/ The Colorado Lawyer
December 2007
Vol. 36, No. 12 [Page27]

Articles
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Colorado’s Community Conflict Resolution and Restorative Justice Services Mini-Grants Program
by Sharon Daly

ADR articles are sponsored by the CBA Alternative Dispute Resolution Section. The articles printed describe recent developments in the evolving field of ADR, with a particular focus on issues affecting Colorado attorneys and ADR providers.

Article Editors:

Jonathan Boonin of Hutchinson, Black & Cook, LLP, Boulder—(303) 442-6514, ; O. Russel Murray of ADRcom.com, Denver—(303) 893-1667,

About the Author:

Sharon Daly, JD, is Projects Manager, Office of Dispute Resolution (ODR), State Court Administrator’s Office, Colorado Judicial Department—. The author acknowledges the assistance of Cynthia Savage, JD, ODR Director, and Thomas Quinn, MA, Director of Probation Services, both of the State Court Administrator’s Office, Colorado Judicial Department.

This article describes the Office of Dispute Resolution’s grant program for funding community conflict resolution (CCR) and restorative justice (RJ) services. The article also explains the unique characteristics, development, and current status of CCR and RJ in Colorado.

The Office of Dispute Resolution (ODR) was created in 1983 by the Colorado Dispute Resolution Act.1 ODR’s mission is to establish or make available dispute resolution programs and related services throughout the state, as designated by the Chief Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. The courts were encouraged to expand use of the Dispute Resolution Act in 1997.2

Since 1999, ODR has been working with Colorado’s community mediation centers to support community conflict resolution (CCR) and restorative justice (RJ) programs and services. All CCR and RJ programs provide some type of court-related services and offer alternatives to the traditional litigation approach and improve access to justice. CCR and RJ services usually are provided by nonprofit organizations; local partnerships; or programs within probation departments, municipal governments, academic institutions, or bar associations. They often are run with minimal staffing—for example, a governing/advisory board, trained volunteers to provide services, and partnerships with referral agencies. The organizations operating CCR and RJ programs typically are under-funded and operate on shoe-string budgets.3 By 1999, a number of states provided significant funding for such programs,4 but Colorado was not one of them.

In April 1999, the Colorado Community Mediation Coalition (CCMC) was formed.5 ODR helped CCMC introduce legislation to establish a Community Mediation Council and to seek funding to support CCR and RJ programs beginning fiscal year (FY) 2000.6 However, CCMC’s effort was unsuccessful and the legislation failed.

In FY 2001, CCMC again tried to obtain funding for CCR and RJ programs. Instead of establishing a separate organization to administer a grant program, the new bill provided that an adjunct committee of the ODR Advisory Committee would oversee the program.7 The bill also introduced a matching grants provision. This bill passed; however, it was vetoed by the Governor for lack of appropriated funds.

CCMC did not pursue funding for CCR-RJ grants over the next few years, because of the severe restrictions of the state budget. For FY 2006, as part of its structural change from cash funding to legislative funding,8 ODR requested funds for CCR and RJ services. The legislature granted the request and, beginning in FY 2006, ODR implemented the CCR-RJ Services Mini-Grants program, modeled conceptually on the legislation introduced in FY 2001.

This article provides a general overview of the ODR’s CCR-RJ Services Mini-Grants program, the types of programs funded, preliminary results of the programs, and program benefits. The article also describes the unique characteristics of CCR and RJ, as well as the development and current status of CCR and RJ in Colorado.

ODR’s CCR-RJ Services Mini-Grants Program

The goal of the CCR-RJ Mini-Grants program is to provide seed money for development of local CCR and RJ programs and services throughout the state. The Mini-Grants program has enabled eight organizations to provide services during the past two grant cycles.9 Six organizations received grants in FY 2007 for the third grant cycle, including two continuation grants.

The reimbursement-based grants10 target unserved or underserved populations and are awarded to create new organizations or agencies or to expand services provided by existing organizations or agencies. Grants for new organizations are available up to $15,000, and grants for expansion of services are available up to $10,000; $60,000 is dedicated to the program each year. ODR also may award continuation grants to extend programs previously funded. Applications for the fourth grant cycle will be available in January 2008.11 ODR is considering the possibility of multi-year grant funding to enable organizations to conduct long-range planning to better sustain their programs.

Who May Apply?

Nonprofit organizations, local governmental entities, and academic or educational institutions may apply for ODR Mini-Grants. Individuals or organizations intending to create start-up organizations or agencies that will fall under these categories also may apply. Colorado Judicial Department divisions, departments, and agencies and their employees are not eligible to apply for or to receive funds from the Mini-Grants program. Municipalities; school districts; district attorney offices; educational institutions; foundations; and nonprofit organizations including community centers, community mediation centers, and RJ programs, have applied for the grants.

Use of Funds

Grant money is distributed on a monthly or quarterly reimbursement basis. Funds will be paid only for personal services costs that are directly related to the proposed project, in accordance with the grantee’s proposal and for expenses that are reasonable and necessary under the circumstances. "Personal services" are personnel costs or contracted nonemployee services required to perform the project. Examples of personnel costs are salary or wages for a project director, project staff, or administrative staff. Examples of contracted nonemployee services are services provided by consultants or contracted services for facilitators, program consultants, trainers, and evaluators.12

Examples of costs that will not be reimbursed are travel, materials, insurance, and food. Funds may not be used: (1) to employ or contract with illegal immigrants or to provide services, directly or indirectly, to illegal immigrants who are age 18 and older; and (2) to employ, contract with, or otherwise compensate current judicial department employees.

Mini-Grants for Fiscal Years 2006–08
The following organizations and programs, in the corresponding Judicial District (JD), have received Office of Dispute Resolution Community Conflict Resolution and Restorative Justice (RJ) Services Mini-Grants in the fiscal year (FY) indicated:
Academy of Urban Living, Denver (2nd JD) (FY 2008)
Services: mediation training to school staff members and conflict resolution video journals for at-risk high school students
Boys and Girls Club of Pueblo, Pueblo (10th JD) (FY 2008)
Services: RJ processes for middle school youth involved in bullying incidents
Braided River Peace Project, Durango (6th JD and Southern Ute Tribe) (FYs 2006 and 2007)
Services: RJ, dispute resolution, mediation, transitional group conferences, and circles of support in schools
City of Greeley (19th JD) (FY 2007)
Services: community mediation
Community Alternatives Face-to-Face, Aurora (18th JD) (FYs 2006 and 2007)
Services: RJ circles for minors in possession of alcohol
The ConflictCenter, Denver (FYs 2006 and 2007)
Services: prevention/conflict resolution skill-building classes at middle and high schools
GunnisonValleyAlliance for Community Restorative Justice, Gunnison (7th JD) (FYs 2007 and 2008)
Services: RJ processes in middle and elementary schools
MesaCountyPartners, Grand Junction (21st JD) (FY 2006)
Services: victim empathy classes for youths in criminal justice system
The ResolutionCenter, Hilltop Community Resources, Grand Junction (21st JD) (FY 2006)
Services: community mediation
SanLuisValley Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program, Alamosa (12th JD) (FYs 2007 and 2008)
Services: parent-teen mediation
17th JD Attorney Diversion Program, Thornton (17th JD) (FY 2008)
Services: accountability group and meaningful community service in first-time felony and misdemeanor pre-court filing diversion cases
Victim Offender Reconciliation Program of Denver, Denver (2nd JD) (FY 2008)
Services: education and RJ circles for first-time shoplifters

Application Review Process

Proposals are reviewed and scored by a review committee. Committee members are appointed by the ODR Director and represent the perspectives of the ODR, CCR programs, RJ programs, and the courts. The review committee evaluates proposals based on the information submitted in the proposal within the following categories: proposed project, organization and capacity, project evaluation, organization and program sustainability, and budget. Geographic diversity also is considered. The review committee’s funding recommendations are submitted to the ODR Advisory Committee for review, and then submitted to the ODR Director. After further due diligence review by ODR and others within the State Court Administrator’s Office, the ODR Director makes the final decision on whether to fund programs.

Funded Programs

In the three years that the ODR Mini-Grants program has been in place, a variety of CCR and RJ programs have received funds to provide services. Examples of services provided by the programs that have received funds include:

  • restorative group conferencing, peace making circles, victim/offender dialogue for adults and youths
  • violence prevention/conflict resolution skill-building classes for middle school and high school students
  • court-ordered victim empathy classes for youths
  • RJ processes for middle school youths involved in bullying, physical and verbal assault, and disruptive behaviors
  • mediation services for parents and teens
  • mediation services for neighborhood cases referred by police and zoning code officers
  • educational sessions and accountability circles for minors in possession of alcohol, involving parents and community members
  • accountability groups and meaningful community service in first-time felony and misdemeanor pre-court filing diversion cases
  • education and accountability circles for first-time shoplifters
  • conflict resolution video journals for high school students of a high-risk alternative school.

Programs in Pueblo, Thornton, Durango, Alamosa, Grand Junction, Gunnison, Greeley, Denver, and Aurora have received funding.

Preliminary Success of the Mini-Grants Program

The preliminary success of the CCR-RJ Mini-Grants program can be seen in the 731 cases referred; 426 cases handled; 1,023 persons served; 169 volunteers trained; and eighty-seven outreach activities involving 1,429 persons.13 It can be seen in program effectiveness measures, such as increased bonding with adults for 107 (100 percent) young people, and decreased family conflict for 268 (100 percent) parents and their children in the RJ Circles for Minors in Possession program.14

Success also is demonstrated by the development and strengthening of relationships and models for handling conflict in schools and the community. One grant enabled the grantee to conduct presentation on conflict resolution processes at several schools and expand a full-school program providing administration, teachers, support staff, students, and parents with the skills to manage conflicts and anger, to create a more restorative school culture. Another grant allowed a school-based program to engage the larger community in RJ processes, including local law enforcement, prosecutors, and defense attorneys. A third grant allowed two communities to establish community mediation services and another grantee to develop and establish a parent-teen mediation program.

Benefits

The ODR Mini-Grants funds have enabled organizations and programs to better serve individuals and communities within Colorado. Attorneys handling juvenile, family, criminal defense, landlord-tenant, and small claims cases, for example, can look to CCR and RJ for free or low-cost alternative dispute resolution services for their clients. The programs also offer opportunities for mediators to gain experience and improve their skills.

Community Conflict Resolution

CCR is an alternative to court-based dispute resolution processes, with an emphasis on early intervention in disputes and prevention of conflicts. Hallmarks of CCR are citizen participation and the development of networks of community organizations. Mediation is an empowerment tool offering participants a greater sense of control over their lives and a means of creating mutual respect and understanding, even in the midst of conflict.

Typical CCR processes include mediation and conciliation of interpersonal disputes, such as conflicts with neighbors, family members, and classmates; facilitation for community dialogue and public policy disputes; and education services in conflict resolution skills. Referrals to CCR services come from schools, social services agencies, courts, district attorneys, police, zoning officers, animal control officers, government agencies, and community groups. Research indicates that CCR results in high satisfaction with the mediation process, high perceived fairness, more durable resolutions, and fewer subsequent complaints and calls to local law enforcement and municipal entities.15

Restorative Justice

In contrast, RJ is a mission or philosophical framework representing a different way of responding to crime in communities and criminal justice systems. The traditional approach to crime is to ask who did it, what laws were broken, and how to punish the offender. The RJ framework asks:

1. What is the harm?
2. What needs to be done to repair the harm?
3. Who is responsible for this repair?16

Characteristics of the traditional justice system include:

  • crime violates the state and its laws
  • the focus is on establishing guilt
  • the focus is on past behavior
  • accountability equals punishment
  • the interests of the community are represented by the state
  • the conflict is win/lose between adversaries
  • state action is directed at the offender
  • rules and intent outweigh outcomes
  • the debt is to society
  • the stigma of crime is unremovable
  • there are limited opportunities for remorse or amends.

The RJ framework emphasizes:

  • crime violates people and relationships
  • justice identifies needs and obligations
  • the focus is on the present and future
  • accountability equals understanding impact and repairing harm
  • the focus is on repair of social injury
  • the community is involved in restorative process
  • dialogue and mutual agreement are encouraged
  • victim, offender, and community each has a direct role
  • the offender is responsible for behavior and repairs
  • the debt is to the victim and the community
  • the stigma of crime is removable
  • there are increased possibilities for amends and expressions of remorse.17

RJ programs encompass a variety of processes, including community restorative boards, community services, family group conferencing, restitution, sentencing circles, victim impact classes, victim impact panels, victim impact statements, and victim-offender mediation.18 Research shows a number of benefits, including a reduction in recidivism, improvement in payment of restitution, increase in the perception of fairness, and resolution of minor cases outside the criminal justice system.19

Development of CCR and RJ in Colorado

In Colorado, as in other parts of the country, the CCR and RJ movements developed independently. Boulder Community Mediation Services was the first community mediation center established in Colorado in the early 1980s. In May 2005, the National Association for Community Mediation20 held its Regional Training Institute in Golden. In coordination with that event, CCMC assisted in organizing the Colorado Community Conflict Resolution Summit for the purpose of networking and charting a joint course for community-based conflict resolution in Colorado, including official organizational status. Subsequently, CCMC dissolved and the Colorado Community Conflict Resolution Association was formed in 2006 with the intent of becoming a formal organization to provide support and networking for community mediation organizations.21

In 1998, a diverse group of individuals, representing the community and the criminal justice system, met for the purpose of engaging the values and principles of restorative community justice in their work and communities. They organized Colorado’s first RJ conference, which was attended by 600 people.22

The Forum on Restorative Community Justice, a nonprofit organization, was established in 2001 and provided leadership in supporting the establishment of many RJ programs in Colorado.23 Legislation was passed within the Children’s Code encouraging restorative justice for all juveniles in Colorado.24 The Colorado Coalition of RJ Directors was formed in September 2007.

Current Initiatives in Colorado

Policymakers in Colorado increasingly look to RJ as a solution to the overcrowded criminal justice system and problems in schools. For example, House Bill 07-1129 established the Restorative Justice Council in the State Court Administrator’s Office to support the development of RJ programs, serve as a central repository for information, assist with education and training, and provide technical assistance.25 In September 2007, a Denver Public School District committee released a recommended plan for a fundamental shift in how discipline is handled in its schools by incorporating RJ processes.26

Conclusion

CCR and RJ programs assist the courts by increasing avenues for positive resolution of conflict. As a result, cases are kept out of court and recidivism in criminal cases is reduced. As part of ODR’s mission to establish or make available dispute resolution programs and related services throughout the state, ODR supported a series of legislative funding attempts and ultimately received funding for CCR and RJ services. The seed money has provided an opportunity for nine communities to establish or expand CCR and RJ services, and to build relationships and awareness within and among schools, courts, municipalities, and law enforcement agencies.

The success of the grant program highlights the benefits of these processes. ODR will continue to provide funding through the CCR-RJ Mini-Grants program and work with organizations to seek additional ways to support and expand CCR and RJ services in Colorado.

Notes

1. CRS §§ 13-22-301 et seq.

2. See House Joint Resolution 97-1020, which encouraged courts to make use of the Colorado Dispute Resolution Act (CDRA).

3. Mika, "An Evaluation of Michigan’s Community Dispute Resolution Program," Michigan Supreme Court State Court Administrative Office (1997); McGillis, Community Mediation Programs: Developments and Challenges, Series: Issues and Practices National Institute of Justice (U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice, 1997).