Presenter Bios

Christel Greiner Butchart, MA, is the Director of Peaceful Schools NC. With 19 years of experience as an educator, Christel works to empower teachers, students, and school communities in effectively implementing a social curriculum founded in student education and the practice of conflict resolution strategies. Christel is a Rotary Peace Fellow and holds a Masters in International Relations with a focus on Peace and Conflict Resolution. At Carolina Friends School, she teaches Conflict Resolution to middle schoolers. Internationally, Christel has worked with students and teachers in Myanmar (Burma) and Australia, teaching peace education and developing relevant conflict resolution curricula. She is a certified IIRP Restorative Justice trainer. As a mother of two young kids, Christel has countless opportunities for Restorative Practices at home. 

 

Crystal Small has been a board member and facilitator with Peaceful Schools for three years. She is a fierce advocate for youth mental health, especially in communities of color. Crystal brings this advocacy with her as a lead trainer for Peaceful Schools, as well as in her daily role as middle grades counselor at Central Park School for Children. Prior to her time at Central Park School, Crystal worked for the Division of Prisons as a Correctional Case Manager and as a Probation Officer for the Department of Juvenile Justice. Her students say, “she gives good advice and brings a sense of humor with her, her care for her students is obvious to all.”