Negotiation and Dispute Resolution Degree Faculty

Jacqueline N. Font-Guzmán, M.H.A., J.D., Ph.D.
Interim Director and Associate Professor at The Werner Institute

Jacqueline has a B.A. from Coe College, a Master's in Health Care Administration from Saint Louis University, her law degree summa cum laude from the Interamericana University of Puerto Rico, and her Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from Nova Southeastern University. Jackie is an experienced mediator, attorney, and healthcare administrator who has done substantial work in the field of conflict studies. Prior to joining the Werner Institute she was a practicing attorney and mediator within her own law firm.

Jackie was awarded a Fulbright fellowship in April 2011 and will serve as a Senior Fulbright Lecturer at the Carlos III University Law School in Madrid, Spain in Spring 2012. She is a certified mediator and arbitrator by the Puerto Rico Supreme Court. She is a highly accomplished mediator in Puerto Rico and has been very involved in the training of third party neutrals. She has actively participated in the field of conflict studies through national and international conferences and workshops, and has conducted a wide variety of trainings and seminars in the field, throughout the United States, the Caribbean, Europe, and Latin America.

Jackie's research interests include conflict engagement in healthcare, socio-legal approaches to colonial conflicts, theories of ethnicity and nationalism, terrorism, education of reflective practitioners, connection between conflict theory and practice, bioethics, cross-cultural perspectives in conflict resolution, relationship between culture and oppression, role of history and memory in conflict, mediation and dialogue processes, human rights, legal anthropology, countercultures and law, the socio-legal construction of citizenship and identity, gender theories, and qualitative research methodologies.

Bernie Mayer, Ph.D., Resident Professor of Conflict Resolution

Bernie is an icon in the world of conflict resolution. With over a quarter century of experience in the field, he was a founding partner at CDR Associates, the internationally recognized mediation and conflict resolution organization, and originally trained as a psychotherapist. He has worked across the globe as a mediator, facilitator, teacher, trainer, dispute systems designer, and program administrator. A true scholar as well as leading practitioner in the field, Dr. Mayer is the author of many works, including the book Beyond Neutrality: Confronting the Crisis in Conflict Resolution, and has taught courses for Harvard, University of Missouri, University of Colorado, Antioch University, the Budapest College of Economics, University of Warsaw, and Colorado State University, among others. He earned his Ph.D. in Social Work with an emphasis on conflict resolution.

Mary Lee Brock, Instructor and Chair of Clinical Programs at the Werner Institute

Mary Lee Brock holds a BA in Psychology from Creighton University and a M.Ed. in Counseling from South Dakota State University. She is recognized by the Nebraska Supreme Court Office of Dispute Resolution as a Lead Trainer of Mediation and Facilitation Skills Curriculum. Mary Lee is also accomplished as a trainer and practitioner in Family Mediation, Special Education Mediation, Victim Offender Mediation, Family Group Conferencing, Specialized Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Restorative Justice. Mary Lee was the founding Executive Director of the Concord Center, a private non-profit conflict resolution center in Omaha, Nebraska. In that role, she developed dispute resolution programs based on community needs, best practices, and effective use of resources. She has been an advocate for conflict resolution systems in the local and state governments and at public forums. Mary Lee has been engaged in assessment, process design and facilitation of numerous public projects, among them the Task Force on Child Death, Omaha Public Schools Links to Success, and the National Park Service Corp of Discovery.

Noam Ebner, Assistant Professor and Online Program Chair

Noam received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in law from Hebrew University. Originally from the U.S, he now divides his time between his home in Jerusalem, Israel, and his teaching, training and consulting activities in the U.S. and abroad. After practicing as an attorney, Noam shifted focus and established Tachlit Mediation and Negotiation, which deals with a wide spectrum of issues, including commercial, divorce, business partnership, and employment disputes. In addition, Noam trains mediators for the Israeli court system, conducts corporate training for the private sector, and consults to several community mediation programs. Before joining the Creighton faculty, Noam taught conflict resolution and negotiation at universities around the world. He is a regular visiting professor at Sabanci University in Turkey, and a senior fellow and visiting professor at the United Nations' University for Peace in Costa Rica. His research and writing focus is on negotiation pedagogy and on negotiation and mediation processes conducted online.

Bryan Hanson, Assistant Director

Bryan Hanson, the Assistant Director of the Werner Institute received his Master of Arts degree in Organizational Psychology from John F. Kennedy University, his graduate certificate in Organizational Conflict Management from John F. Kennedy University and his Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Communications from Minnesota State University - Mankato.

Bryan is a practicing mediator with well over a hundred hours of training in various mediation contexts. He is an approved Parenting Act mediator and Specialized ADR mediator by the state of Nebraska. Bryan provides many workshops regarding conflict engagement skill development for various organizational contexts. Bryan also is an experienced facilitator and has provided his services to assist organizations with visioning processes, the development of strategic plans, and other collaborative processes that necessitate the voice of multiple stakeholders.

Bryan serves as the President of the Board for the Nebraska Mediation Association (www.NEMediation.org) and has since its creation in 2010. Bryan assisted with the development of and continues to manage the conflict resolution web resource www.adrhub.com. He also contributes to the Creighton community with his involvement on the Distance Education Review Committee and by providing guest lectures regarding conflict engagement for a variety of programs. Prior to joining the Werner Institute, Bryan resided in the San Francisco Bay Area where he devoted his time to mediating, facilitating dialogue and providing training in conflict resolution.

Robert J. Witheridge, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution

Robert J. Witheridge is an Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution within the Werner Institute at Creighton University.  Robert received his Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from Nova Southeastern University, where he also taught several graduate courses across the conflict resolution curriculum.  Robert maintains an active research platform within the framework of organizational conflict, systems design, curriculum development, corporate law, mediation, negotiation, and the teaching and training of conflict resolution.  In addition, Robert has extensive experience guiding student research projects across both quantitative and qualitative research traditions.  Linking theory to praxis, Robert has served as a Research Scientist for the New Jersey Division of Mental Health Services, and as an HR Mediator for global labor relations in Copenhagen, Denmark.  In tandem with his academic and corporate experience, Robert has developed a host of community workshops, focusing on the constructs of collaborative dialogue, reflective listening, group facilitation, individual empowerment, and peaceful conflict resolution strategies.