MIT Ombuds Office

The MIT Ombuds Office serves as a neutral, confidential, independent and informal resource to the diverse MIT community - we are a resource for faculty, staff, students, and post-docs. The office helps to surface very serious concerns, resolve disputes, manage conflict, and educate individuals in more productive ways of communicating. The Office advocates for a fair conflict management system and supports systemic changes to achieve this goal.

The word OMBUDSMAN (om - buds - man) originated in Sweden during the 19th century, where the term applied to a public official appointed to investigate citizens' complaints against governmental agencies. According to one scholar, the term refers to a "person who has an ear to the people." The purpose of the Office of the Ombuds is to insure that every voice at MIT can be heard, without fear of loss of privacy, and that problems can receive impartial attention.

The MIT ombudspersons are designated as neutral, independent, informal complaint-handlers. MIT ombudspersons are charged to take into account the rights and interests of every person who is known to be involved in any given case or concern, and also the welfare of the Institute.

The MIT ombuds' offices are completely confidential. (Ombuds may talk with each other—unless a visitor explicitly asks that they not speak with an ombuds colleague.) MIT ombudspersons do not answer questions about people whom they may or may not have seen in the office, except in informal complaint-handling when they have been given permission to do so by the visitor. They will take action only with the permission of a visitor—except for the unusual situation of imminent risk of serious harm, where there appears to be no other responsible option except to act without permission. (This situation is very rare. An ombudsperson may have to work hard, together with a complainant, to be able to find an acceptable option for surfacing a delicate problem. However, it is almost always possible to find options that are acceptable to each person with a problem.)

The MIT ombudspersons can listen to people, offer information about Institute policies and procedures, accept suggestions and data from people who seek a confidential channel for surfacing responsible concerns, and help to work for orderly and responsible systems change. The office welcomes all faculty, staff of every kind, all students and postdocs. The ombuds office welcomes any kind of MIT-related concern or problem. (Ombudspersons do not however intervene with respect to any matter covered under a union-MIT contract or special by-laws.)

The MIT ombudspersons are a good source of support for those in the MIT community who want to examine their options for dealing with a particular concern or who may wish to consider learning how to deal with problems directly on their own. The ombuds may serve as shuttle diplomats or mediators, and may help to see that problems are brought to the attention of appropriate line managers, if there is agreement between the ombudsman and the visitor that this would be helpful. Ombudspersons have no power to make, change or set aside administrative decisions or MIT policy. In the classic phrase, "theirs is the power of reason and persuasion."

The MIT ombudspersons keep no formal written records. MIT ombudspersons and their staff do not "accept notice” of problems for the Institute; talking with an ombudsperson does not constitute “notice” to MIT. In instances where notification to MIT would be necessary to resolve a problem or to preserve rights, and a complainant does not notify someone else at MIT or give permission to the ombuds to notify MIT, then MIT may be unaware of the problem and may be unable to respond to the problem or assist the complainant. The ombudspersons are available to refer visitors to offices that can “receive notice” for MIT and respond on behalf of the Institute.

MIT ombudspersons do not adjudicate or arbitrate and ordinarily do not do formal investigations. They may help or accompany members of the MIT community in informal dispute resolution. They do not accompany disputants in formal hearings, nor do they serve as witnesses in formal grievance processes either in-house or externally. (As a matter of general policy, MIT does not call any ombudsperson on the Institute's behalf in proceedings inside or outside of MIT and has consistently sought to protect its ombudspersons from subpoena by others.) The only exception to this general rule would be in the very rare case where the President asked an ombudsperson—outside the ordinary scope of ombuds practice—to make a formal finding of fact which was later called into a public forum; or where the ombudsperson has personally witnessed a crime, in which case, the ombudsperson would testify like anyone else.