On February 14, as part of the celebration of Mediation Day proclaimed by Gov. Haslam, Carol Berz will be honored in Nashville for her pioneering and lasting contributions to the field of mediation. Berz has designed and implemented mediation training programs for countless mediation professionals, especially in East Tennessee.
The Coalition for Mediation Awareness in Tennessee (CMAT) will present the seventh annual Grayfred Gray Public Service in Mediation Awards at the Lipscomb University Institute for Conflict Management in Nashville, Tenn. Mediation trainer, author, and practitioner Doug Noll will present an all day program on “Micro-Interventions in Mediation: Understanding and Dealing with Emotions, Strong Personalities, Beliefs, and Biases.”
Berz said she’s honored to have been chosen to receive the award. “I believe people have the power to solve their own problems, and I’m proud the Tennessee Supreme Court has taken the lead in recognizing mediation as a way to do that. I’m also privileged to be practicing and teaching in that process,” she said.
John Blankenship, president of the Tennessee Association of Professional Mediators (TAPM), a member of the Coalition, said his association and the Coalition have a shared goal—to bring greater awareness of the advantages of mediation to the average citizen. “We are privileged to partner with the Coalition in our efforts to achieve this important goal,” he said.
Ruth Hillis, TAPM’s president-elect, agreed, saying, “Mediation offers a unique opportunity to resolve disputes efficiently in terms of both time and money, which results in a greater sense of satisfaction to the parties involved.”
Governor Haslam proclaimed February 14 as Mediation Day in Tennessee in recognition of the contribution of mediation and to encourage its further growth in the state. There are now 1,262 mediators listed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to assist the courts in resolving disputes, and additional trained mediators volunteering their time at community mediation centers across the state. Per the Tennessee Commission on Alternative Dispute Resolution, mediators self-reported 5,606 cases mediated in 2013, with 72.5 percent of the cases fully or partially resolved through mediation.
Formed in 2006, CMAT assists the courts and community organizations in providing programs and activities that educate the public and the legal profession about the benefits of mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.
CMAT awards its annual Grayfred Gray Public Service in Mediation Award to persons who make innovative and lasting public service contributions through alternative dispute resolution in Tennessee. The award is named after its first recipient, Grayfred Gray, emeritus professor at the University of Tennessee College of Law and founder of UT’s Mediation Clinic. Past recipients of the award also include Janice Holder, Marietta Shipley, Shelby Grubbs, Robert Murrian, Jocelyn Wurzburg, and Larry Bridgesmith.
Berz is CEO of Private Dispute Resolution Services, a mediation services and training organization headquartered in Chattanooga. She is a Rule 31 Listed Civil mediator and Family mediator specially trained in domestic violence. Berz teaches General Civil and Family mediation, mediation advocacy, mediation law and ethics, and collaborative problem-solving in the workplace.
Berz is a past president of the Mediation Association of Tennessee (a predecessor of TAPM), and chaired the mediation component of the Hamilton County Courts’ Pilot Project on Tennessee’s Parenting Plan law. She spent 11 years as a commissioner with the Chattanooga Human Rights/Human Relations Commission, and was its first woman chairperson. Berz served on the Governor’s Task Force on Church Burnings and recently completed service to the Tennessee Economic Council on Women, where she served as chair of the council and chaired the Economic Impact Committee.
She serves as a Chattanooga City Councilwoman and chairs the Budget and Finance Committee.
Her professional memberships include founding member of the Association of Professional Family Mediators, the ADR Section of the ABA, and the National Association of Social Workers, where she serves as a mediator for the national organization.
Berz has a master’s degree and a doctorate in social policy from the University of Tennessee and a law degree from the Nashville School of Law. She is a graduate of the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School’s Insight Initiative Summer Learning Forums.
Source: Coalition for Mediation Awareness in Tennessee