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Faculty and Staff
“There is nothing in the world that is more satisfying than to sit down with people who feel hopeless, distressed, angry, and frustrated, and have them walk out of the room seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.”
– Alice Estey, Mediator/Faculty Member
The Master of Mediation Program is delivered by practitioner faculty who are successful mediation and conflict resolution professionals with exceptional backgrounds. They are uniquely qualified to provide a relevant, compelling learning experience.
Our faculty members have a wide range of experience, including experience mediating family, divorce, end-of-life issues, business and organization issues, higher education, matters of divided interest in faith-communities, environmental conflict and public policy dialogues. They are innovators and leaders in the field who bring a broad understanding of the mediation, and a strong desire to facilitate student learning through analysis, discussion, and experiential learning. Most of all, they're here because they love to teach.
The members of our practitioner faculty not only educate students, but they also serve as a practical connection to the growing mediation field, acting as advisors, network contacts, and mentors. Following are biographies of our practitioner faculty.
In addition, notable guest instructors who are leaders in the field will join our faculty and students periodically throughout the master’s program. Special announcements will be made about each of these instructors.
Core Program Faculty:
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Alice Estey, M.A.
Alice Estey is a former Director of the Mediation & Applied Conflict Studies Program at Woodbury College and has a private mediation practice. She currently serves as the mediator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). She is an experienced faculty member and instructor in mediation skills, negotiation, and victim-offender mediation. Alice earned a B.S.W. from Colorado State University, a Certificate in Mediation from Woodbury Colllege, and a M.A. from Vermont College of Norwich University.
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David Specht, M.Div.
David Specht is an organizational consultant, trainer, facilitator, and mediator. In addition to teaching in the mediation program at Champlain College, he is northeast director of Seeing Things Whole, a consulting organization that assists private and public sector firms with conflict and values-based decision making. David earned a B.A. in Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Maine at Orono, a Certificate in Mediation & Conflict Management from Woodbury College, and an M. Div. from Andover Newton Theological School.
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Susanne Terry, M.S.
Susanne Terry was the creator and first director of the Mediation & Applied Conflict Studies Program at Woodbury College and has been a faculty member for more than 20 years. She is a mediator and consultant in private practice and has worked in several countries --including the United Kingdom, Ghana, Italy, Belgium -- as well as extensively throughout the United States. She was a member and committee chair on the Governor’s Commission on Dispute Resolution, a member of a three-person evaluation committee for the Maine Supreme Court’s review of Courts of Maine, and past president of the Vermont Mediator’s Association. She has been a panelist and keynote speaker at many regional and national conferences. Susanne holds the M.S. in Mediation and Applied Conflict Studies from Woodbury College.
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Neal Rodar, Mediator-in-Residence
Neal Rodar has been mediating for 12 years and was director of the Woodbury Dispute Resolution Center for ten years. Board and Committee memberships include: The Professional Responsibility Board (Vermont Supreme Court), Oversight Committee of the Vermont Family Court Mediation Program, and Vermont Environmental Court Mediation Program. He is contracted to mediate with the Vermont Human Rights Commission, Vermont Department of Education, and the Vermont Family Court Mediation program. Neal has worked extensively with State Government developing mediation programs, and for the last four years has worked closely with Vermont's Probate Judges and The Center for Social Gerontology to develop a mediation program for elder care and adult guardianship issues. Neal earned his B.A. from Goddard College before earning Woodbury's Certificate in Mediation & Conflict Management. |
Program Administrators
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Julian Portilla, Program Director of M.S. in Mediation and Applied Conflict Studies
Julian is the director of the Master's in Mediation and Conflit Studies at Champlain College in Burlington Vermont. Julian's experience has been primarily working on community, environmental and political consensus-building processes and trainings in several countries throughout Latin America as well as the United States. Most recently based in Mexico, his primary responsibilities were managing several consensus-building processes on and around the Baja peninsula regarding fishing, environmental and land development policy issues. In addition to his current responsibilities at Champlain College, he is currently involved in a multi-stakeholder dialogue process to revise the Management Plan of the Loreto Bay National Park on the Baja Peninsula. Julian holds a Master's degree from the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University and a BA in Political Science from Vassar College.
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Roni Coleman, Operations Manager, Mediation and Applied Conflict Studies |
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