ENOHE Posts Report from 2015 Conference

The European Network of Ombudsmen in Higher Education has published a recap of its annual meeting which took place May 28-30, 2015 in Innsbruck, Austria. Jean Grier (Investigations Manager at the University of Edinburgh), Jim Wohl (University Ombudsman at the University of Connecticut), and Josef Leidenfrost (Austrian Student Ombudsman and ENOHE President) edited the conference report.

North Carolina State University to Appoint Ombuds for Staff

NCSU says that it will create a third Ombuds office in 2017. According to a university announcement, a Staff Senate resolution on "The Establishment of the Staff Ombuds Office" has lead the administration to launch a year-long. pilot program on January 1, 2017.  Additional details are forthcoming.

ACCUO List of Past Conferences Highlights Ombuds History

The Association of Canadian College and University Ombudspersons has started work on a list of past conferences.  The list is still being updated (the period 2000-2009 is incomplete), but entries already cover a couple dozen conferences from 1979 to 2010.  The annotations provide some rare historical details not collected anywhere else.

Meet DePaul University's Ombuds

Craig Mousin, who has been the DePaul University Ombudsperson since 2011, is the subject of a profile in the campus newsletter.  He talks about how his experience as an attorney and minister relates to his Ombuds work. He also talks about his personal relationship with the university.

Simon Fraser University Appoints New Ombuds

The public university in Burnaby, Vancouver has named Laura Reid as its next Student Ombudsperson. She has worked at SFU since 2012, most recently as Academic Adivsor working with NCAA student-athletes. She takes over the office previously run by Jay Solman and that serves a student population of about 35,000. 

President of Dutch Ombuds Group Calls for More University Ombuds

Lies Poesiat, President of De Vereniging Ombudsmannen in het Hoger Onderwijs (The Association of Ombudsmen in Higher Education) and the Student Ombudsman at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, says that Ombuds are desperately needed throughout the Netherlands. She tells the Vrije Universiteit campus newspaper that just two colleges and three universities have an Ombuds, despite the effectiveness with a wide range of issues.

Job Posting: Inter-American Development Bank

The multilateral organization that provides development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean from its headquarters in Washington, DC has opened a search for its next Ombudsperson. The position is appointed by and reports directly to the IDB President for a five-year term period (renewable for a second, five-year appointment).  

The Broader View of Ombuds in Public Schools

The Fall 2016 issue of the American Bar Association's Dispute Resolution Magazine features an article by Charles ("Chuck") Howard.  "A Broader View of Dispute Resolution" provides context for a new initiative of the ABA Dispute Resolution Section's Ombuds Committee: spotlighting the potential for Ombuds programs in public school systems.  

New Website for FEMA ADR Cadre and Reservist Ombuds

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has created a website for the program that provides alternative dispute resolution services to Reservist employees (i.e. FEMA staff who respond to disasters and support survivors). The website outlines the policy history, scope of work, location, procedures, and standards of practice for the Reservist Ombuds program.

Explainer Video from NC State Faculty Ombuds

North Carolina State University Faculty Ombuds Roy Baroff has posted a video to his office website introducing and define his role.  It's a straight-forward, one-take video and it sounds a lot like the typical introduction that an Ombuds might give to a visitor.  (NCSU Faculty Ombuds.)

Southern Oregon University Launches Ombuds Office

The public, liberal arts university in Ashland has appointed its first-ever Faculty Ombuds.  Lynn Kirms serves nearly 1,000 academic staff and practices to IOA standards. At this point a physical office has not been set up, so Kirms meets in a variety of locations.

ABA Dispute Resolution Magazine Devotes Fall 2016 Issue to Ombuds

The latest issue of American Bar Association's Dispute Resolution Magazine is about Ombuds.  Articles highlight the role of Ombuds in the private sector, public school systems, and federal agencies.

Indiana University School of Medicine Opens Ombuds Office

The state medical school in Perdue has named Joseph DiMicco as its first Ombuds. He will work with about 5,000 students, residents, fellows, graduate students, and faculty and other academic appointees (all but staff), and practice to IOA standards. 

International Ombudsman Institute Selects 2016 Leadership

The IOI Board of Directors convened during the organization's annual conference taking place in Bangkok and elected the following officers:

Job Posting: San Francisco State University

The California State University is hiring its first Dean of Equity Initiatives. The hybrid position has a wide range of incompatible duties: "Senior Deputy Title IX Coordinator/DHR Administrator for staff/faculty and 3rd party complainants; University ombudsperson; and coordinator of campus responses to discrimination complaints filed via external agencies." The position thus breaks with the recent trend within the CSU system of hiring dedicated Ombuds.

Job Re-Posting: International Committee of the Red Cross

The international humanitarian organization has re-opened a search for its next Chief Ombudsperson.  The application deadline, which had closed in September, has been extended to November 30, 2016. Based in Geneva, the full-timeposition administers the four-person program, represents the program internally and externally, and serves as the Ombuds for ICRC personnel in Europe, Central Asia and the Americas.

Internship: United Nations, Kenya

The Office of the UN Ombudsman and Mediation Services in Nairobi is accepting applications for an internship. The position is full-time and will last up to six months. Duties will  depend on the intern's experience and needs of the program, but may include: outreach and advocacy; support preparing data and reports; and conducting research.

Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi Appoints First Ombuds

TAMUCC has named Andy Piker is as its first Faculty Ombuds. He works with about 600 members of the faculty, reports to the Faculty Senate executive committee and the Provost, and practices to IOA standards. 

Internship: International Organization for Migration

The IOM Office of the Ombudsperson is seeking an Ombudsman for its office in Geneva. Reporting to the Ombudsperson, Rogelio Bernal, the intern will support his teamwork with other colleagues in the Field Missions and IOM Headquarters. The intern will assist with case management, research, preparation of documents, outreach activities, and designing and conducting training program.

Chat With Ombuds at North Carolina State University

The Provost at NCSU has posted an interview with the Student Ombuds, Michael Giancola, Faculty Ombuds, Roy Baroff.  They talk about the importance of Ombuds services to the campus and how they work with constituents.   A comment on the posting, reveals that the university will launch an Ombuds program for staff in 2017.

Ombuds Blog Marks Decade of Service

This week marks the tenth anniversary of my the first post on this blog.  It was born out of my desire for more public information about the profession.  At the time, UCOA and TOA were still in the midst of their merger and their most valuable information was available only to full members, especially job postings.

Andrews University Opens Ombuds Office

The flagship university of the Seventh-day Adventist church located in Berrien Springs, Michigan has appointed two Ombudsperson: Elynda Bedney and David Sedlacek. Together, they will serve about 6,000 faculty, staff, and students. According to a new website, "The office was established as part of the University’s Christian commitment to foster a courteous and considerate climate conducive to productivity and wellbeing for the University community." 

Video Introduces ICANN's New Ombuds

Herb Waye became the Ombudsman for the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in July 2016.  An interview with him from ICANN's latest conference was just just posted to YouTube.  He says that the office should be more than just a place where people can complain, but a resource that can intervene at an early stage when there is conflict that impedes progress or undermines relationships within the ICANN ecosystem.  

Fanshawe College Appoints Interim Ombuds

Jennifer Gillespie has been named the Acting Ombuds for the college in Ontario.  She takes over from Rose Valle, who also served as the Acting Ombuds for the past three years. The Office of the Ombuds operates independently of the usual administrative authorities and is funded jointly by the Fanshawe Student Union (FSU) and Fanshawe College. 

Advice for Ombuds Job Seekers

HigherEdJobs, the jobs and career site for academia, has published an informational article about the Ombuds profession.  The piece includes quotes from Bruce J. MacAllister, an IOA Board member and Ombuds with the International Foundation for Online Responsibility; Leah P. Hollis, an Assistant Professor at Morgan State University and author of a recent article in the Journal of IOA; and this blogger, Tom Kosakowski, an Ombuds at UCLA.

Dalhousie University Appoints Ombuds to Reopen Office

The public university in Halifax has named Diane Hawco as its next Ombudsperson.  The position is jointly funded by the University and Dalhousie Student Union and will also serve students at the affiliated University of Kings College.  

IOA Webinar: The Ombuds' Annual Report

The International Ombudsman Association will offer a webinar titled, "Leveraging Your Annual Report to Validate Your Office and Create Sustainability!" on Thursday, December 8, at 11:00 - 12:30 p.m. Central Time.  Karey Barnes, the former Student Ombudsperson and now Director of the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities at South Texas College will explain how to maximize the impact of an Ombuds report.  

Video Introduces Ombuds for the Medical College of Wisconsin

A video posted by the private medical and graduate school in Milwaukee introduces its two Ombuds: Michelle Shasha and Natalie Fleury. The short video gives a good overview of the Ombuds program and it's interesting to hear and see how the ethical tenets are introduced.

Profile of UTC's Ombuds in China

The latest issue of the United Technologies Corp employee newsletter features Lily Xu, one of three Ombudsmen for the American multinational.  The article traces Xu's career from 2009 at subsidiary Pratt & Whitney through a leadership training program and into the Ombuds Office in 2014.

Smith College Reopens Ombuds Office

Michael Stephens has been appointed the Ombudsman for faculty and staff at the private women's liberal arts college in Northampton, MA. He will restore a program that was shuttered in 2009. For the past year, Stephens has been the Ombuds for nearby Amherst College, also a part-time position. 

Job Posting: Government of Victoria

The Australian State is hiring a Workplace Facilitator in Melbourne for its Department of Health and Human Services. The full-time position is essentially that of an Organizational Ombuds -- just the second in the country-- and practices to IOA standards. 

Job Posting: Cal State San Bernandino

CSUSB -- one of 23 general campuses of the California State University system -- is hiring an Ombuds Officer.  The full-time position works with faculty, staff, students, and community members and reports to the President's Office.  The search will fill a position held by Milton Clark for nearly two years.  Clark recently announced his retirement.

Wesleyan Faculty Seek Ombuds for Title IX Issues

An editorial signed by 34 faculty members asks Wesleyan University to create an Ombuds program to help handle student accusations of sexual misconduct.  The issue at the private liberal arts college has come to the fore after it was revealed that a current staff had been fired by a prior employer for inappropriate behavior.

Job Posting: Kaiser Permanente Northern California

KP Northern California is hiring a full-time Health Care Ombuds/Mediator for its medical facilities in San Francisco.  The Kaiser HCOM, "functions as a trained alternative dispute professional offering patients, family members, staff & providers a conflict management program to resolve patient/provider healthcare disputes early thereby improving patient safety & reducing the costs of health care dispute resolution."

UC Santa Barbara Hires Experienced Ombuds

Michael Steinberg has recently been appointed as Associate Ombuds at the University of California- Santa Barbara. For the past 17 months, he was the Associate Ombuds at Columbia University. UCSB is still looking to hire its Assistant Ombuds/Office Manager.