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Board accepts $350,000 All 1 Foundation grant to pilot restorative practices across Scranton schools
Summary
The board approved a one‑year, $350,000 pilot from the All 1 Foundation to fund a floating assistant principal, trainings and materials to introduce restorative practices; the grant requires progress reporting and carries no district financial obligation.
The Scranton School District board voted Oct. 27 to accept a $350,000 grant from the All 1 Foundation to pilot restorative practices in district schools for 12 months.
District leaders said the one-year pilot will fund a floating assistant principal position to free a district trainer to lead staff development, pay for training materials and provide coaching. The grant requires a progress report halfway through the 12-month period; All 1 will release half of the award after the signed grant agreement and the second half after the progress report.
"They have incredibly generously offered for the next 12 months to fund us with $350,000 to see what we can do with this money and what that looks like," Maggie Cosgrove Murphy said, explaining the grant timeline and accountability requirements. District staff said the award carries no financial impact to the district and cannot be repurposed for other needs.
Principal Shelley Egan, a nationally certified trainer in restorative practice, described the approach as "a social science that seeks to build relationships" and said the plan calls for multi-day trainings for administrators, counselors, mental-health staff and teachers, plus coaching and a possible training-of-trainers track so the district can expand capacity.
Board members voted unanimously to accept the grant; the board packet noted the award was developed with at least 20 partner agencies and local juvenile justice and mental health partners as part of a scaled, one-year pilot following an earlier, larger proposal.
Why it matters: District staff said restorative practices aim to reduce repeat negative behavior, strengthen relationships across school communities and align with existing social-emotional and multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS). Officials said the pilot will be data-driven and the district will seek continued backing if the one-year results support expansion.
What’s next: The grant agreement will be signed and the district will receive half the funds up front, with a midyear progress report due before the second payment. District staff will return to the board with implementation details and monitoring data.
