Confidential, informal, impartial and an independent source of assistance are parts of the mission of the Faculty Ombuds Office.
“Our purpose is to serve as an alternate resource for conflict management, prevention and resolution,” said Bruce Auerbach, who is serving as the University’s first ombuds. He added that any organization can have complaints or employees with differing perceptions, and impropriety and unfairness in the workplace require attention and resolution. Traditionally, these have been handled through a formal grievance process, which can be a time-consuming process.
Auerbach said the office can assist faculty members by listening to concerns, clarifying issues, explaining policies, articulating options, serving as a neutral party in disputes and providing referrals to other resources.
Examples of concerns the office can help with include supervisory relationships, incivility in the workplace, academic disputes, bullying and harassment or equitable treatment.
“We provide a safe, informal environment where faculty and administrators can speak in confidence about issues of concern that they encounter in the academic workplace,” Auerbach explained. “In all proceedings, the ombuds will be truthful and act with integrity, will foster respect for all members of the University and will promote procedural fairness with regard to the University’s practices, processes and policies.”
A professor of theatre, Auerbach began serving as the first faculty ombuds earlier this year. In 2009, he became a member of t he International Ombudsman Association and went on to pass the certified organizational ombudsman practitioner exam.
The Faculty Ombuds Office is located in Denny Building, Room 218. For more information, visit the website http://ombuds.uncc.edu/.