Office of Restorative Practices (ORP)
About the Office of Restorative Practices
The Office of Restorative Practices (ORP) was created in 2024 and is led by Kendall Hughes. The office was created to promote the use of restorative practices across multiple disciplines, including:
- Pretrial diversion programs
- Delinquency, criminal justice, child welfare, and education systems
- Community violence prevention practices
Restorative Practices Advisory Committees
The launching of the Office of Restorative Practices means that every county or jurisdiction in Minnesota is to establish Restorative Practices Advisory Committees made of up community members and justice system staff.
These committees will develop, expand, and maintain restorative practices criteria and processes for their communities. They will also determine which restorative initiatives from their community are endorsed to submit proposals for grants.
Find a list of current committees and meetings.
Use this form to share information with us about a county/jurisdiction Restorative Practices Advisory Committee.
For more information, contact Kendall Hughes via email.
Restorative Practices Grant Initiatives Grant Program
The Restorative Practices Initiative Grant Program is an initiative from the Office of Restorative Practices. It aims to promote initiatives statewide that create new restorative practice programs or currently have programs in place.
Proposals are currently being accepted through Dec. 6, 2024, at 4 p.m.
Learn about the grant program and the current request for proposals
About the director
Director Kendall Hughes has experience starting and leading restorative programs in both the Federal Bureau of Prisons and in a Minnesota nonprofit.
Before being appointed as ORP director, Hughes began in the 80s and 90s as a nonprofit staff person learning from leaders in lower income communities as they built affordable housing, places of worship and schools. Then he spent two decades as a chaplain in federal prisons where, together with incarcerated men, they developed an 18-month residential program that offered skill building, encouraging relationships and transformative dialogues to survivors of violent crimes and men who had caused deep harm.
In 2019, Hughes co-founded Three Rivers Restorative Justice (TRRJ) in southeastern Minnesota, focusing on both pre-charge restorative conferences and training facilitators. Evaluations of TRRJ show 95 percent satisfaction rates from clients who had been harmed by crime as well as reductions in reoffending by clients who had caused harm.
Hughes has also served on the Third Judicial District's Committee on Equity and Justice as well as the Dodge and Olmsted County Corrections Taskforce. While earning his Doctorate of Ministry he wrote a graduate thesis on how chaplains in the Bureau of Prisons can reduce recidivism. He also has over 400 hours of training in restorative practices.
