Ombuds to Present to National Association of College and University Attorneys

NACUA, the influential professional association of attorneys working in higher education, will host a webinar in cooperation with IOA later this month. This is especially significant because membership in NACUA is strictly limited to practicing attorneys and many members have been openly critical of Ombuds in the past. The program, "What General Counsel Need to Know About Ombuds," is set for May 30, 2023 at noon Eastern. The speakers will be Jessica Kuchta-Miller (University Ombuds at Duke), Ellen Miller (IOA's Executive Director), and Steve Prevaux (Faculty and Staff Ombuds at University of South Florida). Janet P. Judge, a Partner with the Education & Sports Law Group, LLC, and NACUA Board Member, will moderate. 

Here's the full description from NACUA: 

More and more institutions of higher education are creating ombuds offices on campus. Their unique roles are sometimes not fully understood or effectively leveraged to complement formal resolution channels. 

Please join NACUA and cooperating organization, the International Ombuds Association, for a complimentary overview of the practice of organizational ombuds, including: 

• Discussion on the role of ombuds on campus, 
• How ombuds and general counsel can work together effectively, and 
• The role of campus ombuds in risk management at institutions of higher education. 

This complimentary webinar, which will not offer CLE credit, will be a useful primer leading up to our Annual Conference session titled, Embracing Conflict: Ombuds as Strategic Allies for Campus Counsel, which will feature a more in-depth discussion of how the Office of General Counsel can effectively interface with the institution’s Ombuds. 

Who Should Attend? 

This webinar will be of interest to in-house and outside counsel to colleges and universities, senior institutional leadership, and current ombuds at colleges and universities.

(NACUA Program Info.)