PULLMAN, Wash. — Washington State University is beginning a search for two individuals to fill the role of ombudsman, each working on a half-time basis, WSU Provost Gretchen Bataille announced this week.
One individual will be a tenured faculty member, while the other will be from the administrative/professional ranks. The provost said her aim is to fill the ombudsman role in a way that responds to the needs of faculty and staff.
“The intent is not to have individuals responsible for only certain groups of employees or students, but rather to ensure that anyone coming to the office will have more than one person with whom to consult,” Bataille said.
The new individuals sharing the ombudsman role will be “charged with determining how to ensure adequate communication exists” with faculty, staff and students on all four WSU campuses and with offices such as Conflict Resolution, Center for Human Rights and the Office of the Attorney General.
Mary Gilles, head of the Humanities and Social Science Library, will chair the search committee.
Other committee members include Francis Benjamin, an engineering technician in the psychology department; Judy Okita, an administrative assistant in the Graduate School; Kathleen Potter, an associate professor of veterinary microbiology and pathology; Donald Stem, a professor of marketing; Ben Riley, a political science major nominated by the Associated Students of Washington State University; and Scott Berger, a graduate student in business administration, nominated by the Graduate and Professional Student Association.
The provost said she hopes that the new appointments can be made at the start of the fall semester.
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