Job Posting: University of Western Ontario

The public research university in London, Ontario has opened a search for an Associate Ombudsperson. The full-time position serves a student body of about 25,000 and will usually be the first point of contact for UWO's Office of the Ombudsperson. Currently, Jennifer Meister is the University Ombudsperson and Anita Pouliot is the Assistant Ombudsperson.

University of Nebraska Omaha Ombuds to Retire

Shereen Bingham, UNO's Director of Ombuds Services, has announced her retirement in May 2020. A professor in the College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media, Bingham also has been a leading researcher in the Ombuds field, and active IOA speaker and volunteer. Currently, she is editing a special edition of the Journal of IOA focusing on sexual harassment. The university will conduct an internal search for her replacement.

Kansas State University to Select Ombuds

K-State has three Ombudspersons available to faculty and unclassified professionals with employment concerns. The university is seeking internal applicants to replace Sarah Barrett. Ombuds are appointed for three-year terms and earn a $5,000 stipend. Ombuds duties are in addition to regular university work.

Call for Secrets: IOA 2020 Conference

The International Ombudsman Association is seeking submissions for an exhibit modeled after PostSecret (a community art project in which people mail their secrets anonymously on a homemade postcard). Whether or not they will be attending the conference, Ombuds can send anonymous secrets to a private address that will then be shared in Portland, March 30 to April 1, 2020.

Job Posting: Northwestern University

The private research university based in Evanston, Illinois is hiring its first Ombudsperson. Various stakeholder groups have been advocating for the resource for at least 15 years and follows a recommendation from an Ombuds Program Task Force convened last year. The position will serve faculty, staff, and students, including those at campuses in Chicago and Doha, Qatar—about 30,000 people. The Ombuds will report to the provost and practice to IOA standards.

Salisbury University's New Ombuds Program is Missing Important Pieces

The public university on the Eastern Shore of Maryland has created an office of Ombuds Services for faculty, staff, and students. According to a new website, the Salisbury Ombuds is confidential, independent, and impartial. However, no individual Ombuds are identified.

Job Posting: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

The U.S. Department of Commerce agency that issues patents and registers trademarks is hiring a Senior Ombudsman in Alexandria, VA. The position is within the Office of the Under Secretary, Office of the Ombudsman, which is the agency resource for managing conflict, fostering organizational collaboration and effective communication, and providing organization-wide systemic feedback and options for solutions to workplace issues. 

Leipzig University Establishes Ombuds Office

Universität Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, one of the world's oldest universities, has appointed six experienced faculty members to serve as Ombudspersons for scholars. In this new role, the Ombuds will "deal with allegations and the self-reporting of academic misconduct." Each Ombuds is expected to serve a five-year term.

Pikes Peak Community College Names First Ombuds

Last spring, Kemisha James was selected as the first Ombuds for the community college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In the bifurcated role (Executive Assistant to the President/Ombuds), James provides Ombuds services to over 18,000 students. 

Ombuds to Address Asian American Professional Group

On March 10, 2020, Jerry Nuesell, the founding Ombuds at Wake Technical Community College, will give a presentation to the National Association of Asian American Professionals North Carolina. NAAAP NC is an all-volunteer, Pan-Asian American professional organization that promotes career advancement and leadership development in all fields. Nuesell's 2.5 hour presentation, "Untangling and Navigating Challenges at Work," is open to non-members. (NAAAP NC Events.)

Job Posting: World Health Organization, Denmark

The UN agency that focuses on international public health is hiring a Regional Ombudsman for Europe. The full-time position will be based in Copenhagen for a two-year contract. The WHO Ombudsman is José Martínez-Aragón, but this new position reports locally to the WHO Regional Director.

Confederation College Names Next Ombuds

The college of applied arts and technology in Thunder Bay, Ontario has selected Paul Straiton as its next Ombudsperson. He succeeds Kim Morgan, who established the program in 2008 and retired in January 2020.

Colorado State University Names Full-Time Ombuds

Melissa Emerson has been appointed the first full-time Ombuds for administrative professionals and state classified personnel at the public land-grant university in Ft. Collins. CSU's Ombuds program had been on hiatus since the prior, part-time Ombuds retired in April 2018. Kathy Rickard continues as the CSU Faculty Ombuds.

McGill University Ombuds 2019 Annual Report: 11% Jump in Cases

McGill's Student Ombudsperson Dimitrios Berk reports that his office handled 199 cases in the 2018-19 academic year, a 10.6% increase from the prior year. Cases peaked in January 2019 and, for the first time, graduate students slightly outnumbered undergraduate visitors. Carmela Parzanese continues as the Assistant to the Ombudsperson. (McGill Ombuds 2019 Report.)

Job Posting: National Institutes of Health

The NIH Office of the Ombudsman is hiring one or more Associate Ombudsmen. The NIH Office of the Ombudsman is an Organizational Ombuds office, serving the world’s largest biomedical research funding organization. NIH is made up of 27 Institutes and Centers, employing approximately 18,000 employees. 

Job Posting: Montgomery College

The public community college in Rockville, Maryland has opened a search for its next Ombuds for Employees. The office has been on hiatus for the past couple months since the departure of Julie Schwartz Weber, who had served as the MC Ombuds since July 2016. The position provides confidential and informal assistance to the College’s 3,000 administrators, faculty, and staff. 

Mediators Beyond Borders International Spotlights Work of Ombuds Team

The U.S.-based international non-profit that promotes mediation and peacebuilding recently highlighted the work of its three-member Ombuds Team of Chris LaHatte, Ayo Ayoola-Amale, and Yolanda W. Collins. The MBBI Ombuds assist members with concerns about MBBI decisions and activities, and individual behaviors and misconduct. They were profiled in recent articles on the MBBI website. All three will be attending the IOA conference in Portland this spring.

Ombuds Asks Students at University of Ottawa for Additional Funds

A ballot referendum in March 2020 would increase semesterly fees for the Office of the Ombudsperson at the U of O would increase from $1.06 to $1.50 for undergraduate students. Graduate students at the bilingual public research university in Ontario are also considering a similar referendum.

Asian Development Bank Seeks Bids to Review Ombuds Office

The ADB is hiring a consultant to conduct an external review of the Office of the Ombudsperson, which was established in 2012 and currently headed by Wayne Blair. The review process is expected to take three months and be completed by May 6, 2020. Compensation for the project, including travel and other expenses, is about $60,000. Proposals are due February 24, 2020.

Ombuds to Address University Risk Managers

The Central Regional Conference of the University Risk Management and Insurance Association will feature a session about the role of campus Ombuds. Charles Howard, IOA Executive Director, Melanie Jagneaux, Ombudsman Director at Baylor College of Medicine and IOA Director, and Joan Waters, Ombuds Officer at Columbia University, are the speakers. The conference takes place May 18-19, 2020 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Job Posting: University of Iowa

The University of Iowa’s Office of the Ombudsperson is seeking a half-time Associate Ombudsperson to join the ombuds team in providing problem solving and conflict management to the entire campus including health care. The position will help serve over 50,000 students, faculty, and staff in a nationally recognized research university by offering a confidential, neutral, informal and independent dispute resolution service and ensuring that all members of the University community receive fair and equitable treatment within the University system.  

Job Posting: University of California San Francisco

After 10 years in the UCSF Office of the Ombuds and the past four years as Director, Maureen Brodie has announced her retirement at the end of June 2020. The top-ranked academic healthcare institution has opened a search is underway for her successor who will lead a team of three Ombuds and a Program Coordinator serving 30,000+ faculty, staff, students and trainees at four major sites throughout San Francisco. One of 10 campuses in the University of California system, UCSF is a leading university dedicated exclusively to the health sciences. A concurrent search is open for an Associate Ombuds.

Job Posting: University of California San Francisco

The University of California San Francisco, a top-ranked academic healthcare institution, is hiring a full-time Associate Ombuds. The position will report to the Director and join a four-person team which includes Ellen Goldstein (Ombudsperson), Rita Callahan (Associate Ombudsperson), and Elin Horwedel (Program Coordinator). A concurrent search is open for the director position, which has been held by Maureen Brodie.

Austrian Student Ombuds Submits 2018-19 Annual Report

The Austrian Student Ombudsman (Ombudsstelle für Studierende), Josef Leidenfrost, has just published his seventh annual report, which was submitted earlier to the Ministry for Education, Science and Research and Parliament. Leidenfrost says that 478 cases were received in the 2017-18 academic year and that his office resolved 96.4% of them. The case data is similar to those reported by other academic Ombuds: most visitors were female and academic issues predominated.

Society for American Archaeology Names Two Experienced Ombuds

The professional association for archaeologists has selected David Rasch, CO-OP, and Elaine Shaw, CO-OP, to serve as its first Ombuds. Rasch and Shaw will provide in-person services for SAA's 85th Annual Meeting in Austin, TX, April 22-26, 2020. The Ombuds were identified through a posting on the IOA job board. 

Seasoned Ombuds Creates Program for Washtenaw Schools

The Washtenaw Intermediate School District in Ann Arbor, Michigan has named Gregory Peoples as its first Ombuds. The new office will, "help staff, students and their families in identifying and evaluating their options for resolving and managing conflicts, provide mediation support, and make referrals to other appropriate departments, offices and/or community resources." The WISD Ombuds will practice to IOA standards.

Job Posting: Office of Attorney General of Texas

The Texas OAG is hiring an Employee Ombudsman. The full-time position is based in Austin and "performs highly advanced (senior-level) conflict management and dispute resolution work" for 4,000 employees throughout the state. Grace Meyer held the position for fifteen years and was succeeded in 2018 by Katie Manderson, who moved back to DC in November 2019.

Job Posting: University of Minnesota

The U of M is hiring a part-time Ombudsperson. The position is located in the Student Conflict Resolution Center (headed by Jan Morse) and works primarily with undergraduate students. Due to training requirements, the posting seeks a one-year commitment.

Brock University Appoints Ombuds and Expands Scope to Entire Campus

Kelly Barker has been named the new Ombudsperson for public university in St. Catharines, Ontario. For the past decade, the office was funded by the student union and served only the university's students. Now, the Brock Ombuds Office will also receive funding from the university and graduate student union and work with all campus constituents. Brock President Gervan Fearon said, “I am proud that we are making the institutional changes to support the development of an engaged and inclusive university culture. I thank BUSU and GSA for their contributions in making these efforts possible for the benefit of all members of the Brock University community.”

Call for Art: IOA 2020 Conference

The International Ombudsman Association is seeking items for an art exhibit at the 2020 annual conference. Organized by Teresa Ralicki, Ombuds at the University of Colorado Denver and IOA Director, and Adam Barak Kleinberger, COOP, Associate Ombuds at Boston University, the exhibit is a new feature for the conference. “Experience: On Display” will feature artworks of all kinds.

University of Washington Ombud Posts Annual Report, Marks Half Century

The UW University Ombud, Chuck Sloan, marked his office's 50 year anniversary in 2019. In his annual report, Sloan said that the Office of the Ombud had seen a 98% growth in caseload over the past six years and handled 631 cases in 2019. He covers six different campuses and estimates that he and his staff traveled over 5,250 miles. The annual report also provides case example scenarios for student, faculty, and staff cases.