Abilene Christian University offers online graduate students from across the nation the opportunity to earn practical experience developing conflict resolution skills. The course, which is offered in January and June each year, will bring almost 80 students to the ACU campus, June 22-26.
"Our Residency Session is an intensive week of practice and mentoring that provides the opportunity to hone their skills and to develop the confidence that makes our students 'conflict-ready'," said Dr. Joey Cope, chair of ACU's Department of Conflict Resolution.
Students in the residency session will practice the negotiation and mediation skills they have studied in the Negotiation & Mediation online course which serves as a foundational course in six ACU online degree programs. They will conduct negotiation and mediation role plays, hear lectures and discuss case studies.
"In the discipline of conflict resolution and reconciliation, our program has always been centered on providing our students with the motivation, the knowledge, and the skills to effectively manage conflict in both their lives and the lives of others," said Cope.
This intensive, week-long residency has been offered to graduate students since the online program began in 2006, providing them with the skills to be peacemakers, regardless of their career, the knowledge of conflict theory that allows them to effectively manage conflict and the capacity for advancement in positions of leadership and service in their chosen profession.
Held in the Hunter Welcome Center and the Duncum Center for Conflict Resolution, the courses will last five days and will be taught by Cope, Dr. Matt Dodd, assistant professor of Conflict Resolution, and Dr. Garry Bailey, associate professor of Conflict Resolution. A special track for educators will be led by Dr. Robert Otey, adjunct professor.
After completion of this residency session, students with 15 credit hours will receive a Certificate in Conflict Resolution and will have met the training requirements in the state of Texas to mediate in the court system. Education students who complete 12 online credit hours and the residency session will receive a Certificate in Conflict Resolution for Educators.
For more information, visit the Conflict Resolution online degree website.
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