Mediation :   “Mediation” is an informal process in which a neutral person conducts discussions among the disputing parties designed to enable them to reach a mutually acceptable agreement among themselves on all or any part of the issues in dispute.

Rule 31 Mediation.  I am a Tennessee Supreme Court “Rule 31 Listed Mediator” in the area of civil litigation and domestic relations pursuant to the Supreme Court's Rule 31.  For more information about a Rule 31 mediator, see the web site of the Tennessee Alternative Dispute Resolution Commission.

Intercollegiate Student Mediation.  The Political Science Department is the institutional home for the MTSU Intercollegiate Student Mediation Association which was established in 2000 by Dr. Clyde E. Willis.  The association, among other things participates in the annual competition sponsored by the National Intercollegiate Mediation Association (NIMA) each November in Chicago.  Dr. Willis serves on the national association's board of directors. Since the National intercollegiate Mediation Association began conducting its annual event in 2000, MTSU students have been awarded first place once, second place twice, third place once and seventh place once.  For more information on NIMA click on: (http://www.collegemocktrial.org/mediation_default.htm)   Each fall the department offers a one-hour credit class, PS 2120 Mediation Procedure where students can learn mediation skills and procedure.  For more information about this program click on "learn more about student mediation." 

Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program (V.O.R.P.).  Before the state government enacted budget cuts, the Political Science Department was the institutional home for the Rutherford County Juvenile Court's V.O.R.P. activities that involved students as V.O.R.P. volunteer mediators and Political Science internships.  Victim Offender Mediation is a face-to-face meeting, in the presence of a trained mediator, between the victim of a crime and the person who committed that crime. The practice is also called victim-offender dialogue, victim-offender conferencing, victim-offender reconciliation, or restorative justice dialogue. In some practices, the victim and the offender are joined by family and community members or others.  In the meeting, the offender and the victim can talk to each other about what happened, the effects of the crime on their lives, and their feelings about it. They may choose to create a mutually agreeable plan to repair any damages that occurred as a result of the crime.  For more information on community mediation, go to the web site for Victim Offender Mediation Association and the National Association for Community Mediation.

Judicial Affairs and Mediation.  MTSU students involved in conflict(s) with another individual(s) may elect to have the conflict(s) mediated with the assistance of a third party mediator assigned by the appropriate Student Life dean. For more  on the mediation program offered by Judicial Affairs and Mediation go to http://www.mtsu.edu/~judaff/med.htm.

Mock Trial : Each fall, MTSU offers a one-hour credit class, P S 2100: Legal Courtroom Procedures for one hour of credit (the class may be taken up to four times), taught by Dr. John Vile and Ms. Brandi Bozart. All students who are enrolled in this class, which requires no prerequisites, participate in an invitational mock trail tournament that MTSU hosts each November; this tournament is one of the largest in the country. Mock Trial Advisors Dr. John Vile and Dr. Clyde Willis (emeritus) sit on the national Board of Directors of the American Mock Trial Association. Since 1989, the MTSU Mock Trial Program has established itself as one of the most competitive and successful programs in the nation. For more information on MTSU's mock trial program go to http://mtsu.edu/~polsci/mocktrl.html.

Internships : To gain experience and insight into the day-to-day work of the legal system, MTSU students in the Prelaw and Paralegal Programs may participate in a specially arranged internships with law firms, legal department of a corporations, government agencies, or nonprofit organizations. For more information on the paralegal internship click on "learn more about paralegal internships and prelaw internships."

Advising : I advise over fifty students in the prelaw and paralegal curricula.  For information regarding legal education and career opportunities, click on "learn more about legal education and career opportunities."