• January 2003
• February 2003
• March 2003
• April 2003
• June-July 2003
• August 2003
• September 2003
• October 2003
• November 2003
• December 2003

COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTER Volume 3 Issue 1

The Neutral Zone January 2003

CMC Trains Tellico Village Mediation Team

One of CMC's goals has for some time been to apply our co-mediation empowerment training model outside of our volunteer community. A major step was taken in that direction with the training of the first class of Tellico Village residents in late January. John, Lisa and Jim provided 30-hours of customized training over five days for the newly established Tellico Village Mediation Team. 

As you will remember from last month's Neutral Zone, this was the culmination of ten months of discussions and planning between CMC and the Tellico Village Property Owners^’ Association (POA). This was CMC's first experience training mediators outside the CMC arena, and the results exceeded our most optimistic expectations.

The class consisted of five residents who were selected during an interview process in November from Tellico Village applicants. In addition to the residents two POA employees, the director of community relations and the director of human resources, also actively participated in the training. The class participants quickly developed into a strong team of advocates of mediation, even though some admitted having early reservations about the process.

A valuable addition to the training was the participation of members of the Tellico Players, the community theater group. Three CMC volunteers: Judith Toole, Claude Ramer and Bud Muly also came to Loudon to serve as role players and mentors. They all realistically played the roles of clients in disputes designed specifically for a retirement housing community. 

As CMC staff left the class they were engaged in developing the procedures and designing the protocol to fulfill their mandate previously approved by the POA Board of Directors.  Members of the class have requested the opportunity to observe our volunteer mediators in action, so some of you readers may be meeting some of them soon. 

Bud Muly, CMC Board Chair, who received the written evaluations from the participants passed on a comment from one of the members of the class. She wrote, "I continue to be excited and positive about the new challenges associated with being a member of the Tellico Village Mediation Team. The training conducted by you, Lisa and Jim was outstanding. All of us agreed that the thirty hours was just what we had hoped it would be . . ."

Volunteer of the Month

Susan Borthwick is an individual who brightens the day of those people she is around. She also is an excellent mediator who supports Knox County General Sessions Court each week. Susan walks a little slower these days up the hill from the garage to the Court House as she is pregnant with her second child. CMC is honored to have Susan as our Volunteer of the Month. She is truly a valued member of our CMC family.

Reflections of 2002
Kathleen Thomforde, VISTA

A little scared…a little curious…a little naive, I, like everyone else around me, was a teenager stepping into a whole new chapter of my life. Clearly remembering the first few days of college, I can still feel the tears rolling down my cheeks when I had to leave my friends behind, the heat pounding off the asphalt in front of the dorm where I would live for the next six months, the handshake of my new roommate, and the uncertainty that filled the air around me.

That uncertainty, however, quickly turned to boredom. I was no longer interested in being lectured or writing essays on Faulkner. I felt as if I had to make a change. So, I joined Americorps*VISTA. Shocking my parents, siblings, and friends, I packed up my belongings and moved back home to work at CMC.

I can honestly say that I have never been as challenged, motivated, and inspired as I have over the past year. CMC gave me the opportunity to use my creativity, energy, and passion to help those in my own community. How many 19 year olds were able to meet with judges, create their own mediation manuals, or train students? I am thankful that CMC took the risk of hiring a then 18 year-old girl with no official training or experience. I am thankful that the staff gave me enough room to grow and create, but also that they remained close enough to teach and inspire me. As I enter college for the second time, I realize how much experience I now bring with me. These experiences will help me as a student, as a leader, and as an individual.

Getting to Know the CMC Board

The CMC Board of Directors has three types of regularly scheduled meetings to oversee the operation of the organization. The Executive Committee meets monthly. The officers are Bud Muly, Chair; Ralph Alexander, Vice Chair; Janet Rooks, Secretary and Lynn Kidd, Treasurer. The Board meets every other month on the third Thursday for a two-hour dinner and official board meeting. CMC also has five liaisons from organizations that mediators serve: General Sessions Court, Juvenile Court, District Attorney, Knox School System and Knoxville Bar Association. This group meets quarterly at lunch.

Mediation Tools:
Emotional Intelligence and Self-Awareness

(based on Lori Schrier’s article published in the Fall 2002 Conflict Resolution Quarterly. CMC will make this valuable article available to any interested CMC mediator. )

Thinking clearly and focused under pressure, managing your impulsive feelings and distressing emotions; and staying composed, positive and unflappable even in trying moments requires emotional self regulation (p. 103.)

Every action that co-mediators take should be designed to support the mediation process. Self regulation is concerned with both the mediator’s decision to express or not express emotions as well as about techniques to help the clients constructively calm their emotions. A mediator must know her comfort level with strong emotion as well as her competence in working with the expressed strong emotion in order to devise an intervention.

This also involves the knowledge and confident use of various strategies or tools. The strategy-tool selected by the co-mediators may include separate sessions, refocusing, taking a break, ignoring strong emotions or establishing more explicit ground rules. Some mediators utilize the self-disclosure tool of story-telling to provide a relevant example to the parties’ issues in order to give time for emotions to subside.

In the "agreement to mediate" ground rules are established that can be referred to times requiring disputants to use self-regulation. The chart on the six steps is used to clarify progress being made by the mediators. Mediators can also use the "I am a volunteer" tool to effectively manage personal feelings as well as to reign in clients.

A mediator’s emotional self regulation requires an understanding of both emotional intelligence and self awareness.

Lori Schrier defines emotional intelligence as the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships (p.100.) She points out five dimensions of emotional intelligence. The first three are personal competencies: self-awareness, self-regulation, and motivation, followed by two social competencies: empathy and social skills.

Research suggests that management of emotional intelligence helps a mediator (1) build tolerance for expression of emotion; (2) develop detachment and reduce stress; (3) instill patience and humility; and (4) promote a realistic understanding of outcomes.

Ms. Schrier describes self-awareness as knowing what emotions you are feeling and why.

When entering a mediation the volunteer’s awareness of her current emotions as well as the emotions about the subject of the mediation are relevant. The emotions from an argument at work, an empty stomach or a traffic jam must be processed, understood and cleared by the mediator before she can actively listen to others. How she feels about the issues of the mediation and also about the emotions generated during the mediation must also be recognized and dealt with.

Self-awareness facilitates development of skills within the mediation such as naming and identifying emotions being aroused in others (p.102.) Mediators competent in emotional self-awareness are able to observe their own, as well as others’ neuromuscular, cardiovascular, respiratory, affective and cognitive changes. An example would be when a mediator consciously changes her tone of voice, leans forward toward the parties and slows down the pace of her words to try to solicit a heightened awareness from the parties.

The author concludes by stating that, "Our answer is that changing others requires changing ourselves first. We attract others to change when we first change ourselves." (p116)

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org

COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTER Volume 3 Issue 2

The Neutral Zone February 2003

Volunteer Mediator training is set for the first two weekends of April, and as always, we need your help to continue providing the best mediator training available. If you can help as a role player or as a panel member please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com or call him at 933-5692. 

Kathy Theis is another most deserving volunteer mediator. During 2002 she mediated the second highest number of sessions of all our evening mediators. Included in the 25 different mediations were several occasions where she "filled in" at the last minute. The CMC staff appreciate her cooperative spirit, complimentary nature with her many co-mediators, and her commitment to the empowerment model. We’re sure that Kathy will tell you the parties referred have been diverse and challenging. CMC is pleased that we have had such qualified mediators as Kathy to co-mediate the disputes.

Thank you Kathy.

It has been announced that the annual international VOMA (Victim Offender Mediation Association) Conference will be held in Nashville on November 2-5, 2003. Although the event is run by the VOMA organization, the mediation centers of Tennessee will be co-hosting the conference. There will also be a one-day training planned for November 1, which will be organized and hosted by the mediation centers. This training will be specifically designed for boards, staff, and volunteers of mediation centers. Both the one-day event and the conference will provide opportunities for mediators to network with other mediators and to learn about different places and situations in which mediation is being used around the country.

CMC, along with our peers, will be supporting these events. Volunteers will be needed to help register attendees, organize materials, and compete other logistics for the conferences. CMC encourages all our board members and volunteers to take part, either in working at the events, attending, or both. Please contact Lisa for more information.

This is an excellent way to learn first-hand more about how law enforcement works. The Knoxville Police Department welcomes civilian "ride-alongs." You actually ride with a police officer as they make their rounds, and you will get a much better idea of what their job is really like.

Contact Jim Davis by e-mail at cmcjc@esper.com or call 933-5692 for more information.

The CMC staff participated with Assistant District Attorney Del Holley and six of his Knox County District Attorney colleagues in a roundtable discussion on the use of mediation for appropriate criminal cases. Del, who serves as the CMC Board liaison from the KCDA scheduled the meeting to allow CMC to explain its mediation process. Following the overview by Sharon, John and Lisa the conversation focused on additional ways for referrals to be made during the "life-cycle" of the case. Sharon and Lisa agreed to draft, with the assistance of Del and Bob Swan, a process for CMC to receive and complete criminal mediations. When the procedure is complete staff will then provide training in the late Spring to include role plays to interested volunteers.

One of the issues raised during the February 24^th continuing education session for General Sessions volunteers was the importance of closely working with your co-mediator. The collaboration should begin prior to the actual mediation and should continue through de-briefing. Some of the examples shared by volunteers indicated a lack of teamwork. The twelve GS volunteers made requests similar to those of the 20 evening volunteers made in December: 1) more focused continuing education sessions specific to the cases they mediate, 2) opportunities for mentoring and constructive feedback, and 3) review from CMC staff of mediators during an actual mediation.

Along similar lines, CMC is implementing the following requested improvements in CMC practices concerning General Sessions mediations:

• CMC staff will make every effort to be available at General Sessions for the next month either as mediators or observers
• Each General Sessions volunteer has been asked to talk with their partner before the mediation, during the mediation and after the mediation on how to improve each other’s mediation skills.
• Continuing Education sessions will be regularly scheduled. Days when court is not in session will be identified for morning meetings.
• CMC staff will explore again the possibility of "mentors" for new mediators from the April class.
• Experienced and inexperienced mediators are requested to "stay-around" to observe when there are 5 volunteers attending.

It is difficult to give a complete picture of what has happened during the past year using statistics alone. Numbers alone don’t show the level of competence and commitment of our volunteers. Nor do they give any idea of the level of difficulty involved in many of the mediations. However, with those limitations in mind, the following statistics can give at least an indication of the magnitude of the CMC accomplishments during 2002.

There were a total of 533 referrals of all types of cases in Knox County last year. Of these, 432 were mediated with 324 resulting in agreements. General Sessions Court and Juvenile Court comprised the overwhelming majority of these cases.

Juvenile Court accounted for a total of 296 of the cases referred to CMC. The majority of these cases (152) were Child Support, with 93 Juvenile cases and 51 family referrals. Of the 152 Child Support cases, 132 were mediated with 99 resulting in agreements. Sixty-six of the juvenile referrals mediated and 46 agreements were reached. Forty-three of the family disputes were mediated with 20 agreements reached.

The total number of Knox County General Sessions Court mediation referrals for 2002 was 177, all of which were mediated. Of these, 128 resulted in agreements with over $142,000 dollars in restitution.

Blount County statistics are for 2001 and 2002 combined. The categories are Juvenile (46 referrals, 44 mediations, 38 agreements;) Child Support (25 referrals, 25 mediations, 15 agreements;) General Sessions (22 referrals, 21 mediations, 14 agreements;) and Adult Non-Court (7 referrals, 7 mediations, 4 agreements.)

CMC, in partnership with KCS and KCJC, is currently planning Mediation Fest 2003 to be held on Thursday, April 24 from 2 to 5 p.m. at West High School. The goals for this event will be to celebrate the successes of peer mediation and also to gain support for peer mediation. We will be recruiting CMC volunteers to help. If you are interested in participating contact Meredith or Susy by e-mail at cmcjvct@esper.com or by phone at 215-6564.

On Friday, February 21, CMC presented "An Overview of Mediation" to the Knox County Juvenile Court Staff. John, assisted by staff members Sharon, Meredith, and Jim began with an exercise designed to get participants to recognize ways in which they interact with one another on a daily basis. John used the interaction theme to introduce the various aspects and benefits of mediation. The other staff members presented such topics as the six stages of mediation, interaction between co-mediators, and discussion of forms and their use.

Volunteers Bud Muly, Dick Zivi and Karen Doggette made a strong impression on the group as they related some of their own experiences and gave the class personal insights into what it’s like to be a volunteer mediator.

The Staff and Volunteers then fielded questions and comments from the audience.

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org

COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTER Volume 3 Issue 3

The Neutral Zone March 2003

Volunteer of the Month

There was only one possibility for the March Volunteer of the Month. If you read the article above about the Coat of Many Accomplishments you will have to agree that the honor would have to go to Judith Toole. Not only did Judith "jump right in" after her training last fall, mediating both in Blount and Knox counties, but she also assisted in training the Tellico Mediation Team. All that, on top of turning the Coat of Many Accomplishments from a dream into a reality. And, as if that were not more than enough, Judith volunteered to help with the upcoming mediator training. 

Thank you, Judith. You are a truly special Volunteer of the Month.

New Mediators to Train in April

The new class of volunteer mediators has been selected and will begin their training on April 4th. The Center for Neighborhood Development is hosting the training for the second time, and two of their staff members are also in the class this time. CMC greatly appreciates their assistance.

CMC Board News

The CMC Board of Directors held its annual meeting on March 20. The Board changed the meeting date in 2000 from January to March to ensure orderly transition of officers and board members. Bud Muly was elected Chair for the second yea. The other officers are Delores Mitchell, Vice President; Lynn Kidd, Treasurer and Janet Rooks, Secretary. Kevin Jeske, one of the three new Board members, was elected as Executive Officer – At Large. The Executive Officers meet monthly at noon on the second Thursday; the Board meets on alternative months on the evening of the third Thursday.

About the new Board members:

• Kevin Jeske has for the last four years worked with Community TV and he also brings extensive profit and not-for-profit work experience. He is interested in assisting CMC with strategic planning and organizational development.
• Gary Montavon is the Vice President of Human Resources at Brunswick Boat Group and has just relocated to Knoxville with his family. Brunswick Boat has recently established its corporate office to Knoxville.
• Our third new member, Amy Goff, has recently retired from regional management of operations for Food Lion and brings extensive business experience to CMC.

A complete listing of our 12 Board members and 6 Board liaisons can be found on our website.

MEDIATION FEST – First Annual Peer Mediation Celebration

CMC is proud to be hosting, along with Knox County Schools and Knox County Juvenile Courts, the first county-wide gathering of students and faculty of schools with active peer mediation programs. For the last three years the VISTAs assigned to CMC have assisted in promoting, training and mentoring students and faculty in Knox, Blount and Seymour Counties. This year Susy Hayden, Meredith Adams and former VISTA Kathleen Thomforde have handled the myriad of logistics to bring many busloads of students to West High School on the afternoon of April 24^th. The agenda will include activities for the attendees and opportunities for demonstrations of peer mediation. If you are available to attend or would like to assist please contact Susy or Meredith at 215-6564 or cmcjvct@esper.com

Mid South Mediation Services – Overview of Another Tennessee Mediation Center
by John Doggette

The geographically largest mediation center in Tennessee is Mid South. Mary Ellen Bowen is the Executive Director of the VORP Center that provides services to seven predominately rural counties: Giles, Hickman, Lawrence, Lewis, Perry, Wayne and Williamson. In most of these counties the courts are open only several days a week and the Director or a part-time staff from the county handle the court referrals. Only someone with the energy and commitment of Mary Ellen could have accomplished the piecing together of the many courts, judges and elected officials under one umbrella. Mary Ellen also runs a program called "Kids to the Country" in which Nashville inner-city youth are able to spend a week on a farm in a neighboring county. I have had hopes of having Mary Ellen visit and provide some of her vast knowledge about mediation to our volunteers, but she has few opportunities to be away from other responsibilities.

Getting Together: Building Relationships as We Negotiate authored by Roger Fisher and Scott Brown, Harvard Negotiation Project in 1988 is a simply written book that is frequently quoted in the mediation field. Six steps to dealing with difficult situations become the chapters for the 200 page book. The book is a quick read, although the reader is left with many ideas to ponder concerning how to become a better mediator. The steps are:

• Rationality – balance emotion with reason
• Understanding – learn how others perceive
• Communications – always consult before deciding; always listen to the parties, yourself and others
• Reliability – be totally trustworthy, but not wholly trusting
• Persuasion, not coercion – negotiate side by side with the parties
• Acceptance – engage and deal seriously with those with whom you differ

The authors focus on the importance of "always consulting before deciding ABCD" as critically important to strengthening constructive communication. By "consulting" the authors do not suggest that an individual give up authority or that the parties all agree prior to the decision being made. Mediators stress the importance of sharing of essential information and thoroughly discussing issues that affect the parties. Consider how a mediation team might request that one of the parties "consult" with the other party prior to making the decision. The request may lead to better understanding.

Here are some examples of a request to consult:

• "As the residential parent would you consult with the father on issues related to your child and day care."
• "Before you leave and terminate the mediation would you be willing to ask the other party how she believes communication might be improved between the two of you."
• "Would you take a break and consult with the persons waiting for you on the offer you are considering."
• "After several hours with you it seems that both of you have difficulty listening to each other. Would you consider using the other party as a consultant, a person to advise, to ask questions, and to promote improved understanding. We will establish ground rules the roles are understood and followed."

The mediators may have occasion to speak to one of the parties as a "consultant" during Stage 5 (the evaluation of alternatives.) An example of a statement the mediators might make might be, "Please help us (the mediators) to understand the positives and negatives of this alternative." The "consultant" tool should be considered when one party has or believes they have the primary decision-making authority, but because the parties have on-going relationships all alternative decisions should be considered.

The CMC Web Site

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org

COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTER Volume 3 Issue 4

The Neutral Zone April 2003

Mediation Fest is a Success!

On Thursday, April 24^th 2003, the Community Mediation Center held the first annual Mediation Fest! AmeriCorps VISTAs Susy Hayden, Meredith Adams, and Kathleen Thomforde designed, organized, and implemented the event in order to increase the potential for sustainable peer mediation programs in area middle and high schools. To our knowledge, this is the first community-wide celebratory event promoting mediation in the nation! Approximately 160 students, teachers, faculty, and administrators from 10 middle and high schools in Knox County participated in the festival. In addition, volunteer mediators from Knox and Blount Counties served as activity guides. Representatives from Knox County Juvenile Court attended, and Chief Referee Cynthia Chapman and Assistant Court Director Darrell Smith spoke about the benefits of mediation for the student, the school, the community, and the justice system. Also in attendance were Knox County School Board President Sam Anderson, Knox County Middle School Coordinator Bobby Gratz, and District Attorney Randy Nichols. By all accounts, the event was a complete success. Students observed two role-plays, participated in three learning activities and offered suggestions for improving peer mediation.

In an effort to involve the community in Mediation Fest, we solicited monetary and in-kind donations from several area businesses. We would like to thank Coca-Cola, Bi-Lo, Celebration Station, Simon West Town Mall, Star 102.1, Knoxville News Sentinel and Kenesaw Group for their contributions. We would also like to thank all the volunteers who helped with Mediation Fest 2003: Bud Muly, Lynn Kidd, Janet Rooks, Kevin Jeske, Amy Goff, Del Holley, John Doggette, Lisa Givonetti, Sharon Upshaw, Robyn Davis-Lay, Diane Rairdon, Marcie Meldhal, Greg Davis, Robert Cook, Cathy Rhodes, Owen Rhodes, Karen Doggette, Yvonne Webb, Susy Hayden and Meredith Adams.

If you would like more information about peer mediation, please contact Susy Hayden or Meredith Adams at 215-6564 or by email at cmcjvct@esper.com

This month’s volunteer is known to most mediators as that friendly voice on the phone setting up a mediation or making that ever-important reminder call. CMC staff would like to recognize Karen Adams as our honoree this month for her seven months of service as an unpaid intern for CMC.

Karen has been of great help in the Gay street office, scheduling cases, completing data entry, and generally keeping us smiling! We are sad to see her leave, but are proud of her accomplishments with CMC.

As Karen completes her graduate degree, we hope to continue to see her as a volunteer mediator. Once you’re in the CMC family, we don’t want to let you go!

Thanks, Karen, for all your hard work!

New Class of Volunteer Mediators Completes Training

The Spring Class of Volunteer Mediators has now begun mediating, so you can expect to meet some of them soon. All aspects of the class went exceptionally well, including the official unveiling of the new Coat of Many Accomplishments created by volunteer Judy Toole (who also helped in the training.)

The new mediators include Don Ferguson, Lon Young, Gwen Winfrey, Rev. Larry Brinson, Janice Davis, Peter Mahoney, Kim Deaton, Ann Furr, and our newest VISTA Meridith Adams. Six additional class members attended courtesy of the Tennessee Community Action Corporation (TCAC,) and were either residents of public housing or employees of public housing in various East Tennessee communities. They were Debra Minton, James Cash, Terry Rex Jones, Gwen Welch, Annette Glass, and Kaye Hanley.

Fred Iskander from the Tellico Village Mediation Team also attended the training session because he was unable to participate in the Tellico training class earlier this year.

And, of course we could not have done it without the help of all the seasoned volunteers who help make CMC what it is. A special "Thank you!" goes out to the volunteers who helped with this class: Bud Muly (Board Chairman,) Delores Mitchell (Board Vice Chairperson,) Kathleen Thomforde, Sam Fowler, Judy Toole, Judie Watson, Ennica Street, Karen Doggette, Dianne Rairdon, Kathy Theis, Steve Patterson, Mary Jendrek, and Chris Woodhull. 

For a personal insight from one of the new trainees, see the next article.

Volunteer Mediator Training -- My Experience
By Peter Mahoney

It is my good fortune to have been invited to join the CMC family and to have participated in the most recent training session. Though a bit anxious at first, I soon began to enjoy the presentations, new material, new and different people, and the concept of "It’s about me." I needed that for a change!

My favorite part of class was the role play. These were fun and a great vehicle for me to learn how much of what I thought I knew I knew. (I guess some of the Dr. Seuss stuck with me.) Jim Davis was so convincing in acting his parts that several of the new volunteers began to feel genuine concern for Jim’s imaginary family and neighbors. I think most everyone had a great time working in their roles and learning and practicing new techniques.

John Doggette warned us that we would retain only about three percent of what was put out in class. The three percent I recall is how friendly the people are and how well everyone works together. I’m sure there was a great deal of planning, coordinating, scheduling, and (in a word) work that went into the care and feeding of all the new volunteers. The veteran CMC members deserve a "well done" for putting it all together so seamlessly. I was able to learn a great deal in a short time, and finished the training feeling like I’d been given the requisite tools to start learning how to co-mediate. Best of all, I had fun doing it.

John Doggette to Speak to TVMA

On Monday, May 19, John will speak to the Tennessee Valley Mediation Association on the subject of Emotional Intelligence. As any mediator knows, the emotions play an important part in any dispute, and an equally important part in mediation. Non-members are welcome to attend. Contact Dale Robinson, tvma-secretary@comcast.net for information on meeting time and place.

A Closer Look at Diversity 

I Am Not a Minority
By Delores Mitchell, HR

Webster's Dictionary defines minority as "the smaller in number of two groups making a whole. Racial, religious, political, national or other group thought to be different from the larger group of which it is a part." The U. S. government lists the following groups as minorities and as "socially and economically disadvantaged": Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, Asian-Pacific Americans, and Asian-Indian Americans.

In "The Diversity Factor Language Guide," Elsie Y. Cross writes that the term minority "is increasingly inaccurate as well as demeaning." Used to denote a group whose membership is less in number than the majority group, the term has come to connote that the group is lesser in worth as well.

I can analyze Webster's definition and come to two conclusions: I am a member of several groups, each based on race, religion, politics, or nationality. I cannot be easily categorized within these groups for the following reasons:

• I was born in America, so I possess no racial purity and cannot be assigned to one race.
• My belief in a higher power, divine or otherwise, makes me religious.
• I support the political party that serves my needs best at the community, state, and national level.
• Because I live in a democracy, I have a great deal of freedom of choice.

So, what does this have to do with being a minority? I am not a minority. I am a member of a group of people of color that makes up more than 75 percent of the world's population. My religion is practiced by more than 90 percent of the world's population. My politics are practiced by more than 88 percent of the world's population. I live in the most powerful nation in the world.

Now let us take a moment to look at the majority in the United States. Caucasians compose approximately 69% of the population according to the 2000 census. According to Cross, the term Caucasian was once used to designate one of the major geographical varieties of human beings, including peoples of Europe, Africa, the Near East, India, etc. White and Caucasian have become nearly synonymous despite the fact that Caucasian includes many people of dark skin color.

Now to search for the definition of white. One definition used by Webster to define white is "A Caucasoid." Caucasoid is defined as "a major ethnic division of the human species having certain distinctive physical characteristics such as skin color varying from very light to brown and fine hair ranging from straight to very curly and regarded as including groups of peoples indigenous to or inhabiting Europe, northern Africa, southwestern Asia and the Indian subcontinent and persons of this ancestry in other parts of the world." The census bureau concurs that white refers to a person with "origins in any of the original people of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. How about that! This definition also includes people of color. So we see that not all Caucasians are white.

So, again I say "I am not a minority." I share my blood, thus my heritage with all others on this continent: you, your fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, sisters, and brothers.

I am Native American, Caucasian, Negro, Mulatto, Black, Red, and Yellow.

My roots are Europe, Africa, Asia, South America, and North America. I am not a minority.

I am Cleopatra, Mona Lisa, Endera Gandhi, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Hillary Clinton all wrapped up in one package.

If I am to be defined as part of the whole, I must be defined as a member of the majority. I am one of the world, and I am not a minority!

The CMC Web Site

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org

COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTER Volume 3 Issue 5

The Neutral Zone June - July 2003

Volunteers of the Month

Steve Patterson is one of our CMC Volunteers of the Month this time, and those who have mediated with him know he is a worthy addition to our list of recipients. Without stereotyping Steve is a therapist with a strong military background who brings both to his persona as a mediator. Steve is comfortable in calling CMC staff when he has a question and is equally willing to mentor new volunteers just beginning their adventures with CMC. Thank you, Steve, from CMC.

Our other Volunteer of the Month is Susy Hayden. A year is a short period of time and in late July the CMC will be losing Susy, one of our AmeriCorps VISTAs. Susy has mastered the intricacies of juvenile court case scheduling and management and has helped our staff implement many improvements in our processes. Through teamwork with Kathleen in the past and Meredith in the present the VISTAs have expanded the fledging peer mediation into a project that with additional work will become system wide in Knox and Blount Counties. The CMC will soon be finalizing the first juvenile court mediation manual that she has taken the lead this year in compiling. Susy plans to continue in the profession of working with juveniles in the court or a social service setting. CMC has been blessed by the dedication of the VISTAs who have volunteered with us. And Susy Hayden we’re fortunate you selected CMC.

The Community Mediation Center will continue to operate in Blount County but lack of funds has resulted in staff changes. Beginning July 12 the Program Director’s position will no longer be full-time. Robyn Davis-Lay who has directed the Program since January 2002 has left to pursue other opportunities. The Alcoa Office will remain unchanged for program operations and mediations. The CMC will notify all volunteers who mediate in Blount County as we finalize operational changes in the coming weeks. All CMC staff and volunteers who have worked with Robyn recognize her significant contributions to the Blount CMC and wish her the best.

The CMC will be sponsoring its first Peer Mediation Summer Camp on July 30-31 and August 1. Middle grade students from Knox County Schools with interest in peer mediation will attend the three days of peer mediation skill development focused around understanding the juvenile justice system. One of the by-products of the Camp will be footage to be used in developing a peer mediation training video. Meredith Adams is coordinating the Camp. Volunteers who would be interested in assisting from 9:00 – 3:00 can contact Meredith at 215-6570.

Other VISTA News:

CMC does not want to slight our Jefferson County VISTA and webmaster Jim Davis who will be completing his year with us as a VISTA. Jim will remain as CMC’s advocate with the Jefferson County Courts as well as county schools and law enforcement organizations. We are also thankful for his enthusiastic development of the CMC website.

CMC received over 50 VISTA applications during the last year from individuals who would like to serve in Knoxville and two of the best and brightest will be taking the place of Susy and Jim in late July. Lisa Atkins and Erin Corcoran are moving from Michigan and Illinois to join CMC for the next year.

By John Doggette

My presentation to the Tennessee Valley Mediation Association in May focused on the importance of the mediator being personally in touch with himself, the theatre of mediation and the parties. A mediator can successfully guide and protect the parties throughout the process without actually "liking" either party; a mediator who does not emotionally understand himself will probably not be a quality mediator.

Recently I have listened to many hours of audio tapes of Robert Benjamin conducting mediation training. He identified a weakness and a solution when he realized that he was having a "Benjamin" difficulty with a party during mediation. When he (and usually also the party) recognizes that a communication problem exists he calls a separate session to listen with fewer distractions and to understand his personal difficulties.

I’ve benefited from his suggestion during a recent mediation. A separate session during the third meeting with each of the parties allowed the other mediator and me the opportunity to emotionally refocus as a mediation team and also to label the distractions that were affecting us. The mediation team did more than a process-check. We debriefed on how we were distracted as well as to strategize on how to proceed. For a few minutes during the mediation as a team it became "All About Us" in order for us to become more effective when we returned to be "All About Them."

CMC would strongly recommend that when you are faced with terminating a mediation because one or both parties are negatively positional give yourself and the parties a little time to think. Consider the following: 1) separate the parties, 2) explain WATMA and give each the assignment to think about whether they could continue to mediate in good faith (key words), and 3) collectively you and your team member consider strategies on overcoming the difficulties. When you reassemble the parties you should begin on the constructive value of mediation and not immediately allow the parties to return to their destructive positions pursued prior to the break.

The CMC Web Site

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org

The Neutral Zone August 2003

This September CMC will be having it’s fall training class for new volunteer mediators. The training will be held on the weekends of the 12-14th and 19-21st, and will last approximately 40 total hours in length. The location will be announced at a later date.

The CMC Web Site

We are always looking for ways to improve the CMC web site. Please contact Jim Davis at cmcjc@esper.com with any ideas you have for making it better. Also, visit the web site at www.2mediate.org