2008 Annual Conference Institutes

Presenters: Michael Aloi, Nan Waller Burnett, Erica Ariel Fox, Daniel Horsey, Joann Harjes, Miles Davies, Rita Callahan, and Emily Gould

Commit to your inner core and gain sustenance for the rest of the year. ACRSS is the only section at ACR for the practitioner and not the practice, however; as Kahlil Gibran said,

Extraordinary facilitators are changing our field. ACRSS has enlisted many of these facilitators in the last few years and this year is no exception. Michael Aloi and Nan Waller Burnett, will host this amazing day. We begin by building spiritual community and end with how to stay calm in the face of the storm.

Erica Ariel Fox, JD is the Founder and Director of the Global Negotiation Insight Initiative and a partner at Mobius Executive Leadership.

A very special afternoon of hilarious fun awaits the group at the “The Improv”, led by the very talented and extraordinary band of mediators Daniel Horsey, Joann Harjes, Miles Davies and Rita Calahan, in

Come a day early and become a make sure you reserve YOUR seat on the magic carpet of this global transformation. Global Insight in Negotiation: Practical Wisdom for Engaging in Conflict

The morning workshop is an excellent gateway into places beyond reason and emotion where our true wisdom and best skills reside. Erica will facilitate a discussion about her holistic program, the Insight Initiative. Participants will learn the basic Beyond Yes method that moves negotiators from competence toward mastery. In this course, she will introduce a system she calls “archetypes and autobiography” to help people map their own obstacles and paths to success in light of timeless systems for understanding human nature. Drawing on presentations, reflection, partner and group exercises, and simple insight practices, this class is an excellent gateway into the places beyond reason and emotion where our true wisdom and best skills reside. The tools, techniques and insight of the Beyond Yes framework apply to all of life’s negotiations, whether professional or personal. Beyond Yes Two is a deeper look at the terrain that moves us from competence to mastery in negotiation. Following in the direction of Beyond Yes Fundamentals, Erica will guide the institute class in a more advanced level of the Beyond Yes method. In this segment, she focuses the practitioner on a robust system for understanding the self that draws on centuries of thought about adult human development. Our own behavior in negotiation will be explored and the patterns in our own lives around conflict to understand deeply where we already are successful and where our capability may be more limited. Using the insights of these ancient maps and practices from timeless wisdom traditions, participants can break through stuck patterns in their ways of operating and open to entirely new ways of relating to self and others. This learning creates vast new possibilities for the practitioner both at work and at home.

Then the afternoon will take our inner core and stretch it to the max through improv!! We have 4 very talented professional Mediator/Actors who will lead us through a hilarious afternoon of fun and introspection.

By focusing attention and awareness on what is taking place at the center, core, or heart of the dispute, the practitioner will encouraging participation in activities likely to result in positive, collaborative, open-hearted experiences.

Not a member of ACRSS? …not to worry…we welcome all members of the organization to our section events. We will have many materials at the institute to assist you during the coming year and raffle off a free spot at the upcoming ACRSS mid-year meeting.

The Practitioners Research and Scholarship Institute (PRASI) anthology, Re-Centering Culture and Knowledge in Conflict Resolution Practice, is intended to be used as a powerful addition to the literature of the field, a centerpiece for multicultural teaching in academic programs and training settings, as well as a stimulus for diverse research. The editors of that volume present a training designed to get people writing and keep them going after the conference. A series of exercises and discussions guide participants through the steps of getting started writing: discovering a central theme; putting it on paper; speaking it aloud; discussing it with supportive others; elaborating what you have to say; shaping a piece; staying with it. The training involves skills for building and using collaborative support and networking to get work into print. PRASI invites participants into its expanding network of practitioner-researcher writers.

Beth Roy is a long-time mediator in San Francisco. She writes books on social conflict, including Some Trouble with Cows: Making Sense of Social Conflict; Bitters in the Honey: Tales of Hope and Disappointment Across Divides of Race and Time; American Skin: What Amadou Diallo Teaches Us about Policing, Race and Justice; and Parents’ Lives, Children’s Needs. She holds a PhD in sociology and teaches in the Peace and Conflict Studies program at UC Berkeley.

Mary Adams Trujillo a PhD in communication studies from Northwestern University in 2004. Her dissertation work focused on an ethnographic study of violence in a neighborhood and a community’s attempt to organize to prevent further violence. Her professional experience includes mental health practitioner, higher education administrator, elementary educator, and her current position as a professor of intercultural communication and conflict transformation at North Park University in Chicago.

S. Y. (Sandra) Bowland earned her BA in Social Relations from Colgate University and her JD from the National Law Center at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

S. Y. is dedicated to the survival of African American males, the study of conflicts, people and culture, as a conflict resolution practitioner and an educator. She is very committed to understanding conflict resolution processes and their impact specifically on Black and multicultural communities.

Michelle Armster is an activist and the co-director of Mennonite Central Committee's Office on Justice and Peacebuilding (OJP) in Akron, PA. She provides resourcing, consulting and training for churches, agencies, communities and individuals. She has many years of extensive training and experience in meditation, facilitation, conciliation, restorative justice, arbitration, victim/offender mediation, anti-racism and alternatives to violence.

Timing, sincerity, language, intent, and purpose all impact the effectiveness of an apology in negotiation. This institute will look at the types of apology, the influence of culture and gender, and how the use of apology results in greater satisfaction by the parties. This workshop will focus on research and advanced strategies.

Nina Meierding has been a full-time mediator and trainer for more than 20 years and has handled over 4,000 disputes in her practice. An adjunct professor at Pepperdine University’s Institute for Dispute Resolution and Southern Methodist’s Masters Program in Dispute Resolution, Nina also teaches at many other academic institutions and has provided training throughout the world to court systems, corporations, governmental institutions and individuals in negotiation, mediation, culture and gender issues.

Nina is the former president of the Academy of Family Mediators and has served on the Board of Directors for the Association for Conflict Resolution. She has received numerous awards for her work in the conflict resolution field, including the John Hayne’s Distinguished Mediator Award from the Association for Conflict Resolution. She is the author of the chapter “Managing the Communication Process in Mediation” in Folberg, Milne and Salem’s compendium Divorce and Family Mediation.

Objectives: By the end of the session participants will: 1. Have a deeper understanding of the restorative justice paradigm. 2. Recognize trends in the field. 3. Gain insights of new trends in victim/offender mediation and be able to include new techniques in their practice. 4. Have a clearer understanding of other restorative justice models – how they are currently being practiced and how they can be used creatively in other contexts. 5. Apply restorative justice models to new contexts such as community building and organizational development. 6. Understand and work with public accountability. 7. Be able to market the vision of restorative justice. Agenda: Examining the Paradigm of Restorative Justice: Where are we now? • Definition of restorative justice • Theoretical dimensions of restorative justice • Current trends Models of restorative justice practice • Brief review of traditional models such as VORP, FGDM, Circles, Community Accountability Boards, etc. • Restorative circles Advanced Trends in Victim/Offender Mediation • Offender accountability • VORP for Re-entry programs • Victim Sensitive programming • Community involvement Public Accountability • When should the public be accountable? • How does public accountability apply to mediation programs? • How to encourage public accountability New contexts for Restorative Justice (Taking restorative justice beyond criminal justice to include civil, workplace, international, etc.) • How restorative justice applies to a range of mediation models and/or programs such as family, religious sexual misconduct, and medical malpractice • Applying restorative justice models to workplace situations • Using restorative justice models in community organizing and planning • Restorative Justice in the school setting • Using restorative justice in training Selling the Vision • Effective program development • Marketing the vision

Lisa Singh is an independent consultant and trainer who specializes in conflict resolution, restorative justice and intercultural communication. She acts as a consultant to the Dayton Mediation Center in Ohio and was regional director of the North Platte Office of the Center for Conflict Resolution in 2004 and 2005. Lisa has had ten years of active experience in the field of mediation, studying both the facilitative and transformative mediation models. Lisa has been a leader in the field of conflict resolution

Barbara Raye is the Executive Director of the Center for Policy, Planning and Performance. Barbara has over twenty years experience as a founder, board member, and executive director in nonprofit organizations and government agencies. In the disciplines of board governance, strategic planning, outcomes and performance measures, etc, she trains and consults internationally and teaches courses at such institutions as Hamline University and the College of St. Catherine.

Ron Classen is the Director of the Center for Peacemaking and Conflict Studies and a member of the faculty of the Fresno Pacific Graduate School. He has served as a teacher, pastor, consultant, trainer and mediator in church, business, school, VORP and other settings. He is the founder of Fresno VORP (Victim Offender Reconciliation Program). Mr. Claassen also serves as a mediator and trainer with Mennonite Conciliation Service.

Listen while a panel of mediators responds to the kinds of practical questions they face on a regular basis. Questions such as: What do you say to someone when they first telephone you for information? Do you schedule an introductory meeting; how long is it; Do you meet with the parties separately? Do you screen the parties to assess their suitability for mediation? How do you do this? Do you have the parties agree to any ground rules? What written information do you provide the parties? How do you deal with unreported (cash) income? What would be your reaction if one of the parties shouted or cursed at the other? How do the parties get information about the law? Do you answer legal questions? How do your respond if one of the parties asks you whether a particular proposal is fair? How do you deal with the opinions expressed to the parties by friends and relatives? And more!

Lenard Marlow, a graduate of Columbia Law School, is a Fellow of The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyer and past president of The New York State Council on Divorce Mediation. He has presented numerous workshops and trainings, and written books and articles, on the subject of divorce mediation, including Divorce Mediation - A Practice In Search of A Theory, and The Two Roads to Divorce.

Stephen K. Erickson, a graduate of University of Minnesota Law School, was a founding board member and past president of the Academy of Family Mediators, as well as a board member of the Association for Conflict Resolution. He has lectured and put on trainings and workshops, and written numerous books and articles, on the subject of divorce mediation, including The Practitioner's Guide to Mediation: A Client-Centered Approach and Mediating Divorce: A Step-by-Step Manual.

Margaret S. Powers is recognized as a bailiwick in the field of mediation. A recipient of numerous awards for her contributions, Margaret has been a practitioner of mediation since 1989, and has mediated over 5,000 cases. Prior to entering full-time private

practice in the northwest suburbs of Illinois, Margaret worked for several years at the court annexed mediation program in Chicago. In addition to Margaret?s private practice, she is an Adjunct Professor at Northwestern University's Dispute Resolution Program, teaching family and divorce mediation. Margaret has two master's degrees

(psychology, social work), and has served on the boards of the Academy of Family Mediators, the Association of Conflict Resolution, the Collaborative Law Institute of Illinois, and the Mediation Council of Illinois.

Conflict resolution practitioners whose "practices" focus in different areas will discuss how they started and how they maintain a practice in conflict management/conflict resolution, and what to consider when transitioning into what they love to do most. Although there is no “one” answer, this institute will provide helpful discussion related to key questions, such as: When is the right time to start a private practice? What should I ask myself? What information, expertise and skills do I need? Which specialties should I consider, if any? Should I go it alone or be in a group practice? How should I focus my energies? How long will it take to really get my practice off the ground? With whom should I talk? What resources do I have and need? There will be time for participants to share experiences and start thinking of a plan.

Jetta Todaro is a mediator in Austin, Texas, for almost 18 years she has developed a private practice focusing on conflict resolution in higher education, health care, family, and public policy issues, and she mediates in small to medium-size organizations. She is the recipient of a 2005 Peacemaker Award from the Dispute Resolution Center of Austin/Travis County

Thinking About Your Thinking: Boosting Mediator Curiosity and Increasing Reflective Practice

Presenters: Stephen K. Erickson, Marvin E. Johnson, Jeffrey Cohen, and Cheryl Stinski

The panelists will discus how to make the transition from attorney, therapist, or other professional to mediator while earning a living wage and remaining true to core principles. In spite of challenges, the four presenters have all successfully made the transition and have built thriving practices in divorce, commercial, employment, and other types of mediation practice and consulting. The panelists will present a road map for success for persons interested in making the transition and, indeed, a road map for the challenges faced by our entire field at this time.

Marvin E. Johnson is a nationally recognized mediator, arbitrator, and trainer with over 30 years of dispute resolution experience in public and private disputes and 16 years as Professor of Labor Relations, Law and Conflict Management. He is the founder and Executive Director of the Center for Alternative Dispute Resolution and serves on the JAMS panel of resolution experts. Mr. Johnson provides diversity and dispute resolution training and lectures extensively on the subject of conflict management. The President of the United States, the Secretary of the United States Department of State, the Governor of Maryland, and the Chief Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals have recognized Mr. Johnson's dispute resolution expertise by appointing him to the Federal Service Impasses Panel, the Foreign Service Grievance Board, the Maryland State Labor Relations Board, and the Maryland Alternative Dispute Resolution Commission (now the Maryland Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office or MACRO), respectively. Mr. Johnson has authored and co-authored many articles, including Emotionally Intelligent Mediation (2005, 2003); “Diversity Resistance” (2003); Racial Profiling in America: The Problem and the Challenge (2003); and Adjusting to Changing Priorities (2002).

Jeffrey M. Cohen, Esq. is a mediator and attorney whose practice has concentrated in mediation since 1992. He is an “Advanced Practitioner in Family Mediation” with The Association For Conflict Resolution and he has earned numerous advanced training certificates from The Harvard Negotiation Insight Initiative and The Cornell ILR School. Mr. Cohen has worked as a mediator for the United States Equal Opportunity Employment Commission regarding issues of employment discrimination. He regularly teaches certified Continuing Legal Education courses through the New York State Appellate Division, Third Department and The Albany County Bar Association to his peers regarding divorce and family law mediation and other alternative dispute resolution models. Mr. Cohen is also the cofounder and, since 1994, a faculty member of the “Kids First After Divorce” Program, a New York State certified parent education program for adults with children who are experiencing divorce and who seek to learn both the effects of divorce and separation children and adults and about alternatives to litigation. Mr. Cohen received a BA in Political Science from Union College in 1980 and a JD from The John Marshall Law School in 1983.

Building and Marketing a Profitable Practice in the Conflict Resolution Field

Presenters: Forrest Mosten

Practitioners in private practice must all address the same question—how do you bring in new business? How do you promote your business and your skill set? The presenters will draw upon their practical and marketing expertise to teach participants how to better market dispute resolution practices. They will include both conflict resolution practitioners as well as professional marketers. This session will include conflict resolution practitioners who have, through the years, developed and adapted techniques to fit a "profession" in its nascent stages, and who will have tips about what has worked and what has not. A marketing professional will offer creative ideas and suggestions, for practitioners, that have been successful in this or other "service" professions.

Forrest Mosten is a mediator, trainer, and author who is a longtime favorite presenter at ACR Conferences. He is the Chair of ACR's National Peacemaking Museum Task Force. In 2007, Southern California Mediation Association established a Conflict Resolution Library Project and UCR established an Annual Scholar in Residence and Student Internship Program in Woody's name.