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COFO MONTHLY MEETING MINUTES

Meeting Date/Time: February 8, 2023, 1:30-2:58pm (EST)

Location: Video/telephone

Agenda: 

1. COFO Annual Conference date

2. IOA Annual Conference

3. Mentoring Committee update

4. Ombuds Day 2023 – October 12

5. Voluntary Leave Transfer Initiative reminder

6. Next Ombuds Supporting Ombuds (OSO) meeting 2/22

7. IOA Call for Authors

8. Announcements – Training opportunities, job openings, or really any office and ombudsman 

happenings you'd like to tell the world about

9. General Questions - Space for new and emerging practitioners and programs to ask questions 

and get feedback from the COFO community in a short discussion format

10. Discussion Topic

o Has your office utilized contract ombuds to temporarily increase staff/bandwidth? What 

are some of the pros and cons of this approach? What would you advise an office to 

consider when contracting with a firm to help provide ombuds services? Are there other 

ways any of you have used or can suggest to increase your bandwidth for a certain 

period of time?

o Your topic here!

Highlights:

1. COFO Annual Conference date

o Date is not yet definitive but first choice is Friday, October 13. 

o Feedback from 2022 post conference survey was positive regarding mid October and 

the day after Ombuds Day.

o Hoping to do in-person for the first time in a few years, but will play that by ear. Either 

way there should most likely be an option to join virtually.

2. IOA Annual Conference

o April 3-5 in Seattle. 

o For the upcoming conference, anyone attending in-person is welcome to join the 

government sector session. 

o The conference committee is looking for volunteers to facilitate the meeting.

3. Mentoring Committee update

o Cohort five surveys went out.

4. Ombuds Day 2023 – October 12
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o Thursday, October 12. 

o No other update from the ABA Ombuds Day subcommittee for now but more 

information to come, and mark the date on your calendars as a reminder to participate. 

5. Voluntary Leave Transfer Initiative reminder

o Connects ombuds who need leave with ombuds from around the federal government 

who have leave to donate. Helps to avoid awkward scenario where ombuds ask for or 

donate leave to others in their agency. 

6. Next Ombuds Supporting Ombuds (OSO) Meeting – 2/22

o Scheduled for 2-3pm. 

o Safe space to discuss the things going on personally and professionally that impact us. 

7. Announcements – Training opportunities, job openings, or really any office and ombudsman 

happenings you'd like to tell the world about

o Census Bureau ombuds office is increasing staff. There will be two new positions, one in 

Jefferson, IN at a GS-14/15. Second position in Suitland, MD also GS-14/15 depending 

on experience level. Hoping the announcements will be out by the next COFO Monthly 

Meeting. The office is an internal ombuds office. 

8. General Questions - Space for new and emerging practitioners and programs to ask questions 

and get feedback from the COFO community in a short discussion format

o ABA Dispute Resolution Conference in May, does anyone have thoughts about how 

worthwhile that would be to attend for an external ombuds?

• Someone mentioned that they attended a few years ago and enjoyed it but 

their only concern was that there wasn’t a lot of ombuds specific content. 

• Someone else shared that there is always an ombuds thread but just one thread 

of many. It can be a really interesting conference to go to because, given that 

it’s the wider ADR world and not just ombuds, there will be people speaking and 

others there to meet that won’t normally be in these meetings or IOA for 

instance. 

• Someone else shared that, as an external ombuds, ABA is a good conference to 

add some tools to your toolbox and especially if an external without a lot of 

mediation experience. Value in attending for an external.

o Given much expanded remote and hybrid type working environments, has anyone had a 

successful experience trying something new or unique to help undertake some kind of 

initiative to promote your offices?

• Someone suggested highlighting anomalies the ombuds is seeing. 

• Someone else mentioned they do a 5-minute quick tip for management or 

leadership teams where they join their agenda for standing meetings and share 

about the “magic ratio” and give a handout.

▪ Magic ratio is from the Gottman relationship research. Positive work 

relationships typically have 5 positives for every 1 negative interaction.

• Someone else mentioned they give a 15 minute conflict management 

presentation/workshop style during already scheduled staff meetings can be a 

nice way of getting in front of people to add value and also conduct outreach.

▪ The people it is delivered to people who often deal with external 

stakeholders who might be angry. So the topics are how to talk to 

someone who is angry, while maintaining empathy.

o Senior leaders in this organization have told the ombuds office that they are going to 

become responsible for DEIA efforts. What does DEIA mean to other ombuds offices and 

do they take on DEIA initiatives?
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• Someone mentioned they would be very uncomfortable with an ombuds doing 

that.

▪ First because the ombuds position doesn’t take ownership of agency 

initiatives like DEIA.

▪ Second, there is a need for a different and distinct office who would 

specialize in DEIA.

• Someone else chimed in that they agree with the first person, that DEIA is a 

specialized field that should be handled by people who specialize in it. 

• Someone shared in chat, “It's a delicate balance because we do align our office 

to work with DEIA initiatives as a support rather than the lead.”

▪ Others support that, given that fairness and justice include DEIA, can’t 

have one without the other, but leading them is problematic for so 

many reasons. 

• Someone else shared that the ombuds role is to share what they are seeing 

from a systemic perspective that perhaps relate to DEIA. For instance, hiring or 

performance issues that are often brought forward with concerns related to 

DEIA. 

• Someone else shared in chat, “We should certainly know the concepts, and even 

examine ourselves to make sure that we practice in inclusive, unbiased fashion. 

But we shouldn't be the leader and policy maker.”

• Someone else shared in chat, “I suggest looking at supporting the Employee 

Resource Groups in your org, or even helping initiate and Active Bystander 

group. It's amazing what DEIA help has stemmed from that and now Kazmere 

Duffey and I are teaching the 4 Stages of Psychological Safety.”

o Are people using standard language in response to emails received after hours about 

contacting the appropriate authorities with any safety or health related concerns or 

issues?

• Someone said they don’t do that, but like the idea because they have a lot of 

people who should actually be reaching out to doctors and psychologists. 

• Someone in chat wrote, “No experience, interested in thinking through it. 

Wonder about the new 311.”

• Someone else in chat mentioned that 988 is the suicide hotline. 

9. IOA Call for Authors

o Chapter in IOA book project will cover government sector. Looking for volunteers to 

help with writing that chapter. 

o The goal is for it to be a starter read for being an ombuds. Will have 26 chapters that 

hopefully covers soup to nuts of being an organizational ombuds. 

o The second section looks at different sectors, and the governmental sector author is still 

one IOA is looking for. 

o Hopefully will look at unique structures and models in the government sector, history of 

ombuds in the governmental sector, how it differs from higher ed and corporate 

sectors, and also the things you might need to consider if you are a governmental 

ombuds at the local, state, or federal sectors.

o First drafts by June 15. 

o Question posed about, given there are many different models in the government sector, 

should the chapter focus primarily on the organizational ombuds or be more of a 30k 

foot view of all models. 
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• There’s some flexibility there, but there will also be another section covering the 

different models. 

o Someone in chat asked if there was a plan for vetting content. 

• Will vet out to external reviewers if need be. 

o Someone else shared that too often the models get muddied, because someone writes 

about a certain model and gets it wrong, and then the perception about ombuds is 

incorrect. 

• COFO can help by reading a first draft before it is submitted as a first draft 

within IOA as a way of vetting. 

10. Discussion Topic: Has your office utilized contract ombuds to temporarily increase 

staff/bandwidth? What are some of the pros and cons of this approach? What would you advise 

an office to consider when contracting with a firm to help provide ombuds services? Are there 

other ways any of you have used or can suggest to increase your bandwidth for a certain period 

of time? 

o

Attendees:

Last First Agency Call-In

Anderson Jeff DOE 1

Behr Virginia FDA 1

Berg Mollie NGA 1

Bookstein Monique Prince William County Public Schools 1

Braden Lara DeCA 1

Brothers Linda NIH 1

Brown Andrea USPTO 1

Burton Shannon MSU 1

Cecil Tina FBI 1

Coffman Cherina NGA 1

Coleman Jean SBA 1

Davidson Kimberly George Mason University 1

Enriquez Elisa Los Alamos National Laboratory 1

Footman Aaron USPTO 1

Gnatt Sheldon NSA 1

Gordon Laurel DOJ/US Marshals Service 1

Gump Nevada US Secret Service 1

Harshbarger Blayne USDA 1

Heffernan Claire TSA 1

Hendrickson Caitlan FEMA 1

Hopkins Emilee NGA 1
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Hurley Nathan FDA/Center for Tobacco Products 1

Jarrett Syreeta DIA 1

Johnson Stella N/A 1

Katherine Erica FDA 1

Kinnavy Noreen USAGM 1

Kiraithe-Muchene Irene Henry M. Jackson Foundation 1

Kirk Natasha CIS 1

Lenkel Laurie FDA 1

Levenson Dan OGIS 1

Levine Lisa DOJ / Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) 1

Magnus Vicki Library of Congress 1

Maurer Bill Census 1

Megee Christine DOD Education Activity 1

Miller Carla DOJ/ATF 1

Miller Ellen IOA 1

Milner Heather CFPB 1

Mitchell John OIDO 1

Patel Bina USPTO 1

Patno Arielle FDA / Center for Tobacco Products 1

Piziali Jamie EPA 1

Porch Susanne Commerce/National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST) 1

Robinson Belinda FBI 1

Roth Lewis NRO 1

Schwartz David UNLV 1

Smith Julie Census 1

Sotoudeh Paul USPTO 1

Stergio Marcus Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs/DOL 1

Taylor Lelar VA 1

Thomson Ronnie Sandia National Laboratories 1

Vermillion Chris DOE 1

Weber Guy NGA 1

White Karen National Education Association 1

Whittington Frederick DOL OIG 1

Wolfe Lexi DOE 1
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Yuille Banford Deanna DOD/Defense Human Resources Activity 1

Yurgelun Christine MA Probate and Family Court Department 1

Total 57