FEWER MELTDOWNS.

Less chaos. More belonging. More room to learn — and grow.

That’s what one caring adult and the right skills did for one child. Multiply that by a classroom — even a whole building — and it’s the shift we’re after: fewer disputes to referee, more class time that isn’t derailed by conflict, and students who know how to work through disagreements instead of shutting down or lashing out. Most of all, we want kids who look out for one another and a room where everyone feels like they belong. Starting this fall, we’re diving deeper into more schools, after-school programs, workplaces, and communities to create healthier environments.

THESE AREN'T HOPES. THEY'RE COMMITMENTS OF REAL STUDENTS AFTER PEACEMAKER TRAINING, IN KIDS' OWN WORDS.

Looking forward, we are stepping beyond the path we cleared and scaling our impact to meet the demands in our communities.

WHAT'S INSIDE

For Schools

For After-School Programs

For Workplaces

For Communities

Join a Peaceful Pen Session or Series this Fall!

Know an Organization Serving People
with Developmental Disabilities?

FOR SCHOOLS

What Does Your School Need Right Now?

FOR STUDENTS

Depending on what your school is facing, that could look like:

Already in the PeaceMaker school network? Let's talk about which program could round out your current setup. Just learning about us? Tell us what you're facing, and we'll help you find the right fit.

FOR ADULTS

Want to bring any of these to your team?

FOR AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS

After the Bell, Before Pickup

The hardest moments of a child's day don't always happen during school hours — sometimes it's the stretch between the bell and pickup, with less structure and less adult attention, where teasing can turn into bullying. This year, we're extending two of our programs into after-school spaces:

Looking for practical resources to build a calmer, kinder after-school space? We'd love to talk about a partnership, wherever you're starting from.

FOR WORKPLACES

When Meetings End in Confusion, Not Clarity

Conflict doesn’t disappear when we grow up—it just moves into our meeting rooms, inboxes, and group chats.

The result is fewer misunderstandings that escalate into human resources issues, and teams that learn to navigate friction instead of stewing in it. But the impact matters far beyond the office, too. Kids learn how to handle conflict by watching the adults around them. Every workplace we reach with these tools is also a home or a classroom changed somewhere else.

Curious what a Peaceful Pen series could look like at your workplace? Let's start a conversation.

FOR COMMUNITIES

Peace in Your Backyard

Life's tension doesn't stop at our front doors — it weaves through our exchanges with friends, school pick-up lines, and family group texts. Sometimes, beneath the rush, we feel disconnected or lonely, and it catches up with us, making us snap at the people we care about most.

Imagine a world where disagreements end at the backyard fence instead of turning into lasting divides. When neighbors learn to navigate tension with empathy, the whole community's culture shifts. Best of all, our kids are paying attention. They learn how to handle their own big feelings by watching how the adults on their block handle theirs.

Want to host a Peaceful Pen workshop at your local library, community center, faith community, or neighborhood group? Let's chat.

Join a Community Peaceful Pen This Fall

Starting this September, you have two ways to experience Peaceful Pen firsthand — come to one session or the entire eight sessions:

September 28th — November 16th, Monday Evenings

Time: 6:00–8:00 PM

Where: Mediation Center (1700 Highway 36 West, Suite 480, Roseville). Facilitators: Tobin Lay, Director of the Mediation Center, and Kyle Bartholomay, a longtime Peaceful Pen participant.

October 1st — November 19th, Thursday Evenings

Time: 6:00–8:00 PM

Where: PeaceMaker Minnesota office (2131 Fairview Avenue North, Roseville). Facilitator: Dan McNeil, PeaceMaker's Executive Director and a returning Peaceful Pen facilitator.

Details

Each eight-session course explores a different piece of reflective listening. Sessions stand on their own, so you're welcome to join without having attended before — both courses are free and open to any adult 18+. Space is limited, so register early and bring a friend.



To Register or Ask a Question

Contact Dan McNeil at 651-285-7087 or dmcneil@peacemakermn.org.

Sponsor One or Multiple Evenings

We invite you to champion change in the community by sponsoring a Peaceful Pen evening or a series. Your support will help build a culture of kindness and inclusion and inspire adults to learn essential life skills and emotional intelligence that they can integrate into their daily lives. Now is the time to act!

Join us in this vital mission and help us cultivate a brighter, more compassionate future—together, we can truly make a difference! Contact Dan about sponsoring one or multiple evenings at dmcneil@peacemakermn.org.

Become an Ambassador for Respect

Ambassadors for Respect brings adults with developmental disabilities into 4th-grade classrooms to teach bullying prevention — and it works because it changes both sides of the room. Students learn what respect and self-advocacy look like from someone showing them firsthand. Ambassadors get paid work experience, real employment skills, and a genuine leadership role in their community. The program runs through a growing network of Program Partner Organizations — 17 so far — that partner with the Minnesota Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities and connect Ambassadors to classrooms near them.

Know an organization serving people with developmental disabilities?

Connect us with them so their participants can take on paid, meaningful work as Ambassadors for Respect — leading bullying-prevention lessons in 4th-grade classrooms and building real leadership experience. See our current list of partner organizations at peacemakermn.org/a4r-partners.

Run an organization that supports people with developmental disabilities? We're always looking to grow our network; contact Dan at dmcneil@peacemakermn.org.

FOR EVERYONE

None of This Happens Without You

That "sensitive soul" from the first quote in this email — she's not the exception we're chasing: she's the standard. A classroom where the kid eating alone finally gets invited over. An after-school room where a disagreement gets talked through instead of turning into tomorrow's grudge. A work meeting that ends in clarity instead of another circular discussion. During uncertain times like these, people are hungry for that calm—a conversation that actually goes somewhere, a moment of being heard instead of talked over. That's why, now more than ever, we're working to bring these tools to more kids and adults.

You bring these moments to life. By taking on our mission as your own, your financial investment ensures that our Peace Guides, facilitators, and staff can do this heavy lifting on the ground every day. Because of this shared commitment, PeaceMaker is expanding into new schools, new after-school partners, new workplaces, and new communities this fall. Together, we are making peace the standard.

Not the principal, teacher, dean of students, social worker, or company or organization manager who could open a door for peace? You probably know someone who is — forward this email their way.

Peace Is Worth the Work—Help Spread the Message!