The Ombuds Blog: Smith College Reopens Ombuds Office

November 03, 2016

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.

Over his career, Stephens has provided HR, business ethics, internal investigations, problem resolution, and training services. He graduated from the University of Colorado, and earned an MBA from New York University. (Smith News; LinkedIn.)

Related post: Smith College Closing Ombuds Office; Amherst College Hires Ombuds; Job Posting.

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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 03, 2016

Smith College Reopens Ombuds Office

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