally. Conducted in a seminar format, students will have ample lab time to exercise the skills, complete assignments that are directly related to in-field competencies (e.g. policy reviews, writing program concept and funding documents, facilitating training sessions and engaging in self and peer assessments), as well as grapple with the theory and ethics that drive RJ practice. For MA in Conflict Transformation students this course satisfies the skills assessment course requirement if taken for 3 credits. It is a required course for all students enrolled in the MA and Certificate in Restorative Justice programs. PAX 571 Restorative Justice is a prerequisite for this class unless special permission granted.
Anchor rjapproaches rjapproaches
PAX 677 Restorative Justice & Whole Systems Approaches (3 SH)
| rjapproaches | |
| rjapproaches |
The recent expansion of the Restorative Justice (RJ) field is almost breathtaking. We are now seeing an exponential volume of research, writing and practice exploding on the scene. This is exciting on one hand, daunting on another. There is general consensus that RJ as a field is at the edge of a totally new level of impact and influence. While controversial, many leaders in the field feel that RJ will either fade away, or be co-opted by the legal system as long as we view it as only one more "social service reform.” However, if we understand it as a “social justice movement” and study and apply it as such it has a great potential for both serious interpersonal and structural transformation. This course is geared toward empowering RJ practitioners and thinkers who are prepared to position themselves (both internally and externally) as change agents for political, legal and social justice systems shifts. Through intensive reading, structured debates, tailor-made research on critical and emerging RJ issues, and interaction with leaders in the field, we will explore whole system applications of RJ in public violence contexts, in realigning societal institutions such as in schools, prisons, courts, and governance structures, and in post-war reconstruction efforts through hybrid transitional justice processes.
Each student is required to identify a particular “real-time” case scenario that they will use as their source material for developing a comprehensive whole systems RJ approach to structural change. The Emergent-Adaptive Systems model introduced and used in Foundations I & II, along with the work around Human Systems Dynamics (HSD) - www.hsdinstitute.org/ will provide the primary frameworks for this course. Key terms and concepts that will be utilized to guide our thinking are:
- Chaos, disorganization & self-organizing theory
- Social capital networks and interdependencies (Network Weaving)
- Coalition building, social mobilization, and social movement theory & practice
- Systemic inputs & outputs, and
- Structural Information & Communication feedback loops.
The course is facilitated in a high-flex seminar format (both in-person and online) using student-led reading summaries & discussions, progressive portfolio presentations, group analysis & brainstorming (e.g. a think-tank model) and virtual interaction with various practice leaders in the fields of emergent-adaptive systems and restorative justice.
This is one of several seminar courses that are geared primarily to second year graduate students in the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding. These seminar courses will be capped at 15 students, with up to 18 students with special instructor permission. Students from other graduate programs should meet with the professor to determine the suitability of the course for their learning goals. In order to participate in this advanced seminar, students will be required to have completed either the Foundations 1 and 2 courses (offered by CJP) OR for MAED students either PAX 571 or PAX 676. This course satisfies a core requirement for MA in RJ students.
Anchor practicum practicum
PAX 682 Practicum (6-9 SH)
| practicum | |
| practicum |
The Center for Justice & Peacebuilding is a practice-oriented academic program. The theories of change and the practice skills offered at CJP are meant to prepare individuals for a career in real world settings of complex conflict and injustice. The practicum is a time for learning and preparing for a career through personal involvement in and reflection on initiatives in actual situations. It is also a time to learn new theories and practice skills at the practicum site. Overall this hands on experience, with extensive interaction with people outside the classroom, and in organizations dealing with the subjects of students’ specializations, provides first-time or additional work experience for CJP students. Their experience is critical to employers as well as overall career development. Therefore, being prepared academically and having additional work experience through a practicum strengthens the individual student’s ability and capacity to offer a full range of experience to the people they will eventually work for and serve. In addition to doing an organizational practicum, CJP students may do a research-based practicum (independent or nested within an organization). For more information, refer to the practicum webpage. The practicum is required for MA in Conflict Transformation and MA in Restorative Justice students. In very select cases, a student may be granted permission to pursue a thesis (PAX 683 described below) in lieu of a practicum.
Anchor thesis thesis
PAX 683 Thesis (6-9 SH)
| thesis | |
| thesis |
CJP MA in Restorative Justice or MA in Conflict Transformation full-time, residential students are able to petition the Academic Committee for an exception to the general rule that all students will do a practicum (PAX 682). Students will be vetted based on their experience and the quality of their proposal. A maximum of two persons per year will be granted this thesis option. This option is normally available only for those students planning on doing their practicum/thesis in the spring of their second year and for those that will be in residence. An exception to these guidelines will be considered for a student who has proven themselves to be both an excellent writer and a self-initiator. A student can make the case to write from a distance or on an alternate time table if they have:
- Demonstrated capacity (at CJP) to complete complex research and writing projects in a timely manner.
- Adequate access to Internet and technology to support the process.
- Strong writing and editing skills so that there is limited or no need for writing support.
Applicants for a thesis option should identify their area of focus by the end of their second semester and should select seminar courses and electives in their third semester so that they are completing a robust literature review prior to the thesis semester. Once granted permission to do a thesis in lieu of a practicum, the student will:
- Formally ask two professors to serve as their thesis advisors (the student should have preliminary conversations with faculty members to gauge their interest).
- Research and write a publishable master’s level thesis (for example, 40-50 pages for 6 credits).
- Present the thesis (both a thesis defense and capstone to broader CJP and EMU community).
- Submit thesis to be bound and placed in the EMU library collection.
Anchor spi spi
PAX 684 - PAX 694 (1-3 SH)
| spi | |
| spi |
CJP attempts to offer a wide variety of courses on critical issues and skills needed in the peacebuilding field. Especially in our Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI) each May and June, we offer new topics courses based on what we are hearing is needed most out in the field. These topics courses are one time offerings that may or may not be offered again but are not a required part of the graduate program (though students may take these courses as elective credits). Recent offerings include those listed below.
Anchor endingviolence endingviolence
PAX 684 Ending Violence, Shifting Power (3 SH)
| endingviolence | |
| endingviolence |
Get ready to engage with activists and scholars advancing feminist, queer, and anti-racist perspectives through their books, zines, digital stories, webinars, blog posts, art, toolkits and workshop curricula! This course introduces students to the rich body of thinking and practice emerging from feminist, antiracist and LGBTQ anti-violence movements. Using resources from these movements, we will examine critical, intersectional approaches for understanding interpersonal violence, systemic oppression, and institutional harm. We will also explore strategies for addressing interpersonal violence that involve grassroots organizing, cultural activism, and nonviolent collective action. We will place this work within the context of feminist activism led by women of color in the Global South and North, and draw further inspiration from indigenous movement-building to reclaim one’s own traditions.
We will give special attention to the analysis, principles and practices emerging from the contemporary transformative justice and community accountability movement. The transformative justice movement works to prevent, intervene and respond to harm without reliance on incarceration, policing, and other punitive interventions. Transformative justice (TJ) is an approach that seeks safety, healing and accountability by addressing root causes of violence, while building personal and collective capacity for transformation that furthers individual and social change. TJ shares principles and values of restorative justice, but is also distinctive in its origins, analysis, social vision and key areas of focus. While much of this praxis emerges from and focuses on U.S. and North American spaces in the 21st century, we will also be attentive to its implications for other geographic, social and political contexts.
As an advanced seminar course, most class time will be spent in learner-centered discussion.
This course was offered fall 2020 as an advanced seminar course available to students who had taken PAX 634 Foundations 2 or received permission of the instructor.
Anchor processdesign processdesign
PAX 685 Designing Processes for Conflict Transformation (3 SH)
| processdesign | |
| processdesign |
Many of the systems in which we live and work are dysfunctional and mired in conflict. One strategy for transforming them is through deliberative dialogue processes that engage the whole system: whether community, organization or society. Such processes can enable us to respond creatively to our most complex challenges and move us toward more equitable, just and positive relationships and structures. Through this class, we will explore how complexity and identity theories, conflict analysis, and power assessment inform collaborative process design. We ask tough questions about what kind of processes are relevant for cultivating different phases of change and explore ethics underpinning the praxis of process design rooted in awareness of our ‘positionality’ in the system. We will learn about many process methodologies such as Appreciative Inquiry, Courageous Conversations, Emergent Strategies, Narrative Practice, Open Space, Polarity Management, Transformative Scenario Planning, World Café, and others. We will critically explore their underlying theories of change and theories of practice in ways that enable participants to become more creative and astute process designers. This class will be most appropriate for participants who already have some familiarity working with groups and is ideal for those with some facilitation practice experience.
Anchor caste caste
PAX 687 Gender & Caste (3 SH)
| caste | |
| caste |
Caste is an ancient concept that has taken newer forms. In today’s context, it has transformed itself into something dehumanizing. Gender is another aspect of our lives that determines our social order. Being on the lower rung of caste and gender leaves one most vulnerable. This course will look at the intersection of gender and caste and its implications. This course will be offered spring 2022.
Anchor biblical biblical
PAX 688 Justice, Peace and the Biblical Story (3 SH)
| biblical | |
| biblical |
The Bible has often been used to justify war and other forms of violence. The biblical story has also been read and interpreted as pertaining to only personal beliefs and behavior rather than communal concerns or social issues. The intent of this course is to explore the biblical story and what it says about issues of violence, justice, and peace. How are people who embrace the biblical story called to apply these understandings to their lives, personally and collectively? How have Christian communities around the world made use of the biblical story as a core component of their efforts to work for safety, emancipation, self-determination, and healing? How can we use biblical narratives in our work to build peace and justice within communities? As we examine these questions, we will center perspectives and traditions of reading the Bible birthed by people experiencing direct violence and oppression. This course is an elective at EMS and CJP and is not offered on a regular basis.