Contents

  1. 1 Upcoming Webinars
    1. 1.1 Making the Most of Your Data - Part II
    2. 1.2 The State of Community Mediation
    3. 1.3 Taking Your Mediation Center to the Next Level of Growth
  2. 2 Previous Webinars
    1. 2.1 Put Community First in Your Mediation Center
    2. 2.2 Celebrating Avoidance? Studying the Lasting Effects of Community Mediation
    3. 2.3 Justifying Your Existing in a Government Agency: A How To Guide
    4. 2.4 Making the Most of Your Data - Part I
    5. 2.5 Date & Time: May 10, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT Presenter: Keri Szejda Fehrenbach Short Description: As mediators, we talk about and stress the importance of neutrality (or impartiality), but how best to enact neutrality in practice is not often clear. This seminar will begin with a brief introduction on various conceptualizations of neutrality found in the mediation literature, and then we’ll discuss the findings from a recent study on mediation that obtained the perspectives of both mediators and clients. Specifically, we’ll discuss the potential utility of two methods for improving our clients’ perceptions that we are acting neutrally: symmetry (acting in behaviorally similar ways with each client) and transparency (providing an explanation for mediator behaviors). Learning Objectives: Learn the various conceptualizations of neutrality and impartialityLearn about potential triggers that can indicate neutrality to clientsLearn about potential triggers that can make it difficult for mediators to remain neutralLearn about the influence of symmetry on clients’ perceptions of neutralityLearn about the influence of transparency on clients’ perceptions of neutrality Presenter's Bios: Keri Sezejda Fehrenbach is a PhD student at Arizona State University’s Hugh Downs School of Human Communication. She is the 2011-2012 Jeanne Lind Herberger Fellow in Communication and teaches and conducts research on conflict and health. She holds a Master’s in Speech Communication from the University of Hawaii and a Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution from the Spark M. Matsunaga Institute for Peace. Recording & Materials: NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)
    6. 2.6 Neutrality: Perceptions & Possibilities
Welcome to the home of NAFCM's Community Mediation Webinar Series! NAFCM's webinars are professionally designed, delivered by leaders in the community mediation field, and provide actionable recommendations and tangible resources to enhance key areas of center administration. In designing this Series, NAFCM has innovated its traditional in-person trainings to meet the demands of today's community mediation programs. This Series responds to both the continued financial hardships faced by many programs, as well as their local mandates to do even more good with fewer resources. Stripped of the requirement to incur often substantial travel expenses and related out-of-office hassles, the Community Mediation Webinar Series will allow program administrators, volunteers, and board members to keep atop latest developments and enrich their skills from the comfort of their own office. Read about each of the individual courses below, review the entire webinar catalog, and register today!

Participation in most Community Mediation Webinar Series events is FREE for current NAFCM Members. (Contact NAFCM for the appropriate discount code to use during registration.) Non-members are invited to participate at a very affordable rate per event. (For greatest savings, consider joining or renewing your NAFCM membership.)

Upcoming Webinars

Making the Most of Your Data - Part II

Registration:   Register
Date & Time: May 17, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT
Presenter: Jennifer Shack
Short Description: This webinar is the second in a two part series on "Making the Most of Your Data." It will help you see your data in a new way and make your data work for you. Community mediation centers tend to collect a lot of data: intake information, mediator information, mediation outcomes, party surveys, etc. Some of this data is used for day-to-day operations, but for many centers, more can be done with the data. Proper use of data can lead to informed decisions about the structures of programs and program improvements. Just as importantly, it can provide evidence that your program is having positive impacts, which can lead funders to continue to support your program.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Learn how to develop effective post-mediation surveys.
  2. Improve how outcomes are reported.
Presenter's Bios: Jennifer Shack is Director of Research for Resolution Systems Institute. In this role, she manages the Monitoring and Evaluation program at RSI. She is the creator of the Court Mediation Effectiveness Tracking System, in use in circuits around Illinois. She Ms. Shack also conducts evaluations of mediation programs in state and federal courts in Illinois. Currently, she leads a nationwide effort to develop model forms for monitoring and evaluating the use of mediation for civil cases in the courts.

Recording & Materials:
NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)

The State of Community Mediation

Registration:   Register
Date & Time: June 14, 2012; 3:30 - 5:00 pm EST
Presenters: Justin R. Corbett & Wendy E.H. Corbett
Short Description: Community mediation is a diverse network of programs helping address all manner of conflicts within their local communities. Comprised of 400 local programs, 1,300 professional staff members, 25,000 volunteer mediators, and serving nearly one million citizens each year, the community mediation network is a vast, active component of the ADR landscape. This session will examine some of the key findings from NAFCM’s recent comprehensive survey of community mediation. Participants will learn about the breadth of services (30+) and mediation contexts (100+) offered through local programs; the major and emerging trends; and the challenges confronting its continued growth and embedded sustainability.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Participants will learn the latest updates from around the community mediation practice area.
  2. Participants will better appreciate the diverse services, conflict contexts, and varied impact made possible through community mediation programs.
  3. Participants will further enrich our understanding of the field by sharing their own experiences from and expectations for the community mediation field.
Presenters' Bios: Justin R. Corbett is the Executive Director of the National Association For Community Mediation (NAFCM), and Chair of the ACR Community Section. He has enjoyed an eclectic personal practice as a first-profession mediator, community center founder and director, volunteer mediator, contractor, trainer, associate professor, and author. His current focus is as a full-time advocate for community-level conflict-assistive services and practitioners. Through his constant connection with community mediators, program staff members, and key contributors working around the globe, he enjoys an exciting, dynamic view of the latest developments and emerging trends which serve our clients, inform our practice, and shape our field. Get a glimpse of this view and connect with his work at http://Go.NAFCM.org/Justin.

Wendy E. H. Corbett began her love of conflict resolution at the age of 9, when she was selected to serve as a Conflict Manager in her elementary school. Since, she has volunteered with five community mediation programs and four university conflict resolution initiatives from coast-to-coast, and has completed numerous mediation certification programs, including Virginia State Supreme Court training in both community and family mediation and small claims mediation training through Arizona State University College of Law.

Wendy is currently Arizona based, serving as a conflict resolution consultant with 3rd Party Advisors, LLC and as the Program Director of Solve-It! Community Mediation Service, both located in Mesa. She additionally serves as a Faculty Associate in the School of Social Transformation at Arizona State University, where she is also pursuing a Ph.D. in Justice & Social Inquiry. Since 2003, Wendy has trained over 2,800 Arizona residents in mediation skills through workshops, seminars, peer mediation modules and 40-hour courses. She is active in several professional associations, including the National Association for Community Mediation, where she formerly served as Co-Chair of the Board of Directors and currently serves as a contributing researcher.

Recording & Materials:
NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)

Taking Your Mediation Center to the Next Level of Growth

Registration:   Register  [$25 NAFCM Members (with discount code); $50 non-Members] 
Date & Time: June 28, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT
Presenter: Karmit Bulman
Short Description: Gather up your board members, key staff and other volunteers and explore whether you are ready to move your mediation center to a place of sustained growth and greater community impact. This 90 minute webinar will help you create a work plan geared to mobilizing Staff and Board to do the following: (1) Pick an individual donor fundraising plan and plan steps necessary to be successful; (2) Create a team to work on individual donor fundraising; (3) Stepping up your outreach and visibility efforts. This Webinar will also cover other growth strategies including: (1) Garnering increased fee for service revenue; (2) Marketing your program to hospitals, corporations and other non-profits; (3) Grant writing and Government contracts.
Presenter's Bios: Karmit is currently the Executive Director of the Conflict Resolution Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is an attorney, qualified neutral under Rule 114, and has been the director of non-profit organizations for 26 years. She was a managing attorney for legal services and served as executive director for the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women, Avenues for Homeless Youth and Temple Israel. Ms Bulman is currently the executive director of the Conflict Resolution Center (CRC) and is responsible for financial management, program development, public and community relations, fund raising and oversight of CRC operations. CRC is a community-based, non-profit organization formed in 1981 for the purpose of strengthening communities by teaching and providing mediation and conflict resolution service

Recording & Materials:
NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)

Previous Webinars

Put Community First in Your Mediation Center

Date & Time: February 9, 2012; 3:30 - 5:00 pm EST
Presenters: Elaine Dickhoner & Jan Holt
Short Description: Whether you are starting a new community mediation center, or growing an existing one--it's important to put the COMMUNITY in your program! We will explore the various stakeholder relationships, and their involvement in your community relations and program efforts. We will also look at collaborative efforts with other community organizations, and how you can effectively work together--a financial as well as marketing plus in these days of funding cuts and challenges. And we will discuss practical ideas for center promotion and marketing.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Understand the importance of including all constituent groups in the development and marketing of the mediation center; and will leave with several ideas that they can immediately implement.
  2. Receive a clear and concise list for providing effective board member recruitment, retention and training, as well as ideas for selecting and working with advisory groups.
  3. Will gain new ideas for promotional efforts that can be implemented in their community, at little or no cost, to ""spread the word"" about mediation in general, and about their center specifically.
  4. Will see and hear, through video excerpts, from center board and staff members about stakeholder problems and successes.
  5. Will explore strategies for retaining enthusiastic board and advisory members---and working together to grow the center with the involvement of all stakeholder groups.
  6. Will look at ideas for collaborating with other community organizations, and how to take a leadership role in the process---joining together for marketing, programming, training and fund-raising efforts.
Presenters' Bios: Elaine has over twenty years experience in the non-profit sector, working with boards, marketing, volunteers and fund-raising. She has led several collaborative community efforts in San Jose, CA and in Cincinnati, OH---bringing organizations together to address a problem or an opportunity, as a unified group. She is currently a board member of NAFCM, and a full-time mediator in Cincinnati, OH. Her company, The Conflict Management Group, provides mediation, arbitration and training services in the Midwest. 

Jan Holt is the marketing director for a publishing company in Cincinnati, OH. She is also a dedicated and experienced volunteer and board member.

Celebrating Avoidance? Studying the Lasting Effects of Community Mediation

Date & Time: February 16, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EST
Presenters: Heather Pincock, Ph.D. & Peter Bruer
Short Description: Is community mediation ""transformative"" for participants? What goals do community mediation staff and volunteers have concerning the lasting effects of the process on parties? Do mediation participants experience these lasting effects?

In this Webinar, I will summarize research conducted at two community mediation organizations in Toronto that focused on these questions. Data collected includes focus group and individual interviews with staff and volunteers as well as in depth interviews with mediation participants conducted 3-12 months following their mediation.

I find that ""peaceful avoidance"" between parties is far more likely than other kinds of relationship outcomes. I will suggest that rather than see ""peaceful avoidance"" as a second best result, community mediation advocates consider reformulating their goals to incorporate the benefits of avoidance.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Describe the existing research about community mediation's effects and the gaps that exist
  2. Describe the approach and structure of community mediation organizations in Toronto
  3. Describe examples of the lasting effect of community mediation on participants, as presented in their own words
  4. Engage the argument that avoidance should be viewed as a successful outcome of community mediation.
Presenters' Bios: Heather Pincock is Assistant Professor of Conflict Management at Kennesaw State University. She completed her PhD in political science at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University. While at Maxwell, Heather was an associate of the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration and Coordinator of PARCC's Conflict Management Center. In 2008-2009, Heather was a graduate research fellow at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. Heather is a mediator, facilitator, and trainer.

Peter Bruer is the Manager of Conflict Resolution Service at St. Stephen’s Community House. Peter spent the early part of his career in community advocacy work, in international development and the tenants’ movement. He was first trained as a mediator in 1992, and in 1996 he was hired by the largest community mediation service in Canada, the Conflict Resolution Service at St. Stephen’s Community House in Toronto, where he is now Manager. He has conducted dozens of community and professional mediations, designed and taught workshops, and consulted on mediation systems design for a wide range of non-profit, private sector and government clients. He has spoken at conferences in Canada, the United States, Indonesia and in Latin America, and published in a variety of journals and the media.

Recording & Materials:
NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)

Justifying Your Existing in a Government Agency: A How To Guide

Date & Time: March 8, 2012; 3:30 - 4:00 pm EDT
Presenter: Rochelle Brassard
Short Description: Many full or partially funded government-based mediation programs are feeling the threat of budget and program cuts due to the reduction of funds available at local and state levels. This webinar will give you tips and proactive steps you can take to show that mediation is not just resolving conflict, but provides a tangible savings to government and taxpayers.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Financial calculations as to program savings for government entities.
  2. Building community support and awareness so that concerned citizens are aware of your program and can mobilize to save it should that day come.
  3. The power that advocacy and involvement in community objectives other than mediation can provide.
  4. Power of the press and how to use this to your advantage.
Presenter's Bios: Rochelle Brassard has been involved in mediation since 1982. As the Director of the Citizen Dispute Settlement Program of the 12th Judicial Circuit of Florida, she was responsible for over 70 volunteers and staff members who logged approximately 1,500 mediation sessions per year. She was instrumental in initiating and developing new types of mediation that have been duplicated across the United States (Juvenile Restitution Mediation, Community Substation Mediation, and the first Peer Mediation Program in Florida.)

Making the Most of Your Data - Part I

Date & Time: April 12, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT
Presenter: Jennifer Shack
Short Description: This webinar will help you see your data in a new way and make your data work for you. Community mediation centers tend to collect a lot of data: intake information, mediator information, mediation outcomes, party surveys, etc. Some of this data is used for day-to-day operations, but for many centers, more can be done with the data. Proper use of data can lead to informed decisions about the structures of programs and program improvements. Just as importantly, it can provide evidence that your program is having positive impacts, which can lead funders to continue to support your program.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Know what’s important in the data their collecting
  2. Know what other data may be useful to their program
  3. Know how to act on what the data tells them to improve their programs and inform decisions
  4. Know how to communicate the data and its message to other staff, board members, funders and the public so they better understand the programs and their impacts
Presenter's Bios: Jennifer Shack is Director of Research for Resolution Systems Institute. In this role, she manages the Monitoring and Evaluation program at RSI. She is the creator of the Court Mediation Effectiveness Tracking System, in use in circuits around Illinois. She Ms. Shack also conducts evaluations of mediation programs in state and federal courts in Illinois. Currently, she leads a nationwide effort to develop model forms for monitoring and evaluating the use of mediation for civil cases in the courts.

Recording & Materials:
NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)

Neutrality: Perceptions & Possibilities


Date & Time: May 10, 2012; 3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT
Presenter: Keri Szejda Fehrenbach
Short Description: As mediators, we talk about and stress the importance of neutrality (or impartiality), but how best to enact neutrality in practice is not often clear. This seminar will begin with a brief introduction on various conceptualizations of neutrality found in the mediation literature, and then we’ll discuss the findings from a recent study on mediation that obtained the perspectives of both mediators and clients. Specifically, we’ll discuss the potential utility of two methods for improving our clients’ perceptions that we are acting neutrally: symmetry (acting in behaviorally similar ways with each client) and transparency (providing an explanation for mediator behaviors).
Learning Objectives:
  1. Learn the various conceptualizations of neutrality and impartiality
  2. Learn about potential triggers that can indicate neutrality to clients
  3. Learn about potential triggers that can make it difficult for mediators to remain neutral
  4. Learn about the influence of symmetry on clients’ perceptions of neutrality
  5. Learn about the influence of transparency on clients’ perceptions of neutrality
Presenter's Bios: Keri Sezejda Fehrenbach is a PhD student at Arizona State University’s Hugh Downs School of Human Communication. She is the 2011-2012 Jeanne Lind Herberger Fellow in Communication and teaches and conducts research on conflict and health. She holds a Master’s in Speech Communication from the University of Hawaii and a Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution from the Spark M. Matsunaga Institute for Peace.
Recording & Materials: NAFCM Members Only (Login Required)