Michael Lawrence
Michael Lawrence, a graduate certificate student at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR), has had an interest in labor management issues for a long time. Beginning as a news writer and engineer at NBC Radio Network in New York, where he was involved in a 17-week strike, Michael also worked at National Public Radio, and for the past seven years at United States Senate Radio-TV as the Senior Media Relations Coordinator. As a federal employee, he was introduced to the Federal Mediation Conciliation Service (FMCS) which seeks to mediate labor disputes to shorten times of strikes. "This opened my mind up about mediation and through an informational interview with the deputy of FMCS I was told there were a number of 40-hour mediation trainings I could complete. But if I was in the Washington area, the best program to learn about mediation and conflict resolution is at ICAR. With my experience as a Union Shop Steward, and now as a federal employee, I have found that the [ICAR] advanced skills certificate is the best fit for my interests in Federal Alternative Dispute Resolution."When asked how the ICAR program has impacted his life, Lawrence replies, "Through the lens of conflict analysis and resolution, it changes so much about the way that I read the newspaper in the morning, the way that I see conflict here at the Senate and as liaison between the Senate, Press, and Capitol Police—the Press wanting more access, the Senate wanting less access. The program has changed the way I see conflict within my own work." Lawrence is a true example of the success of ICAR's newest graduate program. His experience resonates with working professionals looking for a potential career change or wanting to take their conflict resolution skills to a new level. "I would reassure people, although the ICAR website may have a specific focus on international or intractable conflicts, I have never felt that my interest in mediation is not valid. Someone in the federal mediation field said that this is the best program to be in. That should definitely say enough."