Harvard Mediation Program Presents at the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution Conference in Seattle

Front Row (L-R): Rachel Viscomi ‘01, Assistant Director of the Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program; Prill Ellis, HMP Clinical Supervisor; Maureen (Mo) Griffin, HMP Program Manager. Back Row (L-R): Sam Cortina ’15; Michael Moffit ‘94, Dean, University of Oregon School of Law; Nancy Welsh ’82, Professor of Law, Dickinson School of Law at Penn State; Erin Archerd ’08, Langdon Fellow in Dispute Resolution, Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University; Rishi Batra HLS ‘08, Assistant Professor of Law, Texas Tech University School of Law; John Miller, ‘15.

By Sam Cortina, J.D. ‘15

As a student in the Harvard Mediation Program (HMP), this spring semester I participated in the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference in Seattle. It was one of the most enriching academic and professional experiences of my life.

John Miller, J.D. ’15 and I moved from our roles as students to teachers when we discussed our rich experiences with high-conflict mediations on the HMP panel: Beyond Small Claims; New Venues for Mediation Programs. We shared with the audience HMP’s success in recently developing a mediation program for Harassment Prevention Orders in and around greater Boston, and also discussed the incredible work that HMP students, staff, and professors have done over the past 34 years!

It was exceptional to meet so many HMP alumni and learn how the program changed their lives. I feel we made a genuine contribution to the alternative dispute resolution community, and I know our efforts will assimilate into different programs throughout the country in a way that makes people’s lives better. For that, I am incredibly proud to call myself a lifelong member of HMP, and to have attended and contributed to the ABA’s Spring Conference.