UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND
Kingston, Rhode Island
OFFICE OF THE OMBUD
Ombudperson Report
1999-2000
Personnel:
Vincent Rose, Ombud
Elizabeth Eyring, Student Assistant
Office:
The ombud office is in room 324 Roosevelt Hall. The hours are
posted on the door along with the office phone number and the phone
number and e-mail address of the ombudperson. The telephone message
also gives information on reaching the ombudperson. The office was
loaned to the Registrar's Office from mid December through January
for processing SET forms.
Web page:
The web site
http://www.uri/facsen/ombud.html
has been kept up-to-date through the efforts of the Faculty Senate
Office. The site emphasizes the purpose of the ombud office, lists
its location and indicates the hours, the telephone number of the
office and the ombudperson and the e-mail address of the ombudperson
and the student assistant. The site can be reached from the
University home page as well as through the Faculty Senate and the
Student Senate web sites.
Outreach:
Posters have been placed in the Memorial Union and in University
College. Contact has been maintained with the Student Senate and the
Graduate Student Association, the Office of the Registrar, Bursar,
Student Life, Counseling Center, Campus Ministry and Graduate School.
The ombudperson has attended parent orientation sessions each summer
and will attend in 2000. Flyers have been and will continue to be
distributed to parents during these sessions.
The ombudperson has served on the College of Engineering
Diversity Committee, participating in the development of the attached
conflict resolution procedure (ATTACHMENT A). This
procedure could be applicable to the whole University. In addition it
has been recommended that a training program be developed to provide
people in each department with skills in conflict resolution. He has
been a participant in the USDE Change The Culture Grant including a
week long Disability Resource Mentor workshop
(ATTACHMENT B). For further information the Change
the Culture web site is
http://www.uri.edu/ctc/ The
Ombudperson also serves as a faculty senator and on the Senate's
Academic Standards and Calendar Committee.
Cases:
Questions have been received from students, parents, faculty,
administrators and outside groups. Many of the cases are raised and
resolved via the internet. The majority of the problems have involved
undergraduate students. Most of the solutions have involved informing
people of the appropriate procedures and options.
Housing deposits on and off campus continue to be an issue. In
all cases it has been clearly indicated that the deposit was not
refundable. The main issues are timing and equity. Other housing
issues have involved roommate conduct.
Alleged cheating also continues to be a problem. Primarily this
involved questions of the definition of "sole" work. Working in teams
with access to each others computer accounts or discs has complicated
this problem as has the internet. Proper citation also has been an
issue.
A case in May 1998 regarding the calculation of honors for
graduation has been addressed finally with the approval of proposed
changes to the regulations in the University Manual. The question of
retroactive application of the standards has been referred to the
Academic Standards and Calendar Committee.
Another set of cases has involved performance and supervision of
external practicums. Timely open communications among all parties is
essential in these situations, especially for the non-traditional
student.
Multiple cases have involved dropping people from classes and the
appropriate use of the NW grade. At least part of this issue is
before the Academic Standards and Calendar Committee.
At the graduate level several cases have involved dismissal. One
case involved a joint program with another institution. There is need
to develop guidelines for handling lines of authority in cases
involving multiple institutional jurisdiction.
Timing:
Many of the cases reach the ombud office before or at the start
of the semester (housing, appropriate registrations, course
availability, prerequisite requirements, fees, student payroll etc.)
and at the end of the semester (grades, dropping of course, cheating,
academic standing, dismissal). Cases involved personal conflicts
(student-student, teacher-student, administrative office-student)
occur on a more random basis.
Future Plans:
Efforts will be renewed to obtain coverage of the office in the
Cigar and the Pacer. Contacts will be maintained with the various
student service offices. The ombudperson will continue to serve on
the Academic Standards and Calendar Committee during the 2000-01
academic year .
ATTACHMENT A
GUIDELINES FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTIONS
IN THE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING 4-21-00
Guidelines should be posted and accessible to all undergraduate
and graduate students, staff, faculty, and administrators in the
College of Engineering (COE). Successful implementation requires
ongoing training in and awareness of conflict resolution, within the
COE. Conflict can involve different parties (e.g., Undergraduate:
Student-Student, Student-Faculty; Graduate: Student-student,
Student-faculty; Faculty-Faculty; or Staff: Staff-staff,
Staff-faculty and Staff-student (This includes janitors, technicians,
secretaries, computer lab personnel, TA/RAs etc.). The main objective
of conflict resolution is to provide a forum in which conflicted
parties can initiate a confidential and amiable discussion that
hopefully addresses both parties concerns. Several options are
suggested to achieve conflict resolution, in descending order of
preference. That is, it is always preferable to address the situation
with the immediate parties involved. If this is not deemed possible,
other options are provided.
I. RESOLUTION BY THE PARTIES THEMSELVES. Because many conflicts
can be resolved through improved communication, the parties are urged
to talk with each other and attempt to resolve the conflict by mutual
understanding, mutual consent, or "agreeing to disagree" without
further injury to either side. The parties are advised that
confidentiality, which is an important foundation of personal dignity
and professional standing, can most easily be preserved if conflicts
can be resolved in this manner. This option will not work for
everyone. Directly approaching the person with whom one has a
conflict may be emotion-laden, involve a power differential, or be
otherwise uncomfortable. The Guidelines provide additional options to
consider.
II. RESOLUTION WITHIN THE COE. A student, staff, or faculty
member may decide to ask a neutral third party within the COE to
advise, mediate, or advocate for them. The role of the neutral third
party and the expectations of all parties should be clearly defined
at the outset. For students, an advisor or major professor may
provide guidance on some issues. If this does not help resolve the
situation, the department chairperson or other conflict resolution
designee could be asked to advise and or mediate the conflict. The
chairperson reserves the right to forward the conflict to the College
(Assistant/Associate) Dean's Office if deemed appropriate. This may
be important in cases of disputes across different departments, or
conflicts involving several people. Confidentiality remains very
important, and should be respected by the third parties, as well as
by the principal parties to the conflict. It any case, it is best
when a situation is addressed as quickly as possible to prevent
escalation of the conflict. Seeking out a neutral third party, such
as the department chair or other conflict resolution designee, can
provide an objective perspective that will hopefully lead to an
effective resolution.
III. RESOLUTION BEYOND THE COE. After exhausting options within
the department or college, or in cases where the nature of the
conflict makes resolution outside the COE preferable, parties to a
conflict may consult a number of sources: The Vice Provost for
Academic Affairs, the Vice-Provost for Research (who is also the Dean
of the Graduate School), the Associate Deans of the Graduate School,
the University Ombud, the Director of the Multicultural Center, the
Office of Student Life, the Director of the Women's Center, the
Affirmative Action Officer, the Counseling Center, university
Chaplains, and Campus Police, especially in cases of personal safety.
Confidentiality remains very important; however, the difficulty of
maintaining confidentiality may increase as more people, and people
further removed from the original conflict, become involved.
IN SUM, whenever possible, it is best to resolve at the lowest
level possible. This can often be handled by using conflict
resolution tactics, such as trying to understand another's
perspective, and initially assuming the other person is innocent. If
conflict cannot be resolved with the immediate parties, it is best to
involve a neutral third party, most likely the Department Chair or
other conflict resolution designee. If the chairperson is
unsuccessful in resolving the conflict, the Assistant Dean should
become involved for undergraduate students and the Associate Dean of
the Graduate School should become involved for graduate students. For
Faculty-Faculty conflicts at the College level, the Dean or Deans can
be called on to help address the conflict. If all of these options
fail, or in situations where different resources are needed, other
offices may be approached: Graduate School Deans; Directors of the:
Multicultural Center, Office of Student Life, Women's Center,
Affirmative Action, Counseling Center, Campus Chaplains, Disability
Services, or Center for Peace and Non-Violence; or the Campus Police,
especially in cases involving personal safety.
ATTACHMENT B
Changing the Culture
The University of Rhode Island's Demonstration to Enhance
the Inclusion and Retention of Students with Disabilities in
Postsecondary Institutions
Disability Training Curriculum
A. Philosophy
The guiding philosophy of this training curriculum is that
disability is an example of cultural diversity. Our culture endorses
a negative stigma of disability that is similar to what other
minority groups experience. This stigmatizing can be the most
limiting feature of having a disability. Additionally, it impacts all
of us by denying the contributions of this group to society at large.
Fortunately, information, knowledge and sensitivity can combat this
negative stigma and facilitate inclusion. All aspects of society,
including higher education, has an obligation to all of its members
to facilitate integration of all persons, including persons with
disabilities, into the community and to advance their development
toward maximal potential.
B. Goal
The overall goal of this curriculum is to foster the development
of an integrative, accepting and facilitating environment for Rhode
Island postsecondary students who have disabilities. This goal will
be reached by providing specialized training to a cohort of faculty
and administrators at the state's institutions of higher education.
These trained faculty will serve as ongoing mentors to their peers in
relationship to disability issues.
C. Objectives
Participants completing the training curriculum will be able to:
1. describe common stereotypes of persons with
disabilities and the associated limitations these stereotypes foster,
2. identify and implement strategies to combat the negative
stigma of disability,
3. summarize the basic principles of the IDEA and the ADA,
4. explain the concept of "reasonable accommodations" and give
examples for a range of disabilities,
5. summarize the latest research on learning disabilities,
including types, causes and accommodation strategies,
6. describe common mental illnesses including their symptoms,
treatments and unique associated stigma,
7. demonstrate mentoring skills, including active listening,
problem-solving, and consideration of multiple points-of-view,
8. describe affective and psychomotor consequences of selected
(simulated) disabilities,
9. describe/discuss first person accounts of life with a
disability,
10. disseminate seminar content to departmental/ administrative/
unit colleagues.
D. Techniques/learning activities to reach objectives
A variety of techniques will be utilized to meet the overall goal
of this project and the more specific objectives. These techniques
will be organized and integrated across three major activities: a) a
series of training seminars, b) dissemination activities by seminar
participants to individual departments, and c) ongoing support
meetings for the seminar participants. (Note a and c have been
combined.)
The training seminars will be a thirty-hour program designed to
give participants a range of experiences to broaden their
understanding of disability issues and persons with disabilities. A
diversity of learning activities will be utilized in this seminar
including:
1. didactic lectures with accompanying
discussions/question-and-answer sessions,
2. simulated disability sessions,
3. hands-on experiences with technical supports for persons with
disabilities
4. consideration and discussion of disability media including
books and award-winning documentaries and short films about persons
with disabilities.
An important aspect of this seminar is that students and others
with disabilities will be integrated into all aspects of the training
to provide positive role models and first-hand accounts of life with
a disability.
Each Seminar participant will be responsible to disseminate the
essentials of the seminar content to their home academic department
or administrative unit within the next academic year. It is
anticipated that this dissemination may take many forms with formats
varying to maximize compatibility with the learning culture in
individual departments. For example, it is anticipated that the
degree of formality of these presentations will be on a continuum
from formal agenda items at departmental faculty meetings to informal
(but multiple) discussions involving fewer participants at a time.
Additional information is available on the web through the
Disability Services home page at
http://www.uri.edu/disability_services.