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Students can’t learn and teachers can’t teach when there’s infighting among the students or between students, parents, teachers, or administrators. We provide solutions to create a more productive learning atmosphere, for everyone to enjoy.
They key to classroom harmony is a healthy set of communication skills and respectful dynamic between teachers and students. The Harmony Strategies Group offers one-on-one and group coaching options for teachers and faculty, teaching conflict management and negotiation skills that enhance relationships with each other and students.
Restorative Justice (aka Restorative Practice) focuses on building and maintaining harmony by addressing harm in a collaborative conversation. We apply Community and Restorative Circles to develop a respectful classroom culture and mutual concern among students. We are not interested in “blame and punishment” but rather “repairing the harm.” The process allows for the perpetrator to acknowledge the harm done and make amends, while offering the stakeholders an opportunity for their pain to be heard and validated. The ultimate effect? A harmonious classroom where students can learn effectively, teachers can teach without disruption, and school performance is at its peak.
For more on this topic, see our recent article: “The Magic of Harmony Circles”.
Want more information about Radioactive Practices and Circles?
Bullying, teasing, bickering, and fights are common among students and detract from learning. Many students lack basic discipline at home and are disrespectful and defiant to teachers, staff, and administrators. By assessing student and teacher attitudes and habits, we create action-plans for schools to become better equipped to handle these challenging dynamics. Our solutions prevent unnecessary escalation that drains the entire school system of valuable time and resources. We offer school-wide conflict management assessments and individual coaching to principals, teachers, and key staff. Our coaching and consulting solutions train teachers and staff to treat problems early-on, to optimize the teaching/learning experience and create a school culture of tolerance, respect, and understanding.
Want more information about Conflict Assessments and Solutions?
Along with other conflict management services, we can train and direct peer-mediation programs in both public and private schools. These programs empower students to effectively handle playground and classroom conflicts themselves. Many of the student-mediators go on to leadership positions, where their mediation training helps them throughout their lives. And other students and teachers benefit from the program by averting power-dynamics problems that can arise when teachers or administrators get involved. Peer mediation programs have been proven to be greatly beneficial, allowing students and teachers alike to focus better in the classroom and beyond.
We offer workshops for educational boards, principals, teachers, and administrators, that highlight key discipline and listening-skills.
In addition to our adult programming, we deliver workshops directly to students, encouraging teamwork, focusing on body language, and introducing inter-active listening-skills. Workshops for students are designed for elementary through high school participants, each customized according to the specific needs of the school.
Get quick tips, thoughts to ponder, and more!
Get quick tips, thoughts to ponder, and more!
Get quick tips, thoughts to ponder, and more!
Drop us a line for a FREE 15 minute consultation to help you handle your conflict or challenge!
Drop us a line for a FREE 15 minute consultation to help you handle your conflict or challenge!
Get quick tips, thoughts to ponder, links to our upcoming courses, and more!
Kimberly Jackson Davidson is currently the University Ombudsperson at George Mason University and member of the Harmony Strategies Group. She spent two decades at Oberlin College in Ohio, holding positions in the Office of the Dean of Students and as Visiting Lecturer in African American Studies. During her final five and a half years there, she served all campus constituencies as Ombudsperson and Director of the Yeworkwha Belachew Center for Dialogue (YBCD). Davidson is active within the International Ombuds Association (IOA), the California Caucus of College and University Ombuds (CCCUO), and the Ombuds Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR). She earned a B.A. in English Literature from Spelman College in 1986 and an M.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in African Literature in 1991.
Hector Escalante is an experienced Ombuds and learning and development professional with over seven years of ombuds experience and over twenty years of experience developing and teaching course offerings which promote inclusion, healthy communication, and conflict resolution. He is the Director of the Ombuds Office at the University of California, Merced, having served many years as the organizational ombuds at the University of the Pacific. He is an ombuds partner with Harmony Strategies Group, and a consulting ombuds for Earthjustice and Union of Concerned Scientists. Hector holds two master’s degrees and a doctorate in education. He is a United States Marine Corps veteran, a husband and father to four children. Hector’s passions include treating all with fairness, equity, dignity, and compassion and good food.
Kira Nurieli is the CEO of the Harmony Strategies Group and is an expert mediator, conflict coach, trainer/facilitator, consultant, and restorative practices facilitator. She has spent upwards of twenty years helping clients handle conflict and improve communication strategies and has presented at numerous conferences and symposia as a subject matter expert. She holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University and a Bachelor’s degree in Comparative Performance from Barnard College. She especially enjoys helping individuals, teams, and lay-leaders become more impactful and empowered in their work and is honored to work alongside her esteemed colleagues with the Harmony Strategies Group.
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