Guest Post: Reese Ramos on the Impact of AI

In this special post, Reese Ramos, the University Ombuds & Director at Virginia Tech, offers his perspective on the growing impact of AI on Ombuds work. I deeply appreciate and respect his insights on the Ombuds profession.

Here is his full essay:

Article Examines Role of Slovenia's Athlete Ombuds

An article in the current issue of the International Sports Law Journal discusses the role of Athlete Rights Ombudsman for the Slovenian Olympic Committee, "The Athletes’ Ombudsman: integrating autonomous and heteronomous regulations for athlete protection." The author, Rožle Prezelj, urges greater emphasis on the Athletes’ Ombudsman as a legally grounded bridge between sports-organization rules and national law, arguing that this role is essential for advancing and safeguarding athletes’ rights.

Medical University of South Carolina Appoints First Ombuds

Kristin Lee Campbell has been appointed the Ombuds for faculty and post-doctoral fellows at the small private medical school in Charleston. She follows John Waller, who established the program in 2012. Campbell recently joined the faculty at MUSC faculty as an Assistant Professor in Pediatrics.

Osgoode/FCO Sets Advanced Ombuds Certificate Course for April 2026

The Forum of Canadian Ombudsman and Osgoode Professional Development are offering their intensive program on advanced Ombuds practice in April 2026. The course building on the success of the Osgoode/FCO Certificate – Essentials for Ombuds, this program is designed to teach skills for complex challenges and provides hands-on learning with leading experts and real-world case studies.

ACCUO Posts 2025 Conference Agenda

The Association of Canadian College and University Ombudspersons (Association des ombudsmans des universités et collèges du Canada) has announced published the agenda for its 2025 conference: "Moving Forward, Never Backward." The free, half-day, online event is set for tomorrow, November 21, 2025, and is aimed at "higher education ombuds professionals from across Canada and beyond." 

Peralta Community College District Ready to Recruit First Ombuds

PCCD, which operates four community colleges in Northern California (Berkeley City College, Laney College, Merritt College, and College of Alameda) is expected to open a search for its first Ombuds. At a meeting earlier this week, the district's board of trustees unanimously approved the new, classified management position. Details regarding the search for the inaugural Ombuds are forthcoming. (PCCD Board Agenda, Consent Item 8.5, YouTube at 38:23.)

Job Posting: Berea College

The highly ranked, private liberal arts college in Kentucky has opened a search for its first Ombudsperson. The full-time position will serve faculty and staff (not the 1,500 students) following IOA standards and report to the college president. 

University of Waterloo Adds an Assistant Ombuds

In June 2024, Sam Vandekerckhove joined the Ombuds Office at Waterloo as an Associate Ombuds. He reports to Whitney Barrett and serves at the initial point of contact the program that serves over 43,000 students across multiple campuses.

Université de Sherbrooke Student Ombudsman Releases 2024–25 Annual Report

UdeS has released the 2024–25 annual report from Student Ombudsman, Marie-Claude Laquerre, and Deputy Ombudsman, Stephanie McFarland. The office received 402 new requests, including 160 related to access-to-information issues. Student requests increased 16% from the prior year, while staff requests declined 6%. Most student matters involved evaluation, enrollment, or unclear criteria, and 78% were consultations rather than formal interventions. 

Wake County Public School System Issues RFI for Ombuds Services

WCPSS, a public school district in North Carolina, has issued a request for information for Ombuds services. The announcement indicated that the large school district had given up on its recent search for an employee to serve as its first Ombuds. The RFI is intended only "to survey the market for information ... for Ombuds Services."

IOA Opens Scholarship Applications for 2026 Annual Conference

The International Ombuds Association is offering scholarships to its 2026 Annual Conference, which will take place virtually on April 13-15, 2026. The application window closes January 22, 2026. The initiative supports new and aspiring Ombuds who lack organizational or institutional funding to attend. Applicants must be IOA members with less than one year of organizational Ombuds practice. 

Prince William County Public Schools Ombuds Posts 2024–25 Annual Report

PWCS in Virginia has issued the 2024–25 annual report from its Office of the Ombuds. Monique “Mo” Bookstein and Ombuds Specialist Rosamaria Manzines recorded 368 cases, a 15% increase from the prior year. The annual report uses IOA reporting categories and this year added a new case type, “Educational Partners,” to better classify school-related concerns.

Florida Institute of Technology Names Ombuds

The private research university in Melbourne, Florida, has appointed its first members of a Faculty Ombuds Committee: Albert Bleakley, Professor of Mechanical and Civil Engineering; Kenia Nunes, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Science; and Suzanne Kozaitis, Associate Librarian. All will serve an initial three-year term. In addition, Florida Tech also appointed Kristen Nelson as its next Student Ombuds in the summer of 2024. She follows Rebecca Crook in the part-time role. 

University of Colorado Boulder Opens Internal Search for Faculty Ombuds

Colorado's flagship public university seeks applications for a part-time Faculty Ombuds. The CU Boulder Ombuds Office currently has two Faculty Ombuds, Yem Fong and Jerry Hauser, who primarily work with faculty, researchers, and graduate students. The position is open only to retired faculty. Tenure and conflict resolution training are preferred. The nine-month, 0.30 FTE, hybrid appointment will pay $59,639 annually and applications are due by November 21, 2025. (CU Posting.)

Queen's University Faculty Raise Concerns About Ombuds

According to an article in the Queen's University Journal, the faculty union has raised concerns about a perceived conflict in the Office of the University Ombudsperson. The Queen’s University Faculty Association does not name the Ombuds in its statement (which is not publicly available), but points out that she is married to a senior university administrator. QUFA also has concerns about the Ombuds' reporting structure, which changed in 2023 from the University Secretariat to the Vice-Principal of Culture, Equity, and Inclusion. 

Brookhaven National Lab Abruptly Closes Ombuds Office

Just two weeks after she was appointed as the Ombuds for the U.S. Department of Energy lab in Long Island, New York, Brooke Wichmann has been laid off "due to changes in leadership and funding." She had been selected after a 20-month search to restart the Ombuds program at Brookhaven and bring it up to IOA standards. (LinkedIn.)

Michigan State University Adds an Assistant Ombuds

Stefanie Janes has joined the Ombuds Office at MSU. As the second, full-time Assistant Ombuds, her appointment marks the expansion of a program that serves all members of a large, public university. Janes reports to the University Ombudsperson, Shannon Lynn Burton, and join Assistant Ombudsperson, Ryan T. Smith. 

Loyola Marymount University Appoints Interim Ombuds

Jacqueline Villafañe will serve as an interim Ombuds for faculty and staff at LMU, the private Jesuit university in Los Angeles, while Johnny Armijo fulfills an active duty requirement with the Air Force Reserve from October 2025 through May 2026. Villafane is a current member of the IOA Board of Directors and has also been an Ombuds for the American Red Cross, The MacArthur Foundation, and University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, among other organizations. (LMU Newsroom.)

Canada's Organizational Ombuds Council Document Guides Practice for Federal Ombuds

In July 2020, OOC (Conseil des ombuds organisationnels) issued "Standards of Practice for Organizational Ombuds of the Federal Public Service." These standards are designed to be "consistent with those of the International Ombudsman Association (IOA) and the Coalition of the Federal Ombudsman of the United States to guide the organizational ombuds practice within the Federal Public Service." This document is therefore another crucial, foundational document that supports and defines work of Organizational Ombuds.