Grace College Mediation Team Seeks Peace in Eleventh Season

The Grace College Mediation Team concluded its eleventh season of competition in November. The goal of the team is to establish peace-making values and practice conflict resolution.

Dr. Mark Norris, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and mediation coach at Grace College, led the team of five students through two successful competitions this year. “My style of coaching is grass-roots,” Norris said. “I allow the students to lead.”

The team includes Brooke Trice, Isaac VanLoh, Emerson Mast, Austin Treen, and Elijah Brooks. The students meet weekly to practice and prepare solutions for future cases. Two weeks before each competition, they are given the cases to study and practice.

The first competition of the year was at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, where Grace competed with 15 other teams and 48 individuals. Four of Grace’s five members won awards, and the whole team won second in Mediation overall.

The second competition of the year was the 20th Annual International Intercollegiate Mediation Tournament at York University in Toronto. Teams gathered from around the world. Austin Treen won first place on a bye team for the Advocate and Client category.

Grace’s Mediation Team also attended the Victims and Offenders Reconciliation Program in Elkhart, where the students earned a certificate and volunteered as mediators.

Before each competition, a training conference is held which is led by world-class mediators and lawyers, who later serve as judges in the competition. “Talent is just showered on us at the tournament,” Norris said. “It’s an amazing time to get advice from great talent for our students,” he added.

VanLoh, the team captain, said, “Being on the Grace Mediation Team has meant a lot to me. I am proud to have found a way I can represent Grace College.”

Students on the Mediation Team receive class credit in Applied Learning for their participation. Many current team members are studying Pre-Law, but the team is open to students in any program or major.

For more information on the Grace College Mediation Team, contact Dr. Mark Norris at norrismm@grace.edu.

Attached photo: The Grace College Mediation Team concluded its 11th season seeking peaceful conflict resolution.