The Ombuds Blog: Eugene School District 4J Selects First Ombuds

November 22, 2023

Eugene School District 4J Selects First Ombuds

Talatou A. Maiga has been appointed the first Ombuds for the public school district in Western Oregon. He comes to the position after serving as the first full-time Ombudsperson at Utah Valley University since 2017. In this new position, Maiga will establish an Ombuds program for over 16,000 enrolled K-12 students and their families, district employees, and community members. He is expected to practice to IOA standards and report to the district superintendent.

Prior to becoming an Ombuds, Maiga was a mediator for the Utah state courts and was an instructor and researcher at the University of Utah. He earned his PhD in Education, Culture and Society, and Conflict Resolution and Mediation at the University of Utah. Abdoulaye is also a certified federal court interpreter for five different languages. (4J News; LinkedIn.)

1 comment:

Sara Ash11/22/2023 10:47 AM
Welcome to Eugene, Talatou!
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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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