The Enduring Power of the Community Mediation Movement A Panel Discussion

Online via Zoom | March 16, 12:00 -1:30pm PDT | Free for all

In honor of the California Judicial Council resolution recognizing the third week of March as California Mediation Week, Community Boards invites you to celebrate the enduring power of the Community Mediation Movement.   Join us in the conversation and hear from our panel of executive directors and program staff of the leading nonprofit mediation organizations throughout California. We will discuss our respective mediation contexts, how our work is adapting to these times, opportunities to promote social justice, and ways to increase the visibility and efficacy of mediation. Free for all. Donations are appreciated.

Panelists Donald Proby, Moderator Aaron Casteel, Placer County Dispute Resolution Service Christina W. Kataoka, JD, MDR, Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center Deborah Jay Levy, JD, MSW, MPH, Congress of Neutrals AddieRose Mayer, SEEDS Community Resolution Center Veronica Mikho, National Conflict Resolution Center Malissa Netane-Jones, Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center Kathryn Price, OC Human Relations Jennifer Reed, Waymakers Alma Robinson, California Lawyers for the Arts Olga Sanchez, Community Action Partnership Darlene Weide, MPH, MSW, Community Boards Christopher M. Welch, Center for Conflict Resolution

Donald Proby Moderator Donald Proby is a mediator and a diversity and belonging consultant. Donald holds consultancy positions with Community Boards of San Francisco, Coro of Northern California, the American Medical Association and Courageous Leadership, LLC. He has served as faculty at St. Mary’s College of California, Drew University, as well as San Francisco State University. He recently served as Director for the Office of Mediation, Coaching, Ombuds, and Support Services for Brigham Health. For more information about Donald: www.linkedin.com/in/donaldproby.

Aaron Casteel Executive Director Placer County Dispute Resolution Service I come to mediation from a 30 year career as a technology executive. I've spent my life developing active listening skills and the ability to find opportunity in conflict. My style is personable, open-minded and patient. I create safe, supportive spaces that enable people to reach sustainable agreements. My life's purpose is to help others build peace.

Christina W. Kataoka, JD, MDR Executive Director Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center Christina Kataoka is the Executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center (APADRC). She has a juris doctorate degree and a Master's degree in Dispute Resolution. She oversees APADRC’s Community Mediation and Restorative Justice Programs as well as the Conflict Resolution Skills Training Program. Having moved to China as a Japanese, Polish-American immigrant, Ms. Kataoka has been building bridges across cultures since 1995 and specializes in resolving high conflict disputes.

Deborah Jay Levy, JD, MSW, MPH Executive Director The Congress of Neutrals Deborah Levy, JD, MSW, MPH, is the Executive Director of The Congress of Neutrals. Deborah has been mediating since 2005 with The Congress of Neutrals and currently mediates civil matters, particularly evictions and restraining orders with the Contra Costa County Superior Court. She holds a MSW from UCLA, an MPH from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and a JD from JFKU. Deborah has interned and VA, County Probate Department and JFKU’s Elder Law Clinic. She has held positions as Health Policy Analyst for Maryland State, Clinical Social Worker and Geriatric Case Manager. She is currently on the executive board of Shelter, Inc. The Congress of Neutrals is a non-profit organization providing mediation services, education and training in Contra Costa County. Since 2001, the organization has provided mediation on civil calendars for the Contra Costa County Superior Courts.

AddieRose Mayer Executive Director SEEDS Community Resolution Center AddieRose Meyer is the Executive Director of SEEDS, a transformation and restorative practices organization based in the US. SEEDS harnesses the power of conflict to create equity and belonging in workplaces, schools, and communities. As a leader and practitioner, AddieRose draws on principles of human-centered design, positive psychology, adaptive leadership, personal transformation, and systems change. AddieRose is proud to be a founding member and stewardship council co-chair of Thrive Network, a member of the Alameda County Alternative Dispute Resolution Executive Committee, and an adjunct faculty member of UCSF HealthForce.

Veronica Mikho Director of Communications National Conflict Resolution Center Veronica Mikho has been with the National Conflict Resolution Center since 2005. She is a proud Mexicana who was born and raised in the Tijuana, Mexico and San Diego, California regions. Veronica is a certified bilingual mediator who has extensive experience mediating a variety of disputes. She received her B.S. in Criminal Justice from San Diego State University. Veronica enjoys working with the community and families.

Malissa Netane-Jones Executive Director Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center Malissa Netane-Jones was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay-Peninsula Area, CA. In 2006, Malissa joined the Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center (PCRC) team as a volunteer and was hired as a staff member in 2008. Since then she has held a number of positions within the organization and now serves as the Executive Director at the Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center. For over 20 years Malissa has been dedicated to transforming communities through youth and community leadership development using restorative practices and communication strategies. During her 13 years, she has helped grow PCRC’s impact and reputation within the community, leading and expanding bold initiatives and forming new relationships with funder and government stakeholders, helping to make PCRC a preeminent nonprofit in San Mateo County and beyond. Her commitment to authentic engagement and collaborative problem solving using a cultural humility lens is illustrated through her key role in developing programs such as The Tongan Interfaith Collaborative, Mana afterschool program, Central County Prevention Partnership, and the Strengthening Neighborhoods Project that has had a positive and long-lasting impact in communities throughout the Peninsula area. Through these initiatives, she has developed an affinity to bridge local government and institutions with residents to work collaboratively and redistribute power equitably. Malissa has received numerous awards for her leadership, including, the Gil Lopez Award from the Association for Dispute Resolution of Northern California for her work in reducing Gang Violence in the Peninsula and the Mayors Diversity Award not to mention many honors and acknowledgments. Malissa is a natural communicator and leader who intentionally listens to others while navigating the many complexities of life - personally and professionally.

Kathryn Price Dispute Resolution Program Director OC Human Relations Kathryn Price received her Master’s degree in Conflict and Dispute Resolution from the University of Oregon School of Law where she enjoyed the unique opportunity to participate in mediation advocacy and training at the United Nations and Oregon State Legislature. Kathryn is also a family law specialist paralegal and LDA and is currently spearheading a divorce mediation initiative at OCHR. OCHR’s mission is to foster mutual understanding among residents and eliminate prejudice, intolerance and discrimination in order to make Orange county a better place for ALL people to live, work and do business.

Jennifer Reed Program Director Waymakers Jennifer Reed works as Program Director at Waymakers. She is responsible for the oversight and administration of the Domestic Violence Assistance Program, Family Violence Victim Services Unit - District Attorney, Law Enforcement Based Victim Advocacy Unit, Dispute Resolution Services Program, and the Homicide Victim Services Unit. Ms. Reed coordinates staff recruitment, selection and other staff actions. She assesses training needs and conducts staff development in her designated programs. She oversees six direct reports and nineteen indirect staff. Ms. Reed participates in fund development, grant writing and contract management. She is responsible for the development, implementation and monitoring of program services, policies and procedures. She serves as program liaison to the district attorney’s office, law enforcement agencies, courts, social services and community agencies.

Alma Robinson Executive Director California Lawyers for the Arts Alma Robinson joined CLA as the Director of itsArts Arbitration and Mediation Services in 1980, and has since produced many alternative dispute resolution training programs in California. With the support of the Hewlett Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, she worked with art/law organizations to replicate the program in New York, Seattle, Denver, Houston, Chicago, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. She also facilitated several inter-sector programs involving the arts and other interest groups, such as environmental, education, tourism and corrections to raise awareness of the intrinsic values of the arts. Through CLA's Arts in Corrections Initiative, she produced a series of demonstration projects that showed the benefits of arts programs for incarcerated persons. In 2014, the results of this collaborative evidence-based research were used to facilitate an initial inter-agency agreement between the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the California Arts Council for a $2.5 million pilot project providing arts programs in 20 prisons that has send grown into an $8/million/year program in all 36. state prisons. She received her law degree from Stanford University and a BA with honors in history from Middlebury College.

Olga Sanchez Senior Community Program Specialist Community Action Partnership Olga Sanchez is the Senior Community Program Specialist for the County of Riverside Community Action Partnership. She has developed and implemented multiple complex public programs and awareness plan covering various community issues. She manages several programs which includes CAP Riverside’s renowned Dispute Resolution Center (Mediation Program). She holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Criminal Law, a master’s degree in Public Administration, is a certified Mediator. The Community Action Partnership is a member of a national network of over 1,100 Community Action Agencies across the United States. Their staff and volunteers serve all of Riverisde County, the fourth largest county in California, with a population of over 2,400,000.

Darlene Weide, MPH, MSW Executive Director Community Boards Darlene Weide, MPH, MSW is the Executive Director of Community Boards, the longest-running community mediation center in the US, based in San Francisco. Her work emphasizes equity, inclusion, and belonging to foster collaboration, people power, and impactful dialogue, understanding, and change. She’s designed creative initiatives such as Taking Mediation to the People Project, curriculum to prevent LGBTQI discrimination in schools, housing justice initiatives, and the San Francisco Peacemaker Awards. She is also a trainer, organizational ombuds specializing in healthcare and higher education settings, and a faculty member at Georgetown University where she co-teaches Mediation I and Mediation II in the M.A. in Conflict Resolution program and at City College of San Francisco. She highly values all the volunteers that share their compassion and skills to support their neighbors and communities.

Christopher M. Welch Executive Director Center for Conflict Resolution Christopher (Chris) Welch received his Master of Dispute Resolution degree from Pepperdine University School of Law, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. Chris has worked at the Center for Conflict Resolution (CCR) since 2004 and became the Director in 2008. Since 2013, he has been the Executive Director and has moved the organization towards greater stability and growth. In 2017, for his mediation/facilitation work on the Hindenburg Park Sign Project, CCR, through his work, was the recipient of the County of Los Angeles Commission on Human Relations, John Anson Ford (JAF) Award for the 5th Supervisorial District. Chris is on the Board of Directors of the Mediation Certification Consortium of California (MC3), working to raise the standards for all mediators throughout the State.