The Ombuds Blog: Columbia Law School Students Start Ombuds Program

June 03, 2014

Columbia Law School Students Start Ombuds Program

In response to criticisms surfaced in a survey last spring, the Columbia Law School Student Senate is piloting a Student Ombuds Program. Zila Acosta and Paul Chander have been appointed serve as the program’s first Ombuds.

In the survey, law students students identified issues that they had never brought to the attention of school administrators. The CLS Student Senate hopes that the Ombuds program "to increase the number of student reports, and to respond to those that would bring forth positive changes to the Law School." A article about the new program warns:

The CLS Student Ombuds Program is designed to protect confidentiality while resolving student issues and conflicts. It is not designed to resolve issues related to gender-based misconduct or medical issues. If you seek assistance regarding such issues, please see this list of resources.

The CLS Students Senate is "in the process of creating an advisory board consisting of student leaders, administrators, faculty, and conflict resolution experts" and seeks participants. (Morningside Muckracker; CLS Student Ombuds.)

Related posts: Columbia Adds Course on Advanced Ombuds Practice; Job Posting; Columbia University Appoints Ombuds.

1 comment:

Anonymous6/05/2014 9:57 AM
This is a fascinating new structure.
Can't wait to talk to this group about who is their authorizing environment?
Wondering if rather than using Law Students if Masters in Negotiation and Conflict Resolutions Students might be "more" Independent, Neutral, and Confidential.

John W. Zinsser
Adjunct Professor, Columbia University
Principal and Co-founder Pacifica Human Communications, LLC.
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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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