ICAR's Fall Welcome Dinner Chronicles 25-Year History
The Welcome Dinner this year was a huge success with 137 new 
students, faculty, staff, alumni, advisory board members and donors in attendance. Guests were officially welcomed by the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR) Director Sara Cobb after a social session of light hors d'oeuvres and drinks. Sadly, this is Sara's last year here at ICAR. She eloquently and appropriately used the dinner as a forum to reflect on her time here as the director of the Institute. Her comments were heartfelt and spot on for the occasion. She incorporated the faculty in her address to provide an overview of the evolution of the Institute, from its inception to the present. Comments were made by Professors Dennis Sandole, Kevin Avruch, Rich Rubenstein, Sandra Cheldelin, and Terrence Lyons.
Dr. Chris Shoemaker, Vice President of Strategy at MPRI and a proud member of our Advisory Board, was our featured speaker this year. His speech, entitled "Conflict Resolution: Up Close and Personal," focused primarily on the meaning and importance of institutions to analyze conflict. "Conflict Resolution at the most basic level is about relationships with people," Shoemaker said. He deftly illustrated how important humor can be in resolving conflict with a personal story from his experience as a mediator in Bosnia. He proceeded with five major points. First, it is essential to understand the nature of conflict. Second, direct personal contact is key in resolving conflict.
Third, find common ground and expect the unexpected. Fourth, build institutions that mitigate and subdue conflict. Fifth, conflict can be analyzed, it can be resolved, but it takes patience, persistence and professionalism to do it.
The evening closed with the awarding of several scholarships presented by Dennis Sandole, Julie Shedd and Michael Shank. The award recipients included M.S. student Terra Tolley for the Adrian St. John Scholarship, Ph.D. student Yves-Renee Jennings for the Alumni Scholarship, Ph.D. student Tetsushi Ogata for the Truk Family Scholarship, Ph.D. student Mohammed Cherkaoui for the James H. Laue Memorial Scholarship, M.S. student Monica Flores for the Brenda Rubenstein Award, Ph.D. student Samuel Rizk for the Faculty Scholarship, Ph.D. student Ekaterina Romanova for the John Burton Scholarship, Ph.D. students Gina M. Cerasani and Jana El Horr for the Mary Lynn Boland Award, and Ph.D. student Saira Yamin for the Eleanor Roosevelt Student Scholarship. Congratulations to all of the award recipients.