The Ombuds Office has just released its Quarterly Summary covering the first quarter of 2022. This brief report, true to its title, summarizes the work that was done in the office from January to March, 2022. I’d like to share a few of the most salient points with you here, and encourage you to read the report yourself if you would like to learn more.

First, I’d like to explain what exactly I do in the Ombuds Office. Conceptually, the Ombuds is supposed to do four main things: Listen to those who visit the office, educate them by helping them consider their options and by presenting workshops that encourage better conflict resolution, direct the university’s mediation practice, and provide information to campus leadership about systemic issues.

In practice, that means that most of my days are split between working with individuals and groups in the midst of conflict, whether via individual consultation, facilitated group discussions, or mediation, and developing workshops and programs about conflict resolution strategies for groups.

As the confidentiality of Ombuds visitors is paramount, it is important to track how active I am in meeting with people individually or in groups without compromising their confidentiality. I can do that by recording contacts as they take place, devoid of any identifying information. Because of this, I have been able to chart how many visits from individuals the Ombuds Office has gotten since I started there last June.

 The results show a pronounced upward trend for individual use of the office, rising from 89 contacts from June to September of 2021, to 130 from October to December 2021, to 165 from January to March 2022. Within the first quarter of 2022, contacts rose from 38 (January) to 48 (February) to 79 (March).

So people are using the Ombuds Office progressively more. What does that mean?

A pessimist might say that increased usage of the Ombuds Office is evidence that things are flying off the rails at UNLV, that a wave of unhappiness is sweeping across Maryland Parkway, Shadow Lane, and various points in between. The optimist, though, might believe that the uptick in visitors is due to people at UNLV having greater confidence in their ability to achieve a positive resolution of their issues. After all, if there is no chance for things to improve, there is nothing to discuss. When change is possible, people will have plenty to discuss.

There’s also the increased outreach that I and Tifara Rachal, the Ombuds Office admin, have been doing, which has likely led to a higher profile for the office and the services it provides. We continue to meet with academic and administrative units to introduce the office (if you haven’t had your meeting yet, please reach out to schedule one), which has led to more members of the university community becoming aware of the office. Even this blog has been a factor; we usually see a small but perceptible spike in appointments after each post is released.

Interestingly, the mode of contact has shifted, as UNLV employees have, in most cases, returned to campus full-time. In 2021, 40 percent of meetings were remote, with only 29 percent in person. In the first three months of 2022, 51 percent of contacts were in person, with only 32 percent remote.

In general, concerns discussed in the office showed a great deal of continuity from 2021, with communication and respect from supervisors and colleagues being major issues. Departmental climate and change management were other frequently reported concerns.

But working with individuals is only part of the work I do as Ombuds. Workshops provide another way to help promote productive conflict resolution strategies here at UNLV. We have developed a roster of over a dozen programs that can be customized for a variety of audiences and delivered in person, remotely, and (this is currently under development) asynchronously. I hope to produce more of this content in the near future.

My overall takeaway from the first quarter report of 2022? That the office has been a productive one, and that there is plenty of work left to do. As I continue as Ombuds, I expect to continually adjust the services the office provides in response to feedback from campus, so if you have ideas about programs you would like to see, please let me know.

I feel that a large part of the work I have done over the past several months, in addition to directly serving the university community through individual consultations and group work, has been to destigmatize use of the office—it is a place for people to discuss options and learn about resources that is open for everyone to use without fear of retaliation and with the guarantee of complete confidentiality.  

And that, I think, is the crux of it: no matter what the conflict or issue you are facing, if you would like to discuss it in a confidential setting that is completely distinct from any formal process, administrative or otherwise, do not hesitate to make an appointment with the Ombuds. Our door is open.

David G. Schwartz

UNLV Ombuds