The organizations listing internship opportunities in the Greater Boston area cover a full range of services. Some organizations work in one specific area (such as the courts or the community), while others cover a range of services.

The organizations listed engage in dispute resolution activities and require the services of experienced and specialized student interns. The purpose of the listing is to help students looking for internship opportunities or short work assignments find the names of likely organizations. The mission and activities of each organization are described, as are the roles and duties an intern might be expected to perform.

Finally, there is information about the conditions of work, including remuneration, reimbursement of expenses, or volunteer status and time commitment required. Students must contact these organizations and negotiate their own work arrangements. Interns may find themselves gaining experience in one of issues involving one or more of these areas: General dispute resolution, environmental and public policy, consumer, labor, community issues, and court-related activities.

Please note that the inclusion of an organization does not guarantee that it will have internship positions available at all times. The information provided about each organization is subject to change without notice.

Each organization’s listing includes the address, telephone number, fax and/or e-mail, and often a website, as well as the name of a person to contact.

Alliance for Peacebuilding ^[1]
Community Dispute Settlement Center, Inc. ^[2]
Community Relations Service: Department Of Justice ^[3]
Consensus Building Institute ^[4]
FCMS Dispute Resolution Center ^[5]
Harvard Mediation Program ^[6]
Insight Partners ^[7]
Massachusetts Labor Relations Division ^[8]
Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution ^[9]
Mediation Works Incorporated ^[10]
Mercy Corps ^[11]
Resolution of Intra-Institutional Disputes ^[12]
Somerville Mediation Program ^[13]
Standing Committee on Dispute Resolution ^[14]
The M.I.T.-Harvard Public Disputes Program ^[15]
Somerville Mediation Program ^[13]

Organizations
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Alliance for Peacebuilding
1320 19th, NW, Suite 410
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 822-2047
Fax: (202) 822-2049
afp-info@allianceforpeacebuilding.org ^[16]
http://www.allianceforpeacebuilding.org ^[17]

Contact: Zoë Cooprider, Program Manager at the Alliance for Peacebuilding
zoe@allianceforpeacebuilding.org ^[18]

The Alliance for Peacebuilding, a membership-based network of organizations and professionals devoted to applied conflict prevention and resolution, is seeking an intern to assist in membership development, coordination and communication.

The Membership intern’s primary responsibility is to assist the Administrative Assistant and other staff to: 1) communicate and share information with organization members, 2) research potential and current members, and 3) website updates and management.

The Program intern’s primary responsibility is to assist Program Manager to plan a high-profile symposium focused on celebrating and learning from the most peaceful nations in each of 9 regions of the world. The incumbent will be asked to help with other program preparation, as needed. The basic duties include online research, meeting logistics, composing minutes, tracking information and drafting external communications.
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Commonwealth of Massachusetts: Division of Labor Relations

Charles F. Hurley Building
19 Staniford Street, 1st Floor
Boston, MA 02114
617-626-7132
michael.byrnes@massmail.state.ma.us ^[19]

Contact: Maydad Cohen, Chief Counsel

The Division of Labor Relations (DLR) is a quasi-judicial neutral administrative agency that is statutorily charged with the mission of preventing or promptly settling labor disputes by offering dispute resolution services to both public and private sector employers and the labor organizations that represent their employees. The four primary functions of the DLR are: (1) adjudication of Prohibited Practice Charges; (2) handling of representation cases and bargaining unit clarification cases; (3) prevention and investigation of strikes by public employees; and (4) the provision of conciliation, arbitration and mediation services. The DLR enforces the Massachusetts collective bargaining laws by conducting hearings and investigations of unfair labor practice charges, union representation petitions, and strike investigations. The Division offers unpaid legal internships (with possible course credit). Legal interns are assigned a variety of legal projects and have a diverse work load. It is preferred that interns have taken at least one course in labor law.
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Community Dispute Settlement Center, Inc.
60 Gore St.
Cambridge, MA 02141
617-876-5376; Fax: 617-876-6663
www.communitydispute.org ^[20]
cdscinfo@communitydispute.org ^[21]

Contact: Gail S. Packer, Executive Director

CDSC is a private, non-profit mediation center established in 1979 which handles both court-connected and community-based disputes in the areas of civil cases including small claims, summary process and complex civil cases; family matters including divorce and paternity, elder, parent/teen; GLBT, neighborhood and work place conflicts.

The Center uses student interns and volunteers to aid in case handling and administration; opportunities are available to observe and discuss mediations as well as to assist with special projects, e.g. diversity, outreach, program development, fundraising. Interns should be able to commit themselves to a minimum of 8 to 10 hours a week for at least one full semester.

CDSC offers basic mediation training (33 hours) each fall and spring and advanced divorce mediation training (25 hours) annually.
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Community Relations Service: Department Of Justice

408 Atlantic Ave., Suite 222
Boston, MA 02110
617-424-5723

Contact: Frank Amoroso
Francis.Amoroso@usdoj.gov ^[22]

This agency within the U.S. Department of Justice is devoted to providing conciliators and mediators in community disputes, especially those involving racial difficulties. The agency’s services are employed in a wide variety of community disputes throughout New England. In some cases, the agency enters disputes at its own initiative and in others it is invited in by a concerned party.

The agency occasionally arranges field placements for qualified students. This is done on an ad hoc basis. Students act in a junior conciliator role or as apprentices. Work is not paid and time commitments are negotiable.
________________________________________
Consensus Building Institute

238 Main Street, Suite 400
Cambridge, MA 02142
617-492-1414; Fax: 617-492-1919
CBI@cbuilding.org ^[23]
www.cbuilding.org ^[24]

Managing Directors: David Fairman and Patrick Field
Founder and Senior Advisor: Lawrence Susskind

Contact: Ed Minor
617-844-1113
eminor@cbuilding.org ^[25]

The Consensus Building Institute (CBI) is a not-for-profit organization that provides dispute resolution services and undertakes dispute systems analysis and design activities for public agencies in the United States and overseas. CBI’s public dispute resolution work in America focuses on 1) consensus building in politically-charged value-based disputes concerning matters of public policy, 2) strategies for building agency capacity to employ a full range of neutral services, and 3) the evaluation of agency-sponsored mediation efforts. CBI’s international work is concentrated on 1) preventative mediation in settings in which ethnic conflicts are of great concern, 2) the design of “informal parallel negotiations” in multilateral contexts in which formal negotiations are too highly constrained to be effective, and 3) strategies for building agency and NGO capacity to use a full range of neutral services.

Interns have an opportunity to work directly with senior practitioners and to participate in CBI’s theory-building activities. Please send a resume along with a cover letter stating your specific interests and skills by fax, mail, or e-mail to the attention of Ed Minor.
________________________________________
Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service (FMCS)

2100 K Street, NW
Washington, DC 20427
Tel: (202) 606-8100
Fax: (202) 606-4251
http://www.fmcs.gov ^[26]

Contact: Dan Ellerman, Human Resources Director, FMCS National Office
(202) 606-5460
dellerman@fmcs.gov ^[27]

For over 60 years, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) have delivered neutral and confidential conflict resolution assistance to the nation’s unionized workplaces. The FMCS was created by Congress as an independent federal agency by the Taft-Hartley Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947. Our staff of highly-trained, professional mediators provides conflict resolution services to the nation’s employers and their unionized employees. The core mission of FMCS is to help employers and unions avoid costly work stoppages and minimize their potentially devastating effects on regional and national commerce. Our goal is to prevent or minimize interruptions to the free flow of commerce that grow out of labor disputes and to improve labor-management relations. The central activity of the Agency is collective bargaining mediation, a voluntary process in which mediators serve as third-party neutrals to facilitate the settlement of issues in the negotiation of collective bargaining agreements. In FY 2008, FMCS mediators were actively involved in over 4,800 collective bargaining contract negotiations in every major industry throughout the United States.

As a Federal Mediator (trainee), you will be called upon to learn and provide all the mediation services described above. Further, you’ll become an important component of the country’s best-trained staff of mediators and conflict resolution professionals. This is a premium employment opportunity available to a select few who are interested in a long-term career in the field of labor-management conflict resolution.

________________________________________
Framingham Court Mediation Services, Inc.

600 Concord Street
Framingham, MA 01702
Tel: 508-872-9495
Fax: 508-872-9764
www.framinghammediation.org ^[28]
info@framinghammediation.org ^[29]

Contact: Susan Ostberg

FCMS, established in 1979, is a public, non-profit organization serving the communities of MetroWest, the Framingham, Concord, Marlborough, and Natick District Courts, and the Middlesex Juvenile Court, as well as the Middlesex Probate and Family Court. We provide alternative dispute resolution services for families, neighbors, in the workplace, for cases involving minor criminal, civil and business matters, as well as divorce and employment-related disability discrimination.

Student interns with previous mediation training or a willingness to be trained are welcomed to apply for volunteer mediator positions. Basic mediation trainings for volunteers and professionals are held in March and November. In addition to courses in basic and advanced mediation, FCMS provides mediation training for middle and high school students, elder care mediation, as well as workshops for organizations, business, and corporations.

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Harvard Mediation Program

002 Austin Hall
Harvard Law School
Cambridge, MA 02138
Tel: (617)495-1854
Fax: (617)496-2294
http://www.law.harvard.edu/academics/clinical/hmp/ ^[30]

Contact: Maureen Griffin
mgriffin@law.harvard.edu ^[31]

The Harvard Mediation Program (HMP) is a student practice and clinical organization of Harvard Law School. HMP offers mediation training and practice opportunities to a small number of community members in addition to its students. Trainees will co-mediate under the supervision of an HMP court liaison in one of the Boston area’s small claims court sessions every other week for two semesters. Trainees are required to complete HMP’s 32-hour training prior to mediating in court.

Community members may apply to become members of HMP. The first of two basic trainings for the 2009-2010 academic year will take place on October 3, 4, 17 and 18, 2009. The second basic training will be scheduled for February 2010. To receive an application, please go to the Harvard Mediation Program’s website, http://www.law.harvard.edu/academics/clinical/hmp/ ^[30]. The training fee is $600.00 or $300.00 for full-time students. HMP mediators provide their services on a volunteer basis.
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Insight Collaborative

47 Winter Street, 8th Floor
Boston, MA 02108 – 4774
Tel: (617)948-0006 or 1-800-440-1070
Fax: (617)249-0725
http://www.insightcollaborative.org ^[32]

Insight Collaborative is dedicated to resolving conflict and improving relationships around the world. Through conflict management education and dispute resolution services, we maximize the ability of individuals and organizations to promote peace, operate efficiently, and to effect positive change. As a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, we provide services and partnership opportunities to individuals, governments, intergovernmental organizations, nonprofits, educational institutions, foundations, and other underserved populations.

Insight Fellowship Program: Developed to foster a community of global-minded individuals prepared to contribute more effectively to their local, national, and international communities, the Program awards one-year Fellowships to exceptional individuals to:

Study and promote effective conflict management
Make international humanitarian contributions
Pursue self-reflection and personal development

The Fellowship includes a $25,000 expense allowance to support multiple placements totaling one year, typically in 3-4 month blocks. (Each Fellow is required to repay the amount of the $25,000 allowance used through individual fund raising efforts, regenerating the funds to ensure support for the next Fellow. This “pay forward” approach instills the values of sustainability and non-profit entrepreneurship.) The first three months take place at the Boston offices of the Insight Collaborative, where Fellows advance their understanding of the theory and practice of effective negotiation, communication, and mediation. The remaining nine months of the Fellowship are divided into foreign placements proposed by the Fellow.
________________________________________
International Center for Conciliation (ICfC)

P.O. Box 15001,
Boston, MA 02215
(617)353-4428
http://www.CenterforConciliation.org ^[33]

Contact: Cathi Stewart, ICfC Office Manager
617-353-4428
CStewart@CenterforConciliation.org ^[34]

The International Center for Conciliation (ICfC) aspires to create lasting peace in conflicted communities worldwide. Most conflict resolution efforts attempt to set the past aside. However, the past is never over; historical grievance is ever available to stir up conflict even when present interests in cooperation are strong. ICfC encourages conflicted parties to examine root causes of historical grievances and humiliation with honesty, patience, and empathy. Dialogues create a safe space for people from conflicted groups to share their fears, needs, and hopes while maintaining focus on concrete community development goals. ICfC trains local community leaders and professionals in a unique narrative approach to their shared histories. This helps them build social cohesion within their communities by addressing history, memory, and identity in their work.
________________________________________
Massachusetts Department of Education (Bureau of Special Education Appeals)

350 Main Street
Malden, Massachusetts, 02148
(781) 338-6402
http://www.doe.mass.edu/bsea/ ^[35]

Contact: Richard Connolly

The Bureau of Special Education Appeals (“BSEA”) conducts mediations, advisory opinions and due process hearings to resolve disputes among parents, school districts, private schools and state agencies. The BSEA derives its authority from both federal law and regulations (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, “IDEA”) and Massachusetts law and regulations. A parent or a school district may request mediation, advisory opinions and/or a hearing at any time on any matter concerning the eligibility, evaluation, placement, individualized education program (IEP), provision of special education in accordance with state and federal law, or procedural protections of state and federal law for students with disabilities. A school district may not request a hearing on a parent’s failure or refusal to consent to initial evaluation or initial placement of a child in a special education program. In addition, a parent may request a hearing on any issue involving the denial of the free appropriate public education guaranteed by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Mediations, advisory opinions and hearings are conducted by impartial mediators and hearing officers who do not have personal or professional interests that would conflict with their objectivity in the hearing or mediation. The BSEA consists of eight hearing officers, all of whom are attorneys, eight mediators, a coordinator of mediation, a scheduling coordinator, support staff, an assistant director and a director. The BSEA is located with the Massachusetts Department of Education, but is independent from the Department.

________________________________________
Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution

University of Massachusetts, Boston
100 Morrissey Blvd.
McCormack Bldg. 1st Floor, Room 627
Boston, MA 02125
617-287-4040; fax: 617-287-4049
www.umb.edu/modr ^[36]

Executive Director: Susan M. Jeghelian
susan.jeghelian@umb.edu ^[37]

Deputy Director: Loraine M. Della Porta
loraine.dellaporta@umb.edu ^[38]

The Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution & Public Collaboration (MODR), formerly a state agency, is now a free-standing institute of the University of Massachusetts Boston. MODR’s mission is to promote and facilitate the use of conflict management and collaborative practices to address contentious issues related to economic development, environmental resource management, land use, agriculture, transportation, housing, healthcare and other community objectives. MODR works with government agencies, businesses, non-profits, and citizens to establish effective systems to prevent and manage conflict and to facilitate collaboration and consensus-building across sectors, jurisdictions, interests, and issues.

MODR services include mediation, regulatory negotiation, policy dialogue, systems design and research, conflict assessment, convening and facilitating public participation, education and training, collaborative problem-solving, public and private sector consensus building, and public deliberation. Services are provided through highly-experienced, qualified conflict resolution and collaboration practitioners who are staff or affiliates of MODR. MODR practitioners have knowledge, skills and competencies working within legal and regulatory frameworks at all levels of government and in addressing issues at the community level. In addition, MODR works with centers, institutes and academic programs at the University of Massachusetts, including the McCormack Graduate School of Policy Studies, the College of Public and Community Services, the Urban Harbors Institute, the Center for Social Policy, and the Graduate Programs in Dispute Resolution.

From time to time, MODR offers internships for graduate students and law students interested in the field of dispute resolution and collaborative governance. Arrangements for internships are flexible and projects on which interns work may include assisting with: program development and administration; project management; data collection, analysis and reporting; research; preparation of case studies; and special projects.
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Mediation Works Incorporated (MWI)

4 Faneuil Hall – Fourth Floor
Boston, MA 02109-1632
617-973-9739 x22
800-348-4888
617-973-9532 fax
www.mwi.org ^[39]

Mediator / Executive Director: Charles P. Doran
cdoran@mwi.org ^[40]

Mediation Works Incorporated (MWI) is dedicated to providing innovative dispute resolution services and training to corporate, institutional and individual clients seeking to resolve difficult disputes.

MWI’s Training Programs include public and private “in-house” basic and advanced mediation and negotiation training programs, a “Train the Trainer Institute” and other dispute resolution workshops and seminars.

Internship opportunities include program development, research and administrative support. Opportunities to observe and mediate cases are available upon successful completion of MWI’s Mediation Training Programs.
________________________________________
Mercy Corps

The Roger Fisher House
9 Waterhouse St.
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617) 354-5444
www.mercycorps.org ^[41]

Contact: Jenny Vaughan, Program Officer
jvaughan@cr.mercycorps.org ^[42]

Mercy Corps is a relief and development organization that works amid disasters, conflicts, chronic poverty and instability to unleash the potential of people who can win against nearly impossible odds. Our mission is to alleviate suffering, poverty, and oppression by helping people build secure, productive, and just communities. Our peaceful change programming is a large part of our approach, and was enhanced by our 2004 merger with Conflict Management Group (CMG), a long-time leader in the conflict resolution field founded by Harvard Law School Professor Roger Fisher.

Mercy Corps’ staff is dedicated to improving methods of negotiation, conflict management, and cooperative decision-making as applied to issues of public concern. We are engaged in training negotiators, consulting, process design, facilitation, consensus-building, and mediation for Mercy Corps program staff, as well as with partners around the world. The merger provided a unique opportunity for integrated programming in conflict affected and developing countries in which we combine methodology developed by CMG based on years of research at Harvard University with practical international experience from Mercy Corps’ extensive track record of working in conflict and transitional environments to provide emergency relief, promote economic development, and encourage civil society and peacebuilding initiatives.

Applications and information about internships at Mercy Corps’ Cambridge office or other offices can be found at www.mercycorps.org/volunteer. Each summer Mercy Corps also selects a small number of interns for overseas assignments; more information can be found at the same website.
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The M.I.T.-Harvard Public Disputes Program

512 Pound Hall
Harvard Law School
Cambridge, MA 02138

Managing Directors: David Fairman and Patrick Field
Founder and Senior Advisor: Lawrence Susskind

Contact: Ed Minor
617-844-1113
eminor@cbuilding.org ^[25]

The Public Disputes Program (PDP) seeks to bring together scholars and professionals to improve the practice of negotiation, mediation, and conflict management in the public sector. The Program undertakes basic and applied research, provides advice to public agencies and government organizations, and offers training programs for both students and mid-career professionals. A range of substantive areas is covered including the siting of hazardous and nuclear waste disposal facilities, negotiated rulemaking, negotiated local investment strategies, and the mediation of intergovernmental disputes. PDP is also increasingly concerned with international dimensions of environmental conflict resolution.

The Public Disputes Program is part of the Program on Negotiation, an inter-university consortium based at Harvard Law School.

Interns have an opportunity to work directly with senior practitioners at the Consensus Building Institute (CBI) and to participate in CBI’s theory-building activities. (See CBI entry above.) A list of possible project areas can be found at web.mit.edu/publicdisputes. Please send a resume along with a cover letter stating your specific interests and skills by fax, mail, or e-mail to the attention of Ed Minor.
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National Institutes of Health Office of the Ombudsman

Center for Cooperative Resolution
Building 31, Room 2B63
31 Center Drive, MSC 2087
Bethesda, Maryland 20892-2087
Tel: (301) 594-7231
Fax: (301) 594-7948
http://ombudsman.nih.gov ^[43]

Contacts:
Howard Gadlin
301-594-6916
gadlinh@od.nih.gov ^[44]

Kevin Jessar
301-594-7231
jessark@od.nih.gov ^[45]

The NIH, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting medical research. Helping to lead the way toward important medical discoveries that improve people’s health and save lives, NIH scientists investigate ways to prevent disease as well as the causes, treatments, and even cures for common and rare diseases.

The NIH Office of the Ombudsman, Center for Cooperative Resolution is a neutral, independent, and confidential resource providing informal assistance to NIH scientists, administrators, and support staff in addressing work-related issues. The Ombudsman, who directs the Center, serves as a focal point for conflict resolution at NIH by (1) providing confidential, informal assistance to employees and managers in resolving work-related concerns, and (2) developing and coordinating effective dispute resolution processes and procedures. The Center offers a variety of services and programs to address likely sources of conflict such as performance appraisals, harassment, mentoring relationships, and scientific collaboration.

Under the supervision of the NIH Center for Cooperative Resolution (CCR) staff, the CCR Intern will have the opportunity to learn about the function of an organizational ombudsman office. The Intern will focus on one major project and will observe and assist with individual consultation sessions; mediation processes; group facilitations; conflict resolution system development and assessment; conflict-related research; and trend identification based on aggregate data. Additionally, the Intern will assist with a variety of administrative tasks for the Office, such as providing support for a peer panel composed of managers and employees to hear employee grievances. The Intern will also be assigned a mentor who will help provide guidance throughout the internship.

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Resolution of Intra-Institutional Disputes

Ombudsperson
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
M.I.T. 10-213
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-253-5921
http://web.mit.edu/ombud ^[46]

Contact: Mary P. Rowe
mrowe@mit.edu ^[47]

Non-paid research assistantships are available on a selected basis. Areas of research include: development of intra-institutional dispute resolution systems procedures, scientific and technical disputes within institutions, harassment of all kinds. Particular interest this year: the role of bystanders in conflict management.

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Somerville Mediation Program

Somerville Community Corporation
One Davis Square
Somerville, MA 02144
617-625-6600 X6146

Contact: Alice Comack
acomack@k12.somerville.ma.us ^[48]

There is an internship available in our peer-mediation program at Somerville High School. This program primarily handles disputes between students. Intern duties include conducting intake and setting up mediations, co-mediating and assisting in the training of student mediators. A requirement for this internship is that the individual must have been trained as a mediator. The programs in these schools provide a unique opportunity to help decrease violence and teach valuable skills to young adults of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

This is a non-paid internship and requires a minimum of 10 hours per week. The internship runs during the school year.
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Susan Podziba & Associates

21 Orchard Road
Brookline, MA 02445
contact@podziba.com ^[49]

Tel: (617)738-5320
Fax: (617)738-6911
http://www.podziba.com ^[50]

Contact: Susan Podziba
susan@podziba.com ^[51]

Susan Podziba & Associates conducts processes that enable government to engage with stakeholders to resolve complex public policy questions and conflicts. SP&A designs unique processes to address seemingly impossible situations, guides complex multi-stakeholder deliberations to create actionable solutions, and works in diverse subject areas and political contexts including international relations, governance systems, environmental disputes, land use and development decisions, labor standards, transportation planning, health policy, and education policy.
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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Boston Area Office

John F. Kennedy Federal Building
475 Government Center
Boston, MA 02203
Tel: 1-800-669-4000
Fax: 617-565-3196

http://www.eeoc.gov/boston/index.html ^[52]

Contact: Elizabeth Marcus, Mediator
(617) 565-3212
elizabeth.marcus@eeoc.gov ^[53]

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1964 to eradicate discrimination in employment. The various statutes enforced by the Commission prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, religion, retaliation, age and disability.

Following nationwide pilots, the EEOC concluded that mediation was a viable alternative to the traditional investigatory methods used to resolve charges of employment discrimination. The mediation program was fully implemented in April 1999.