Mediation group to hear discipline cases

A mediation system established by the newly adopted student judicial charter will now hear most disciplinary cases, according to its coordinator, Lyn Davis. The University Mediation Program has already handled two cases since the charter took effect July 1, she added. "[The judicial charter] explicitly makes mediation the preferred course whenever it's practical and appropriate," Office of Student Conduct Director Michele Goldfarb said. Provost Stanley Chodorow said the University hopes to build a "good program with trained and experienced mediators." In mediation, the two parties involved in a disciplinary matter meet with a disinterested University representative to resolve their problem informally. If mediation does not lead to a solution, parties may file an official complaint asking the Office of Student Conduct to handle the case in a formal setting. No information divulged during a mediation session can be used to prosecute a student in a disciplinary hearing, under the charter. "The only thing that the Office of Student Conduct will know about cases sent to mediation is whether it was successful," Davis said. Although there was no official mediation structure last year, the student conduct office processed 10 cases through mediation, Goldfarb said. She added that she hopes to refer most cases and complaints to the mediation program, with the exception of alleged violations of the Code of Academic Integrity. Under the new judicial charter, academic integrity cases cannot be resolved through mediation. The Office of Student Conduct handles about 150 to 200 cases a year, of which approximately 25 percent deal with academic integrity issues, Goldfarb said. "Students should expect in matters that involve disputes or conflicts among themselves, that if they bring up a matter to this office not to be surprised when mediation is broached," Goldfarb said. Davis said the program has identified 20 students, faculty and staff as trained mediators. But program officials are looking to train more mediators. In the next six weeks, Goldfarb plans to hold a training session for 24 people, who have not yet been selected. There will be a team of two mediators for each dispute the program handles, Goldfarb said. "Our theory is that because we have a very diverse campus, we want these teams to reflect that," Davis said. If a situation involves students, the University Mediation Program will attempt to use student mediators whenever possible, Davis added. More than 150 universities and colleges across the country use mediation as part of their student disciplinary systems. The mediation program does not have its own office space yet, but Goldfarb said the program is in the process of obtaining space and phone lines.