The Ombuds Blog: American University of Beirut Receives Funding for New Ombuds Office

November 29, 2010

American University of Beirut Receives Funding for New Ombuds Office

The secular, private university in Lebanon has received a grant that will fund, in part, a proposed Ombuds program for the medical campus. An Ombuds program has been under consideration at AUB since at least 2004, when female faculty lobbied for an "an ombudsman office for addressing faculty concerns anonymously." In a November 2009 report to the University's trustees, AUB President Peter F. Dorman backed an Organizational Ombuds program for faculty, staff and students as a supplement for a updated grievance and harassment policy.

The $2.3 million grant to AUB was provided by American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (ASHA) to help update teaching, research, and patient facilities on campus and in the AUB Medical Center. Additional details regarding the new Ombuds program have not been released. (AUB News Highlights, President's Report to Trustees, Bulletin Today.)

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Organizational Ombuds

Organizational Ombuds serve as a confidential, independent, neutral and informal dispute resolution resource for a specific entity. They are accessible to a defined population and can advocate for fairness. These unique characteristics distinguish Organizational Ombuds from Classical Ombuds, mediators, arbitrators, and other alternative dispute resolution professionals. The term "Ombuds" is shorthand for "Ombudsman," "Ombudsperson" and "Ombuds Officer," which also are used widely.

Some other variants include:

Austria -- Ombudsstelle

Brazil -- Ouvidor

Croatia -- pravobranitelji

France -- médiateur/defénseur

Germany -- Ombudspersonen

Italy -- difensore

Netherlands -- ombudspersoon

Norway -- ombudet

Poland -- Rzecznik

Portugal -- provedor

Russia -- омбудсмен

Spain -- ombudsman organizacional

Sweden -- studentombud

Switzerland -- ombudsmann

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November 29, 2010

American University of Beirut Receives Funding for New Ombuds Office

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