Program Summary

The National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM), together with our partners from the National Guard and Reserves, community mediation centers, health professionals, and veteran service groups, has launched a new initiative to support the process of re-integration and transition for Guard and Reservist service members, and their families, after deployment.

The primary goal of the Reservist Re-Integration and Transitions Program (RRTP) is to create a contextually appropriate community protocol for addressing the needs and challenges of returning service members as they transition back into their communities.  Specifically, this program will offer services that assist families, employers, and other community members by supporting the re-establishment of healthy communication and decision-making processes. By working to achieve a better understanding among individuals, the families, employers and returning service members themselves can move forward confidently in the reintegration process.

National Guard and Reservists come from all 50 states, U.S. territories, and Washington, DC. These men and women balance an active civilian life while serving their country through deployments at home and abroad. Due to the nature of this service schedule, National Guard and Reservists often find themselves transitioning from unanticipated and lengthy deployments almost directly back into their communities, homes, and places of employment. This reality, when contrasted to the situation of service-members who return to a military base, has left families and returnees facing unexpected interpersonal and other dividing challenges, and little obvious recourse for resolution.

After research and consultation with active Reservists, families, Veterans, Veteran service-providers and volunteer mediators from across the nation, NAFCM sought funding to introduce a transition protocol to address this reality. This protocol, now known as the Reservist Re-Integration and Transitions Program (RRTP), adds value to existing transition services by creating partnerships for referrals and empowering individuals to become active participants in reducing the causes and negative impacts of re-integration stressors. By providing accessible and expeditious mediation services and skills training for the very communities to which Reservists return, successful re-entry experiences for military members and their families can be achieved. 

The Re-Integration Context

Upon a service member’s return from active duty, the experiences and expectations of families and returnees can be both different and difficult to understand. And while the contrast of these differences can initially be confusing, knowing when and how to communicate effectively through difficult conversations can help smooth transition.

Although families and veterans often receive advice on the importance of using healthy communication to resolve transition-related issues, it is NAFCM’s experience that for this particular group, little has been done to teach them how. Our goal is to provide returning service members, their families, and the service organizations that support them, with the processes, tools and techniques to encourage healthy communication through quality services and professional training.

Through the hard work and dedication of our partners, including NAFCM’s national network of mediation professionals and community-based conflict resolution centers, the RRTP offers support in the following ways:

1)    Providing free and professional mediation skills training to members of the National Guard and Reserves and their families to encourage effective decision-making and family-focused solutions;

2)    Creating a referral and resource-sharing network to compliment existing family assistance services with the tools and information necessary to guide families to the mediation process;

3)   Developing a specialized curriculum on re-integration issues to train individuals in mediating these cases; and,

4)   Enhancing the protocol to meet unique community needs, thereby allowing for the expansion of similar civilian-military mediation programs into other communities nationwide.  

Who Benefits?

While the benefits of NAFCM's Reservist Reintegration and Transitions Program abound, they begin with an understanding that supporting and empowering returning service members and their families during times of transition is the number one priority. It is our expectation that this program will have a valuable impact in helping communities connect, while ensuring that issues and conversations which are appropriate for mediation are properly and expeditiously referred to the appropriate service provider. 

NAFCM has identified and is working with three distinct, yet inter-dependent groups who can all benefit from this program:

For National Guard and Reservists and their Families, the RRTP provides:

• Family-focused solutions for improving communication and decision-making
• Information on the mediation process, what it can do for families, and where and how to find the service to fit the particular need;
• Training opportunities for veterans and family members that provide concrete and professional skills which are useful at home, at work, and beyond; and,
• Opportunities to collaborate, serve, and network with active and veteran service members who are working to ensure healthy transitions for other families.

For Family Assistance Centers, Veteran-service organizations (V.F.W., Vet Centers, etc.), and other resource or service providers, the RRTP offers:

• Resources on the mediation process and appropriate situations for its use;
• Skills training workshops on effective communication and management of interpersonal conflict for staff members or outreach personnel;
• Information to guide service members and families on how and where to locate mediation services;
• Publications from the community mediation field that are designed to help inform and educate families about how to effectively resolve interpersonal disputes; and,
• Networking opportunities to connect and share best practices with veteran and family service providers in other states and across the country.

For Veterans, community mediators, members of the business community, and other interested individuals, the RRTP presents:

• Opportunities for basic and advanced training on re-integration issues in mediation
• Workshops for managers and supervisors in communication skills, conflict management and collaborative conflict resolution processes for your business;
• Networking with other veterans, family assistance groups, and volunteer service activities to work with civilian-service members in the community;
• Volunteer consulting to lend your expertise to assist and educate community mediation centers and volunteer mediators about the re-integration context;
• The chance to provide mentorship for new mediators

Organizational Capacity 

Irvin P. Foster, the Executive Director of NAFCM, is spearheading the Reservist Re-Integration and Transitions Program. Irvin is a Vietnam-era veteran (a former Captain in the Army) who has served overseas and dealt in his professional life as a domestic relations attorney with the issues of military returnees, including the practical impacts that separation and exposure to traumatic situations have on family cohesiveness. In his work, Mr. Foster has seen a substantial number of situations which have been precipitated by the inability of individuals to successfully re-integrate themselves into their families and the larger society.

As the former Executive Director of St. Mary's County Community Mediation Center in Maryland, the home county for Three Rivers Naval Station, Mr. Foster participated in the development of programs addressing conflict resolution methodologies for the military community and witnessed first hand the positive impact such programs had. Similarly, as a long-time volunteer at the Dayton Mediation Center in Dayton, Ohio, he was exposed to similar situations as a volunteer mediator.  

Jared Ordway is a Program Specialist for NAFCM, and is tasked to bring together and coordinate the involved parties who will be essential in the development and launch of the RRTP. Mr. Ordway's primary role at NAFCM is in program development and research, including curriculum writing and training in mediation and mediation center administration. As an experienced cross-cultural mediator, group facilitator, and bilingual trainer, Jared works with individuals and groups to build skills for effective communication and conflict management as they adapt to new cultural norms. Jared will also contribute to the creation of the RRTP protocol and the training of community volunteers.

Our Partners

NAFCM also counts on the experience and insight of our partners and advisors from the National Guard and Reserves, who have played a significant role in helping us develop this initiative. Together with the knowledge and practice of skilled mediators from our national network, NAFCM is working with State Mediation Associations, Community Mediation Centers, and Family and Veteran-Assistance Organizations from around the country to make this program successful.  The RRTP would not be possible without the continuing support, knowledge, and insight provided by these groups.

The Reservist Re-Integration and Transitions Program is funded in part by the JAMS Foundation (www.jamsadr.com). NAFCM and partnering organizations will continue to pursue funding from both public and private foundations, and encourage supporters to contact us regarding the ways you can support the financial development of this initiative.           

Sign Me Up! 

There are a variety of ways in which you or someone you know can become involved in this program; and they might be closer to home than you think! If you are a family member, spouse, Reservist, Veteran, or community individual interested in supporting transition-based conflicts in your community, there is certainly a place for you.

Whether your experience or interest may serve, or be served, by taking a training in mediation, becoming a volunteer to resolve disputes, creating a link between NAFCM and your community or organization, or by simply learning more about the program, please don't wait - contact NAFCM's Executive Director, Mr. Irvin Foster, or the RRTP Coordinator, Jared Ordway, today by phone at (202) 545-8866, or by email at jordway@nafcm.org.