Job Posting: Heinrich Böll Foundation

The German, Green-party affiliated political foundation (Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung) is hiring its first Central Ombudsperson. The half-time position is based in Cape Town, South Africa, and will serve an initial six-month appointment. The position will develop and manage a global Ombuds program that was established in 2023 and is comprised of 12 Regional Ombudspersons. According to a HBS whitepaper from May 2022, "The ombudsperson is obligated to neutrality and confidentiality" and "Ombudspersons do not undertake investigations (no investigation / internal audit) and do not take on the role of a judge." 

Missouri State University to Hire First Employee Ombuds

The public university in Springfield has opened a search for a Faculty or Staff Ombuds, a new position that will be available to all employees. The part-time (0.20 FTE) position will be part of the president's office and practice to IOA standards. The initial appointment will be for three years. 

Grand Rapids Schools Ombuds Launches Podcast

Maleika Joubert Brown, the inaugural Ombuds for Grand Rapids Public Schools in Michigan, has started her own podcast. The pod focuses on her work: "The Ombuds Outlook: Perspectives in Practice." The first episode explores how effective communication builds trust and connection, allowing people to move beyond transactional exchanges to transformational dialogue.

Job Posting: Washington State Education Ombuds

The Ombuds program that serves all of Washington's K-12 public schools is hiring an Associate Education Ombuds. The full-time, remote position is the first point of contact for most visitors and will co-lead an important triage process for cases and work with other Ombuds.

Hollywood Commission's Ombuds Program Now Available to Entire Motion Picture Industry

For the past year, MyConnext, has provided Ombuds services to a limited group of union members and production companies around Los Angeles with Lillian Rivera as the inaugural Ombuds. Today, the program is available to anyone in the motion picture industry, regardless of union status, from production assistants to producers. To manage the workload, Rivera is being joined by a consulting Ombuds, Hector Escalante Meza. (H'wood Reporter.)

IOA to Offer In-Person Foundations in Denmark

For the first time ever, the International Ombuds Association's signature training course will be offered in Copenhagen. This offers a unique opportunity to take this four-day training in person. The program is set for September 16-17 2025, with an additional virtual component. IOA has not announced details for the location of the in-person portion. Registration is now open and registration is capped at 36 participants.

Job Posting: International Organization for Migration, Senegal

The intergovernmental organization that promotes international cooperation on migration issues is hiring a Conflict Resolution Officer to be based in Dakar. The position is located within the IOM Office of the Ombudsperson and Mediation Services and assists staff members with employment issues following IOA standards. The contract is for nine months.

Another View of a High Profile University Ombuds Case

In 2017, Ombuds at ETH Zürich, the leading Swiss engineering and technology university, raised concerns about bullying by a prominent professor of astronomy. Despite the university's attempts to supress the feedback, the story became public and ETH eventually fired the professor (the only tenured faculty member ever fired by ETH) and closed her institute. Now, a blog post at Epistimi, a global nonprofit promoting women in STEMM, offers a counternarrative. In essence, the authors argue that the process initiated by the Ombuds was biased, opaque, and irregular. 

Virgina Tech Ombuds Featured on Two Podcasts

Both of Virginia Tech's Ombuds have been guests on podcasts recently. Bryan Hanson, VT's Graduate School Ombudsperson, was the guest on the National Association for Community Mediation's #Here2Hear podcast on April 17, 2025. (NAFCM YouTube.) Reese Ramos, VT's University Ombuds & Director, was a guest on the Blessed Be podcast on May 2, 2025. (Spotify.)

Correctional Service of Canada Names First Permanent Ombuds

Last fall, Bill Rasmus was introduced as the Ombuds for Workplace Well-being for Canada's correctional system, Service correctionnel du Canada. He follows Tammy Carroll, who was the acting Ombuds since January 2024. Ramus has worked worked in corrections for 35 years, with more than two decades at the institutional level in roles ranging from chaplain to institutional manager. For the past 13 years, he has been CSC's Director for Reintegration Services, which includes ethnocultural services, chaplaincy, and social programs. (CSC Commissioner's Update; LinkedIn.)

Journal of IOA: The Ombuds' Four Interdependent Standards

Two emeriti Ombuds, Mary Rowe and Bruce MacAllister, have collaborated on the latest article for the latest issue of the Journal of the International Ombuds Association. They explain why each of the four ethical standards are necessary and interdependent on the other standards for Organizational Ombuds. The full article, "The Unique—and Effective—Quartet of Standards of Practice of Organizational Ombuds: Each Standard is Necessary—and Requires the Other Three Standards," is now available online.

Exergen Corp Announces First Ombuds

The Massachusetts-based manufacturer of infrared measuring tools has announced the appointment of Bob Harris to the newly created role of International Ombudsman. According to an Exergen press release, Harris "will focus on identifying and resolving issues and challenges related to our products, field operations, and questions surrounding regulatory matters." It is not clear whether Harris will work with customer complaints or internal issues, and there is no externally available information at this time. 

Cases Jump for Staff Ombuds at Eindhoven University of Technology

Anna Soedira, the Ombudsperson for Staff at Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, says that she handled 106 cases between July 2023 and December 2024, more than a 20% increase from the prior 18-month period. Soedira's report was critical of the university, calling out especially institutional gaslighting, and offers several recommendations. A university spokesperson rebutted several of the assertions, but also acknowledges that the report will be discussed at the next University Council meeting on June 16, 2025. Soedira did not speak with the campus newspaper and said that the report speaks for itself. (TU/e Ombuds Report; TU/e Cursor.)

Journal of IOA: Communication Theory for Ombuds

Joshua Canzona, Associate Ombuds at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is the author of a new article in the latest issue of the Journal of the International Ombuds Association. The paper suggests that Ombuds will benefit from communication theories related to organizational dynamics, uncertainty, and power relationships. The full article, "Communication Theory in the Ombuds Context: A Resource for Practitioners," is now available online.

Job Posting: University of Michigan–Dearborn

The UM campus near Detroit has opened a search for an Ombudsperson & Special Assistant to the Dean of Students. Duties for the full-time position are 75% Ombuds services for 8,000 students and 25% managing Dean of Students initiatives that are not student facing. Lee Savage has served as the Student Ombuds since 2019. Meanwhile, Jackie Bowman serves as the Staff Ombuds all of UM, and Patrick Beauchesne and Dale Thomson are the current Faculty Ombuds for Dearborn.

Job Posting: Kaiser Permanente, California Central Valley

KP is hiring a full-time HealthCare Ombuds/Mediator for its medical facilities in Fresno, California. 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." Local travel is required.

Loyola Marymount University Names Ombuds

Johnny Armijo has been hired as the first full-time Ombuds for faculty and staff at the the private Jesuit university in Los Angeles. He follows Ariane White, who served in the role on a part-time basis for the past two years. Meanwhile, Roy Pereira continues as the inaugural Ombuds for Students.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Adds an Associate Ombuds

In February 2025, Mireille Aubrey was named the Associate Ombuds for the federal agency that regulates agriculture in Canada, Agriculture et Agroalimentaire Canada. (Elianne Hall, who had headed the AAFC Ombuds Office as the Workplace Well-Being Ombuds, appears to have left the organization earlier this year.) As the Associate Ombuds, Aubrey provides services to all AAFC employees with workplace concerns and is based in Ottawa. 

Job Posting: University of Tennessee Knoxville

UTK is seeking its next Associate (or Assistant) Ombudsperson. The search will fill a position recently vacated by Brooke Wichmann, who is the inaugural Ombuds for American InterContinental University. The full-time position reports to Campus Ombudsperson, Lisa Yamagata-Lynch, and serves over 18,000 stakeholder, including faculty, staff, and graduate students. The expected start date is early fall 2025.

University of Nevada Las Vegas Selects Assistant Ombuds

Brie Starks has been hired as the Assistant Ombuds/Program Manger at UNLV. In this new, full-time role, she joins David G. Schwartz and will assist in providing services to 35,000 campus stakeholders at the urban, public university.

IOA to Offer In-Person Foundations in New Zealand

For the first time ever, the International Ombuds Association's signature training course will be offered in Aotearoa. This offers a unique opportunity to take this training in person. The program is set for October 5-7, 2025, at Lincoln University (Te Whare Wānaka o Aoraki) on New Zealand's South Island (Te Waipounamu). Registration is now open and registration is capped at just 15 participants.

NASEM White Paper Highlights Benefits of Ombuds for Postdocs

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine has published an issue paper exploring practices and key considerations related to supporting postdoctoral fellows who experience sexual harassment. Shannon Burton, Ombuds at Michigan State University, is one of the coauthors (and also coeditor of the new IOA book). The work of University Ombuds is featured prominently throughout the paper. 

Job Posting: University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign

Illinois' flagship university is hiring an Associate Dean of Students and Student Ombudsperson. This would be the first campus-wide Ombuds position for UIUC; existing Ombuds serve the College of Engineering, School of Medicine, and the Prairie Research Institute. Meanwhile, there is no apparent progress on a Faculty Ombuds, which the Senate has sought for over a decade. The IOA-compliant position will serve a student body of 60,000 (one of the largest in the U.S., begging the question of whether this hire will stand up a larger program). The target start date is August 2025. 

Transport Canada Names First Ombuds

Nadia Lecuyer has been appointed the inaugural Ombuds for the federal agency that regulates land, sea, and air transportation industries in Canada. The Ombuds program emerged from a set of recommendations following a departmental self assessment for diversity and inclusion in April 2024. 

SOS Children's Villages Completes Global Ombuds Program

Over the past year, the Austria-based international development organization has finished the hiring for its global Ombuds program. Appointed as the Global Ombuds in May 2024, Pierre Cazenave oversees a team of Regional Ombuds, who coordinate National Ombuds located at SOS facilities around the world. Cazenave brings a decade of child advocacy to the role, most recently as s senior anti-trafficking specialist with the International Center for Migration Policy Development. His team of Regional Ombuds include:

Leoncio Severino Lara Sáenz: Former Ombuds for UNAM and Founder of REDDU

Leoncio Severino Lara Sáenz passed away at the age of 85 in late April 2025. Lara served as defensor universitario of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico (UNAM) in Mexico City from 2003 to 2011 and was the founder and Executive Secretary of the Mexican Network of University Ombuds Offices (REDDU). He was also Vice President of the Instituto Latinoamericano del Ombudsman. Lara was also remembered as an active participant in the European Network of University Ombuds' annual conferences starting in 2007. For his many years of advocacy benefitting university Ombuds, ENOHE bestowed a lifetime membership to Lara in March 2024.

Canadian Space Agency Appoints First Dedicated Ombuds

Lynne Laramee has been named the first Ombuds for Canada's national space agency, Agence spatiale canadienne, in Longueuil, Quebec. Previously, the Office of Shared Ombuds Services, headed by Judith Brunet, provided Organizational Ombuds services for the agency's 1,000 employees. Laramme moved into the position after serving as the Executive Director of Human Resouces for the agency for three years. Prior to that, she was the Director of Executive Services for Shared Services Canada.

Maine Legislature Considers Bill for Prison Ombuds With IOA Standards

Yesterday, Maine State Senator Jill Duson introduced "An Act to Establish the Corrections Ombudsman" (Maine LD 1962). In most respects, the proposed Ombuds would resemble those in other states' prison programs, which are exclusively Classical Ombuds. However, Duson's bill would require the Ombuds to "act in accordance with the International Ombuds Association's or a successor organization's published code of ethics and standards of practice." 

Emeritus Ombuds With a New Take on Embedded Services

In a recent blog post, Bruce MacAllister, offers a new perspective on the current debate about how Ombuds services are delivered and concerns about the quality of outsourced Ombuds services. (MacAllister brings significant experience to the conversation: he was an Ombuds for universities, a professional association, a nonprofit, and a federal lab; he served on the IOA board and was instrumental in developing legal arguments and ethical standards for Ombuds; and this year was awarded emeritus status.) Reflecting on a session at the IOA annual conference, he argues that "the question is not whether the ombuds is retained via a contract but rather how deeply embedded is the ombuds providing the services." 

Ombuds at University of Victoria Posts 2024 Annual Report

Angus Shaw, the Ombudsperson for UVic, has released his 2024 annual report and recommendations. The focus of the report is not on statistical information, although that is provided, but on systemic trends and feedback. Last year, Shaw said that artificial intelligence highlighted and intensified deficiencies in academic misconduct decision-making at the university. He cited multiple examples of problems that led to unfair outcomes for students.

American InterContinental University Selects First Ombuds

Brooke Wichmann, CO-OP, has been appointed the first Ombuds for AIU, a private for-profit university based in Schaumburg, Illinois. In this new, full-time role, she will establish and manage a program to serve 11,000 students. Wichmann comes to AIU from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she has been the Associate Ombuds since 2021. During that time, she also served as an interim Ombuds for UT Chattanooga. (UTK Ombuds.)

University of Kentucky to Hire Next Academic Ombuds

The public university in Lexington has opened an internal search for its next Academic Ombud. The position may be filled by a tenured or emeriti faculty member who provides services to students with academic issues. UK had one of the first university Ombuds in the United States and 29 faculty have served in the position over the last five decades. Alice Turkington, Professor of Geography, has served several terms as the Academic Ombud since she was selected in 2021. The position reports to UK's provost and practices to IOA standards. (UK Now.)

Journal of IOA: An Ombuds Story About Harassment and Bully from Mary Rowe

In the latest issue of the Journal of the International Ombuds Association, Mary Rowe, shares a tale from her time as the Ombuds at MIT. The full article, "An Unusual Harassment Training that was Warmly Received—and, as well, Inspired Bystanders—an Organizational Ombuds," is now available online. 

IOA Issues Guidance for Collateral Duty Ombuds

The International Ombuds Association has released a short white paper, "Guidance for Dual Role Ombuds." The document offers advice for Ombuds who hold additional roles within their organization and are seeking to conform to IOA standards. The guidance covers a range of issues, including: Budget and Compensation; Conflicts of Interest Including Mandatory Reporting; Confidentiality; Independence; Building Trust; and Constituency Size. Acknowledging the importance of disclosing the limitations of a collateral duty Ombuds, the guidance also includes a sample opening statement. (IOA Resources.) 

University of Toronto Scarborough Names Ombuds

Miranda Edwards was appointed the next Ombuds Officer for the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus in January 2025. She follows Emma Thacker, who moved to University of Toronto St. George Campus. Edwards (and all other UT Campus Ombuds) holds two roles and a dual reporting structure. As the Assistant Secretary, she provides administrative support, advice, and information to the Governing Council on policies, precedents, and procedures for assigned boards and committees. As the Ombuds, she reports to the University Ombudsperson, Bruce Kidd.

Job Posting: Center for Nonviolent Communication

The international nonprofit is hiring a Dispute Transformation Officer to join its Dispute Transformation Team. The fully-remote, part-time (30-40 hrs/mo) position "will function similar to an Organizational Ombudsperson who helps ... to ensure that people who are representing CNVC are honoring the agreements that they have made in relation to their roles." Curiously, the job description also says, "the DTO will investigate these concerns and address them with formal or information interventions such as requests, recommendations, mediation, arbitration, or referrals to governing bodies or other outside experts." 

Meet the Assistant Ombuds at the University of Ottawa

In October 2023, Chanelle Bouassali was appointed the Assistant Ombuds at the bilingual public university in Ontario for an initial, two-year term. Reporting to Martine Conway, Bouassali provides services to 50,000 students, faculty, and staff.

UCLA Selects a Campus Ombuds

Nearly three years after being tapped as the interim Campus Ombuds, Thomas Griffin has been selected for the permanent role. As the Campus Ombudsperson and Director of Ombuds Services, Griffin will lead that office that serves over 90,000 faculty, staff, and students at the research university in Los Angeles. Other members of the office currently include Brenda Woods-Patin, Natalie Gibson, and Ariella Morrison. Griffin reports as part of the Chancellor's office and practices to IOA standards.

Guide for Leading a Divided Campus Urges Role for Ombuds

"Leading a Divided Campus: Ideas and Illustrations" offers guidance for campus leaders seeking to to deepen their support of students and to reinforce norms of humane behaviors in the midst of vigorous disagreements. The fourth edition of the guide from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law (with support from AAA-ICDR Foundation) was just released. The recommendations now include an active role for campus Ombuds, drawing on work by the Ombuds at Kenyon, Carrie Knell, and Brandeis, Don Greenstein. 

University of Toronto Hosts Ontario Area Ombuds

Ombuds from universities around Ontario gathered at uToronto on April 23 and 24, 2025. The roundtable event offered university Ombuds the chance to share insights, explore emerging issues, and strengthen collegial networks. In addition to local faculty and administrators, remarks were offered by Bruce Kidd and Emma Thacker. 

Lamar University Adopts Ombuds Charter

The public university in Beaumont, Texas, has adopted an administrative policy that is the functional equivalent of an Ombuds Charter. The new policy, which is endoresed by the president and provost, states that the Faculty and Staff Ombuds will practice to IOA standards. The policy also outlines the internal selection process. Jim Mann was named the first Faculty Ombuds in February 2022, but it does not appear that he is still serving in the role. (Lamar MAPP.)