{
	"event_id": "1169086",
	"eventinstance_id": "4242152",
	"calendar": {
		"id": 6605,
		"title": "International Medical Outreach",
		"slug": "international-medical-outreach",
		"url": "https://events.ucf.edu/calendar/6605/international-medical-outreach/"
	},
	"id": "4242152",
	"title": "Public Policy Event: Paths to an Impact in Restorative Justice",
	"subtitle": null,
	"description": "\u003Cp\u003EDescription\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EWhen harm occurs\u0026mdash\u003Ba crime, a campus conflict, an institutional failure\u0026mdash\u003Bcommunities must decide how to respond. Traditional justice asks what rule was broken and what punishment is deserved\u003B restorative justice asks who was harmed, what they need, and whose responsibility it is to repair it. This group forum takes that unsettled choice as its subject: what role should restorative justice play alongside\u0026mdash\u003Bor instead of\u0026mdash\u003Btraditional systems when harm occurs? Bringing together voices from criminal justice reform, clinical and public\u002Dhealth practice, community organizing, and lived experience of the justice system, panelists will offer opposing perspectives on whether restorative approaches can complement, reform, or replace conventional punishment\u003B how mental health, crisis response, and reentry fit into the response to harm\u003B and what genuine accountability requires. \u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EPresented in collaboration with UCF social work faculty member Iradly Roche and the School of Social Work\u0027s student organization, Phi Alpha Social Work Honor Society \u002D Nu Pi Chapter, the forum carries a practical, career\u002Dfacing aim as well: to show students\u0026mdash\u003Bespecially social work students\u0026mdash\u003Bconcrete paths into policy work and advocacy as a means of changing the systems they will one day practice within. Open to students, faculty, staff, and the public.\u0026nbsp\u003B\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003EPanelists:\u0026nbsp\u003B\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ERick Brunson\u003C/strong\u003E is a senior instructor of journalism at UCF and an award\u002Dwinning journalist with more than 40 years of professional experience. Through his work in news media and community storytelling, he brings a perspective on how journalism shapes public understanding of crime, punishment, accountability, and reform.\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWalter Dunn\u003C/strong\u003E is an associate at UCF and a partner in the Florida Coalition for Higher Education in Prison. Following the overturning of his wrongful conviction, he has become an advocate for criminal justice reform, reentry, and educational access, bringing firsthand experience with the impacts of the justice system.\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ELady P\u0026eacute\u003Brez\u003C/strong\u003E is a psychotherapist, public health practitioner, and researcher affiliated with the University of Michigan. Her work focuses on mental health crisis response, trauma\u002Dinformed care, and support for justice\u002Dinvolved individuals, offering a public health and clinical perspective on responding to harm.\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMichael Kostis\u003C/strong\u003E is the Statewide Coordinator for the Florida Coalition for Higher Education in Prison and a community organizer focused on criminal justice reform. His work centers on advocacy, coalition\u002Dbuilding, and policy change efforts that expand educational opportunities and support successful reentry after incarceration.\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIn\u002Dperson location:\u003C/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp\u003BBarbara Ying Center, Room 140\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOnline Join Link:\u003C/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp\u003B\u003Ca href\u003D\u0022https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2769572257631052?p\u003DWHx3oS6D5w8aM6RPEg\u0022 target\u003D\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Ehttps://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2769572257631052?p\u003DWHx3oS6D5w8aM6RPEg\u003C/a\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDate:\u003C/strong\u003E November 5, 2026 (Thursday)\u003C/p\u003E\u000A\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETime:\u003C/strong\u003E Doors open at 3:45 PM for check\u002Din and food\u003B panel event from 4:30 PM \u002D 6:00 PM\u003C/p\u003E",
	"location": "Barbara Ying Center: 140",
	"location_url": "http://map.ucf.edu/locations/71/barbara\u002Dying\u002Dcenter\u002Dbyc/",
	"virtual_url": "https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2769572257631052?p\u003DWHx3oS6D5w8aM6RPEg",
	"registration_link": "https://knightconnect.campuslabs.com/engage/event/12819589/rsvp",
	"registration_info": "Registration on KnightConnect is not required.",
	"starts": "Thu, 05 Nov 2026 15:45:00 -0500",
	"ends": "Thu, 05 Nov 2026 18:00:00 -0500",
	"ongoing": "False",
	"category": "Speaker/Lecture/Seminar",
	"tags": ["Soical Work","Public Policy Events"],
	"contact_name": "Haley Winston",
	"contact_phone": "407\u002D832\u002D0716",
	"contact_email": "haley@ucf.edu",
	"url": "https://events.ucf.edu/event/4242152/public-policy-event-paths-to-an-impact-in-restorative-justice/"
}