Profile of Berkeley's Staff Ombuds

A recent campus newsletter introduces Sara Thacker, Director of UC Berkeley’s Staff Ombuds Office. The article reveals that Thacker is a “recovered” corporate litigator who left a successful career to become, first, a mediator, and then an Ombuds.

Thacker, who has led the three-person office since 2009, says that confidentiality is the key to her work. “One of the main reasons people who are having problems don’t come forward is fear,” she says. “They have a fear of retaliation, they fear losing control of the situation, they fear uncertain outcomes. And so our office provides that safe place where people can come and talk about things in a real and authentic way, without fear.” (UC Berkeley News.)

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