International Ombuds Association
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Foundations Course | Minneapolis July 2019
Loews Minneapolis Hotel
601 N 1st Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55403
USA

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Monday, July 22, 2019, 8:00 AM to Wednesday, July 24, 2019, 3:30 PM CDT
Category: Foundations Courses

Foundations of Organizational Ombudsman Practice Course

3-Day Course

This 101 style course covers the fundamentals of the organizational ombuds role based on the principles of confidentiality, neutrality, independence, and informality. Participants will learn how to work with the visitor to an office as well as how to act as a change agent within your organization. Practice key ombuds skills of listening, asking questions, clarifying, generating options, and moving to actions throughout the ombuds process. 

Read more about this learning opportunity below and explore the 102 style Specialized Course, Assessing and Addressing Organizational and Systemic Contributors to Conflict that will follow this training from 25–26 July 2019.

This course is approved for 23.5 Professional Development Hours towards the CO-OP® Credential.

Registration & Fees | Location | Course Description | Course Instructors


Registration

Registration is now full for the July Foundations Course. Join the waitlist and we will contact you if a spot becomes available. 

Early Bird Rate: On or before 22 June 2019
IOA Members: $1,695 | Non-members: $1,795

Regular Rate: After 22 June 2019
IOA Members: $1,795 | Non-members: $1,895

Get on the Waitlist

Please Note: 
The course fee does not include travel expenses or the cost of accommodations. Housing arrangements should be made directly with the hotel once you’ve received a registration confirmation. On-site registration is not permitted. You may ask to be placed on a waitlist if the course has reached full capacity.

To receive the member discount for this event, you must first become a member then proceed to event registration.

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Course Description 

This course covers the fundamentals of the organizational ombuds role based on the principles of confidentiality, neutrality, independence, and informality. Learn how to work with the visitor to an office as well as how to act as a change agent within your organization. Practice key ombuds skills of listening, asking questions, clarifying, generating options, and moving to actions throughout the ombuds process. In addition, an experienced and highly committed faculty of ombuds will share best practices around setting up an office and evaluating and communicating the effectiveness of the office.

As a result of this program you will learn:

  • How the role, scope, and duties of today’s ombuds began and evolved
  • The four basic principles of the organizational ombuds role: neutrality, independence, confidentiality, and informality
  • Why confidentiality is essential to the practice and how to maintain confidentiality
  • How to listen as a neutral, including effective techniques for interviewing and inquiring, reflective listening, reframing, identifying issues, and providing options
  • How to manage and work with conflict by employing a battery of skills including listening, coaching, and negotiation techniques
  • How to decide which intervention would be most effective and how to provide feedback to management
  • How to set up and operate an ombuds office, including the fundamentals of how to log concerns, report to management, and design reports to track issues
  • How to align the ombuds function with the mission, values, and culture of the organization
  • How to promote the ombuds role and function, including ways to gain and keep management support

Who should attend:

The course will benefit the recently appointed ombuds, or anyone desiring to establish an ombuds function in industry, government, higher education, and public or private social services agencies. 

This course applies to ombuds programs in organizational settings. It does not address some features unique to other ombuds disciplines such as classical, patient advocate, or legislative ombuds.

Course Limit: 34 participants

Prerequisites: None

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Course Instructors

Judi Segall MSW, CO-OP® serves as Ombudsperson at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), providing conflict management services to all cohorts of the Institute community. Prior to joining MIT in 2014, Judi served as Director of the Ombudsman Office at Stony Brook University from 1997-2014 and was a faculty member in the Stony Brook University School of Social Welfare graduate program for 16 years. Judi served as President of the University and College Ombuds Association (UCOA) in 1999-2001, President of The Ombudsman Association (TOA) in 2005-2006, and was the inaugural President of the International Ombudsman Association (IOA) in 2006-2007. Currently, she is a faculty member on the teaching team for IOA’s training and professional development program. Judi holds a Masters in Social Work from Stony Brook University and certification in mediation from the Center for Mediation in Law. Underlying her work as an Ombudsperson, teacher, and trainer, Judi is committed to advancing constructive conflict management skills and positive change within all realms of our society.

Dawn Osborne-Adams, CO-OP® is the University Ombuds and Director of the Ombuds Office at UNC-Chapel Hill. Dawn's Ombuds experience also includes serving as a consultant Ombuds at Shell Oil Company and University Ombudsman at Binghamton University. Dawn earned her B.S. from Georgetown University and her J.D. from New York University School of Law. She holds a certificate in dispute resolution from the Straus Institute at Pepperdine University School of Law.

Lauren Bloom, CO-OP® has been an ombuds for over 14 years. She chose this profession because she has seen how coaching and providing conflict resolution options allow people to find creative solutions to their concerns and creates pathways for positive change.  She currently works at University of California-Davis with staff, faculty, and students and has previously worked at University of California-Berkeley as well as served as the Director and Ombudsperson at The University of Texas at Austin and at the Texas State Lottery Commission. Lauren is a member of the International Ombudsman Association (IOA), was a founding member of a Texas organizational ombuds group, and has served as a co-chair of the Ombuds of Texas. Additionally, Lauren has been a social worker at employee assistance program services, taught sociology, and worked on issues related to restorative justice, housing, domestic violence, sexual assault, child care, and business and economic development.  Lauren holds a Master of Arts in Sociology with a Portfolio in Dispute Resolution and a Master of Science in Social Work from The University of Texas at Austin. She completed her undergraduate work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Caitlan Hendrickson, CO-OP® is the Ombuds Program Director at the University of Arizona. Caitlan has over fifteen years of experience in conflict management, including in higher education, court, non-profit, and business settings. She has mediated over five hundred cases, trained hundreds of mediators, and supervised and mentored over one-hundred mediators. Caitlan is bilingual in Spanish and English and since 2008 has had a private practice performing conflict management services and interpretation/translation. Prior to working at the UA Caitlan served as the Director of Conflict Resolution Services at the University of Oregon, where she also ran a Restorative Justice Program. Caitlan received her Master of Education in Human Relations with distinction from Northern Arizona University, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Educational Technology - Adult Learning and Training. Currently, she is completing a doctorate in educational leadership as well as certifications in coaching and advanced organizational development. Caitlan is a member of the International Ombudsman Association and the Association for Conflict Resolution.

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Course Location

Loews Minneapolis Hotel
601 N 1st Avenue

Minneapolis, MN 55403
USA

Reserve Your Room

The course fee does not include travel expenses or the cost of accommodations. Housing arrangements should be made directly with the hotel once you've received a registration confirmation. To reserve a room at the discounted rate starting at $209.00 USD per night (single/double occupancy), reserve online or call Loews Minneapolis at +1-888-302-4387 and mention you are part of the International Ombudsman Association Foundations Course. These rates will be available to attendees, based on availability, through Sunday, June 30, 2019. 

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 Questions?

Contact the IOA office at [email protected].