Flathead restorative youth justice program gains national spotlight

A youth program — the only one of its kind in Montana — that gives Flathead Valley students facing school-based offenses an alternative to the juvenile justice system is getting national recognition this week.   

The Flathead County School Justice Partnership was bestowed with the Georgetown University 2024 Capstone of the Year Award and will be honored at the Janet Reno Forum in Washington, D.C. on April 24. 

The program is designed to keep students who commit first-time misdemeanors out of youth court by putting them through an accountability-focused program that includes facilitating a conversation between the victim and the offender.  

Around 300 youths have gone through the program since its inception in 2017.  

A collective of Kalispell Public Schools, restorative justice, law enforcement and juvenile probation representatives identified the need for an alternative to youth court and created the program after completing training with the Georgetown University Center for Juvenile Justice Reform. 

When it was first piloted in Flathead High School, only students with alcohol or marijuana related offenses were eligible. The program has since been adopted by schools across the Flathead Valley, including all three Kalispell high schools, and expanded to include all first-time misdemeanors and status offenses.  

Students in special education or low socioeconomic status were disproportionately being kicked out of school more often and for longer periods of time, said Cassi Carr, a deputy juvenile probation officer with the state of Montana and a member of the collective. 

Winding through the juvenile court system can take up to 140 days, and the ordeal can be impersonal and isolating, she said.  

Students who commit first-time, petty offenses like getting in fights, stealing or disorderly conduct are instead able to complete the restorative program within 30 days of the offense with nothing on their record.   

“It’s like when you touch a stove and it’s hot, you learn right away that it’s hot,” said Kalispell School Resource Officer Cory Clarke about the program’s efficiency in holding students accountable in a timely manner.   

During those 30 days, the central idea is that “this one incident does not define you,” said Catherine Gunderson, executive director of the local nonprofit Center for Youth Restorative Justice.  

Students participate in workshops on peer pressure, conflict resolution, life skills and facilitated interaction between the offender and victim. 

“We actually take the time to try to facilitate a conversation between them so that they're hearing from each other and actually moving on in a way that hopefully is lasting into the future,” Gunderson said.  

There is no one-size-fits-all approach either. Gunderson said the program is tailored to specific issues the student may be facing, such as substance use. 

When Carr began working in juvenile court 15 years ago, she recalled tending to 45 cases simultaneously. Now she and others in her office deal with 10 on average, freeing up time to focus on more serious cases.  

“We’re interacting with high-risk youth that need our intervention and more focused attention, which keeps us all safer,” she said.  

In 2023, referrals to the restorative program made up 43% of all youth court referrals, as compared to just 5% of all youth court referrals in 2017, according to the Flathead County School Justice Partnership. 

The program not only has helped keep more kids out of court, but also reduced their likelihood of reoffending. Gunderson recalled that Flathead County at one point had one of the highest recidivism rates in the state. Now it’s one of the lowest. 

Youth involved with the restorative program have a recidivism rate of 10%, lower than the 23% recidivism rate for all Flathead County youth. 

The number of out-of-school suspensions also declined to 82 in 2023, down from 208 in 2017. Keeping kids in the classroom is a large component of the program, so representatives reached an agreement with the schools to reduce suspension times. 

Gunderson said that kicking students out of school can be a counterintuitive punishment.  

“If you're talking about incidents happening at school because of a sense of not feeling like you want to be there anyway, what is to be gained from having more of that?” she said. “Risks increase when you’re removed from campus.”  

The program also transformed the role of school resource officers. Clarke has been with the Kalispell Police Department for over 16 years and a school resource officer for around 11.  

He said the officers exist to keep the school safe from intruders, de-escalate situations and build relationships with students, not hand out tickets for minor infractions. 

Clarke said the program allows him and other officers to focus on their intended purpose. 

The multiagency effort is a point of pride for the team made up of law enforcement personnel, Kalispell Public School officials, judicial and nonprofit workers. 

“We each do what we do best in what we're set out to do, but also have this sort of common ground,” Gunderson said.  

“We have to be able to break those silos down and have those conversations,” Carr said of the collaboration. 

Being recognized at a national level is an honor for the crew, too, and Gunderson hopes that other school systems will be able to replicate the program.  

While Flathead Valley schools are the first in Montana served by this type of program, there are plans to see the program implemented in Missoula.  

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 and junderhill@dailyinterlake.com.