Agenda - Council - 04/28/1992 - Laserfiche WebLink

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County. It was well done and good representation of our program and services and a good first effort. MEDIATION SERVICES FYI, a bi-monthly communique from staff to volunteers and other interested people went into its second year with a mailing of approximately 250. It was the desire of staff to keep in touch with readers so they would feel somewhat connected to the organization and to be informed with relevant information. Articles have included "Tips to Mediators","Outreach Opportunities","Power to the People", "How Is A Mediator Selected?" and "Upcoming Training Opportunities". Readers have responded positively and contributed ideas and suggestions. The first issue of THE MEDIATOR, newsletter of the Association of Community Mediation Programs, was f'rrst pubIised in the Fall of 199 I. It is produced entirely by volunteers and will be mailed quarterly. 3. Resources. Volunteers have turned the plan for providing dispute resolution services into a successful program. During 199I volunteers delivered over 3700 hours of services through mediation, board involvement, outreach and fund raising activities. This was a 62% increase over the number of hours committed in t990. The large increase in training hours reflects twenty volunteers having received the forty-hour divorce mediator course provided for in MN Statutes Section 518.6 i9. Mediators already trained for neighborhood cases contributed time to attend on-going training opportunities to maintain their active status. For example, in March mediators attended a seminar intended to give specific information to mediators about how to handle multiple party mediations where there are many divergent views. In June, with the aid of insights taken from personality type theory, a psychologist gave mediators a fresh perspective in handling difficult people. Mediators had an opportunity to discover their own personality type and apply the information to personality conflict in mediation. The funding base for MEDIATION SERVICES was expanded to include state appropriations for 1991 and i992. Senator Gene Merriam and Representative Wayne Simoneau worked with representatives of the Minnesota Association of Community Mediation Programs to sponsor legislation providing funding for certified community mediation programs. MEDIATION SERIVCES received a two-year appropriation. In August the Anoka County Board of Commissioners agreed to a $21,000 grant to MEDIATION SERVICES to set up a two-year pilot program offering post-divorce visitation mediation. The McKnight Foundation found the proposed post-divorce visitation services worthy and granted MEDIATION SERVICES $10,000 a year for two-years to set up these services. With the inception of the post-divorce visitation program parties were charged an administrative and session fee. No one will be turned away because they cannot afford the service. However, the fee will be collected from those who can afford to pay. These new funds, along with support from Anoka County municipalities and private conu'ibutions, provided a means to hire a part-time case developer and purchase a Macintosh computen A second phone line was installed which meant staff no longer shared one phone line as they had for the past three years, but each had their own. All of these new sources produced a 92% increase in total funds raised in 1991. These came