TNARC 2026TNARC / 2026
TNARC 2026 conference logo

Nov
18—19

Los Angeles, California

Conrad Los Angeles

Explore

The 2026 Assembly

Restore.
Reconnect.
Transform.

Where educators, school leaders, community practitioners, researchers, and changemakers come together to build restorative communities that transform schools and strengthen human connection.

01 / DATE

November 18–19, 2026

02 / PLACE

Conrad Los Angeles — 100 South Grand Avenue, LA 90012

03 / SCALE

450+ changemakers

04 / PROGRAM

25 breakout sessions

Practical strategies.

National voices.

Human connection.

Join more than 450 educators, administrators, counselors, restorative practitioners, and community leaders for two days of learning and transformation.

Register for TNARC

Conference Program

Two strands.
One mission.

Both strands run in parallel in every block, on both days. Attendees can follow one strand start to finish or move between them — every session stands on its own.

01 / STRAND ONE

Restorative Practices, Cultural Responsiveness & Community Healing

Restorative work only holds when it is rooted in the culture, history, and healing of the community it serves. This strand moves past the one-off circle into serious harm, implementation, equity, identity, family partnership, community practice, discipline redesign, and sustainability.

15 sessions

02 / STRAND TWO

Regulate, Relate, Repair: SEL, the Brain, Behavior & Relationships

This strand translates research on stress, development, regulation, relationships, belonging, trauma, attention, behavior, grief, burnout, digital life, and cross-system response into observable practice for educators and community professionals.

15 sessions

Select a strand to open its sessions in the schedule

Registration · Final release

Last seats.
Secure yours.

Includes two full conference days, keynote presentations, all breakout sessions, materials, networking, and refreshments, plus Day 1 lunch by Chef José Andrés's kitchen at San Laurel and Day 2 brunch sponsored by Care4LA & Convivo.

Only a limited number of seats remain

Late registration

November 2026

$475

Once the final release sells out, registration closes. Book today so your place at TNARC 2026 is confirmed.

Secure your spot now

Conference at a glance

Two days.
30 sessions.

6 breakout blocks, 5 concurrent rooms each, laid out side by side so you can plan both days at once. Select any session for its speaker, bio, and what you will take home.

FilterStrand OneStrand Two

Day 01

Wednesday, November 18

Understand • Regulate • Repair

7:30 – 9:00 AMRegistration & Connection (registration open until 3:00 PM)
10:30 – 11:00 AMCoffee & Transition
Breakout Block A11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
12:15 – 1:30 PMLunch (provided by Chef José Andrés's kitchen at San Laurel)
Breakout Block B1:45 – 2:45 PM
2:45 – 3:15 PMCoffee Break / Social
Breakout Block C3:15 – 4:15 PM
4:30 – 5:30 PMSocial Hour / Connection

Day 02

Thursday, November 19

From Evidence to Action

7:30 – 9:00 AMRegistration / Coffee / Connection
Breakout Block D9:15 – 10:15 AM
Breakout Block E10:35 – 11:35 AM
11:55 AM – 1:10 PMBrunch — sponsored by Care4LA & Convivo
Breakout Block F1:30 – 2:30 PM
2:30 – 2:50 PMCoffee & Transition

Take it with you

Download the full two-day program, every block and room, to plan ahead or share with your team.

TNARC / 2026

Conference program.

Two days, six breakout blocks, five concurrent rooms. Wednesday, November 18 and Thursday, November 19, 2026 · Conrad Los Angeles.

DAY 01 · WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18

Understand • Regulate • Repair

CONRAD LOS ANGELES

7:30 – 9:00 AMRegistration & Connection (registration open until 3:00 PM)
9:00 – 10:30 AM

Opening Keynote

Restoration Has an Order: Regulation Before Reflection in a Dysregulated Age

Carlos Arroyo Alvarez · Main Ballroom

10:30 – 11:00 AMCoffee & Transition
Breakout Block A11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

Dignity, Not Compliance: Culturally Responsive Approaches to Student Behavior

Charné Tunson

Insula

STRAND ONE

Find the Gold Already on Your Campus: The LAIRP Student Leadership Model for Peer-Driven Change

Viana Torres Rodriguez

Cingulate

STRAND ONE

Belonging, Connection & Attendance: Using Student Voice and Youth Participatory Action Research to Bring Students Back

John Vandenburgh

Orbitofrontal

STRAND ONE

Before the Next Lockdown: What Violence Interrupters Know About Stopping Gun Violence in Our Schools

Paul Carrillo

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

PIVOT – a Spotlight on Your Restorative Well-Being

Natalie Walters

12:15 – 1:30 PMLunch (provided by Chef José Andrés's kitchen at San Laurel)

PROGRAM SUBJECT TO CHANGE · TNARC.ORG

PAGE 1 / 5

TNARC / 2026 · PROGRAM

DAY 01 · CONTINUED

Breakout Block B1:45 – 2:45 PM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

The Regulated Leader: Why School Safety Starts in the Principal's Nervous System

Candice Dagnino

Insula

STRAND ONE

Responding to Identity-Based Harm: Centering Safety, Belonging, and Repair for Multiple Marginalized Students

Sarah Manchanda, Ph.D. · Samantha Avalos

Cingulate

STRAND TWO

When the Whole Room Is Dysregulated: The Neuroscience of Psychological Safety for Students, Teachers & Bystanders

Brittany Domenick

Orbitofrontal

STRAND TWO

Going on a Date with Yourself – The Creative Brain: Research-Based Writing for Regulation, Connection & Repair

Maia Akiva

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

CALMER De-Escalation: Trading Tier 1 Consequences for the Neurobiology of Regulation

Karina Vich

2:45 – 3:15 PMCoffee Break / Social
Breakout Block C3:15 – 4:15 PM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

Embedded for a Year: Building System Cohesion and Psychological Safety in Dysregulated School Cultures

Dr. Cindy Guardado

Insula

STRAND ONE

Three Referrals, One System Failure

Dave Trejo · Cesar Delgado

Cingulate

STRAND ONE

Suspend or Support? Dealing with Highly At-Promise, “At-Risk” Male Students

Carlos Guillen

Orbitofrontal

STRAND TWO

Safer Together: The Neuroscience of Psychological Safety, Trust & Restorative Communication

Dr. Daisy Gomez

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

Belonging, Connection & Attendance: Why Students Show Up for People

Ashley Lucchesi

4:30 – 5:30 PMSocial Hour / Connection

PROGRAM SUBJECT TO CHANGE · TNARC.ORG

PAGE 2 / 5

TNARC / 2026

Conference program.

Two days, six breakout blocks, five concurrent rooms. Wednesday, November 18 and Thursday, November 19, 2026 · Conrad Los Angeles.

DAY 02 · THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19

From Evidence to Action

CONRAD LOS ANGELES

7:30 – 9:00 AMRegistration / Coffee / Connection
Breakout Block D9:15 – 10:15 AM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

Who Still Feels Safe Walking In? Auditing Family Outreach with Right Brain Parenting When Immigrant Families Live in Fear

Zazil Rojas · Parent Voices

Insula

STRAND ONE

The Discipline Gap After Restorative Justice: Why Disparities Can Survive Reform

Ruth Cusick, J.D. · Carlos Valle

Cingulate

STRAND ONE

Seen, Valued & Understood: Culturally Responsive Belonging Built on Love, Accountability & a Village

Cassandra Villa, Ph.D.

Orbitofrontal

STRAND TWO

Boys in Crisis, Who Are We? A 4-Week Pilot Pairing First-Gen College Men with Young Men of Color

Who We Are: A LAIRP Brotherhood Initiative

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

Raised by Chatbots: Character Education in a World Powered by AI

Dr. William Pulgarin

PROGRAM SUBJECT TO CHANGE · TNARC.ORG

PAGE 3 / 5

TNARC / 2026 · PROGRAM

DAY 02 · CONTINUED

Breakout Block E10:35 – 11:35 AM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

Restorative Healing in the Wake of Violence: Helping Communities Process Harm

Ana Amador

Insula

STRAND TWO

Regulate Through the Beat: Hip Hop as a Right-Brain Pathway to Regulation, Connection & Repair

Carlos Somoza

Cingulate

STRAND TWO

Who Feels Left Out? Mapping and Rebuilding Belonging with the P3 Student Connection Tool

Jennifer Anaya Sanchez · Dr. William Pulgarin · Brittany Domenick

Orbitofrontal

STRAND TWO

The Return Is the Intervention: LAIRP's Suspension & Expulsion Re-Entry Protocol (Template Included)

Adriana Silva

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

From Testing Room to Restorative Team: The School Psychologist's Role in Regulation-First Schools

Verenice Silva

11:55 AM – 1:10 PMBrunch — sponsored by Care4LA & Convivo
Breakout Block F1:30 – 2:30 PM

Amygdala

STRAND ONE

Healing-Centered Engagement: Communities Carrying Historical Harm

Nicole Flores Rojas · Dámariz Vásquez

Insula

STRAND ONE

The Infrastructure That Holds: Aligning Data, Systems & Best Practices So Restorative Practice and Belonging Last

Dr. Cindy Guardado · Jennifer Anaya Sanchez

Cingulate

STRAND TWO

Grief Comes to School: Supporting Students and Staff After Loss

Lauren Schneider, MSW, LCSW · Carolyn Christ, LMFT

Orbitofrontal

STRAND TWO

USC PCT Peer Relationship Model Study

Stanley J. Huey, Jr., Ph.D. · Janus Wong

Prefrontal

STRAND TWO

Unlock the Future: Digital Consciousness and Human Intelligence

Randell Erving Jr.

2:30 – 2:50 PMCoffee & Transition

PROGRAM SUBJECT TO CHANGE · TNARC.ORG

PAGE 4 / 5

TNARC / 2026 · PROGRAM

DAY 02 · CONTINUED

2:50 – 4:00 PM

Closing Panel & Call to Action

Everyone Has a Role: How LA County Is Mobilizing Communities, Schools & the Arts to Prevent Youth Suicide

Tracie Andrews, LCSW · Dr. Daisy Gomez · Elisabeth Nails · Franklin Romero · Main Ballroom

PROGRAM SUBJECT TO CHANGE · TNARC.ORG

PAGE 5 / 5

Conrad Los Angeles venue 1
Conrad Los Angeles venue 2
Conrad Los Angeles venue 3
Conrad Los Angeles venue 4
Conrad Los Angeles venue 5
Conrad Los Angeles venue 6

The venue

Conrad
Los Angeles

100 South Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012

View on map

TNARC 2026

The National Alliance for Restorative Communities Conference