The Medicine Wheel: Balancing Humanity Oak Park’s third annual Restorative Justice Conference has been taking place virtually all October, and it wraps up on Friday, October 30. This year’s theme is The Medicine Wheel: Balancing Humanity. The goal has been to provide the community with strategies to cope in these extreme times. “2020 has been … Read more
The first time Chicago police officer Tim Crawford observed a peace circle, he was skeptical. But after a while, “I started to see—hold on—this works,” he said. “Especially with people who experience trauma on a regular basis. You’ve got to have a place to vent, to speak your truth.” Crawford (pictured far right) works with … Read more
The Oak Park Public Library’s 5th Annual Restorative Practices Conference delved into the transformative power of restorative practices in building compassionate and inclusive communities. This conference took place on January 19-20, 2024.Friday schedule | Saturday schedule Day 1: Friday, January 19, Conference schedule Hear how restorative practices impact our library community and our surrounding communities. In … Read more
In the April 2021 issue of Library Journal, our Teen Services Manager Stephen Jackson writes about restorative practices and libraries. Read the article online or access the entire digitized issue. He illustrates how our library has integrated restorative practices since he joined the staff in 2016. Examples include the use of circles, annual community conferences, … Read more
“It was love.” That’s how planning committee member Josh Easter summed up last weekend’s Restorative Community Practices Conference—three days of peace circles, panel discussions, workshops, meals, music, and conversation. The October 4-6 conference drew national experts, local activists and teachers, families with children, community leaders, and passionate individuals. Together, we took a deep dive into … Read more
New! Watch the promotional video » Join us for the three-day Restorative Community Practices: Building Stronger Families, Schools, and Communities conference at the Main Library this October 4-6. Expanding on last fall’s restorative justice conference, this year’s conference takes a wider look at how restorative practices can be applied within families, schools, and communities. Also … Read more
The Board of Library Trustees acknowledges there have been multiple examples of damage caused to the Oak Park area community, to our community partners, and to members of the Oak Park Public Library staff, and that we have much work to do to rebuild the broken trust. We apologize for the relationships that have been … Read more
Library Board approved October 17, 2023. Introduction The Oak Park Public Library works to create a safe and civil environment that is necessary for staff members to be happy, well, successful, and productive. Bullying, like other disruptive or violent behaviors, interferes with a staff member’s ability to positively contribute to the library on a day-to-day … Read more
Library Board approved September 26, 2023. Purpose This policy supports Oak Park Public Library’s efforts to become an equitable and anti-racist organization. We understand the need to create an environment with accountability for what we do within our work and public service environment. Thus, in 2021, the Board of Library Trustees approved the library’s first … Read more
Our library’s vision is to empower every voice in our community, and our Middle & High School Services Team is doing just that for students this year. We’re excited to offer three new ways for youth in grades 6-12 to build relationships, learn with their peers and mentors, and grow in their schoolwork, job readiness, … Read more
