• The Transformational Prison Project (TPP) is fundamentally committed to making the research experience one that is humanizing for all those involved, moving knowledge forward both in community and by community, and to establishing a rigorous program of evaluation to advance change.

  • Given historic legacies of exploitation, extraction, abuse, and misconduct that often plague research conducted with systems-impacted populations, TPP centers the lived experiences of those harmed by punitive justice, not simply as objects of data collection, but co-excavators of knowledge during the data process. This is critical to our vision of using data to advance the goals of healing, accountability, vulnerability, empathy, compassion, and the creation of a safe container.

  • "Part of me still believe that when people know better, we do better. And for me, having clear and robust data is the first step towards knowing better. Unfortunately, the standard processes by which the “production of knowledge” occurs are often extractive, one-sided, and distanced from the complexities of the real word. Here, in our data department, knowledge is uncovered and elevated in community and by community. That is what we want to accomplish--to elevate the lived experiences of those who are experts in the complexities of their own lives." -Georgepatrick "george" hutchins

Meet the Team

 

Internal Projects—

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

 
 

  • This project evaluates the impact of TPP’s Digital Literacy program which introduces returning citizens to current technologies such as laptops, cellphones, digital applications, and the suite of Microsoft Office programs. All participants complete a baseline and endline survey to assess how their understanding and confidence with these various forms of technology has changed.

  • Since 2020, we have been collecting data on TPP’s Phase 1-Introduction to Restorative Justice Programming. From this dataset, our team tracks how participant’s views on justice evolve after going through the circle process. These data are used for both internal and external reports.

  • We collect data on the frequency and amount of contact TPP has with community partners, returning citizens, and collaborators, as well as, the types of events in which program staff participate.

 
 

● Program Overview

External Projects

Campers will discover the building blocks of music—learning how rhythm, melody, and collaboration spark something bigger than the notes themselves. Along the way, they’ll gain the confidence to experiment, create, and share their sound with others.

phase I focus group

Started in 2025, this project seeks to provide participants going through the Phase 1 program with a formal opportunity to explore their evolving views on the foundational principles of restorative justice and how these lessons have impacted the ways they show up personally and professionally.

Public Scholarship

Restorative Justice Methodology/Research Methods: Our innovative view on the research process and centering the lived experience of systems impacted individuals has been accepted for publication as a chapter in a peer-reviewed, edited book collection to be published with Routledge.

academic partnerships & data collaborations

  • World Peace Foundation

  • Suffolk University

  • Agncy

Grow your audience.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

 

Grow your audience.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

 

Grow your audience.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

 

Music stand with sheet music in a wooded forest setting.

● Program Overview

Frequently Asked Questions

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hear from our community:

  • what is rj to you?

    “RJ, for me, is a culture. It’s a way of life. It’s a way to create community, work on your trauma, and really look at what accountability is, what accountability is repairing harm is not punishment. But also, the main thing I got out of sort of justice is learning how to be empathetic. A lot of that vulnerability is strength and power.”

  • who is rj for?

    “I think restorative justice really centers healing as kind of important for everyone, regardless of the role that you play in a certain situation, whether you’re like the victim or the perpetrator, or anything in between.”

  • why did you sign up for rj?

    “What brought me to RJ was change. I wanted something different in my life…I do this for the people that I realized I do look up to me, that do want something different that follow me into the streets, someone don’t follow me into a better lifestyle and something better, something healthier, and also for my soul, because it had been nothing but fruitful for me. And this is why I’m in this work, and why I continue to do this work.”

  • how did rj impact you?

    “[RJ] was so much more than that, where, like it is, like, seeped into my relationship with my partner, with my mom and my my dad, and like these ways that was so surprising and unexpected and incredibly beneficial.”