Maxwell School’s Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts adopts new name better reflective of its mission, programs

Maxwell School’s Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts adopts new name better reflective of its mission, programsApril 07, 2009Jill Leonhardtjlleonha@maxwell.syr.edu

Maxwell School Dean Mitchel Wallerstein has announced several developments concerning the school’s Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts (PARC), an internationally recognized center that for more than 20 years has trained faculty, researchers and practitioners from around the world.

In order to better reflect PARC’s current mission and programs, its name is being changed to the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration (PARCC). The current co-director, Catherine Gerard, has agreed to serve a second term as director of PARCC, beginning July 1; Rosemary O’Leary, who has served with Gerard as co-director for three years, will step down in order to devote more time to projects associated with the Phanstiel Chair for Strategic Management and Leadership, which she holds. O’Leary will remain the co-director of the Collaborative Governance Initiative for PARCC.

“Thank you to Rosemary and Catherine for their tremendous work with PARC,” Wallerstein says. “During the past three years, they hosted three conferences; edited four scholarly peer-reviewed books; sponsored two special issues of top journals; trained hundreds of students and public servants in collaborative problem solving and conflict resolution; and launched E-PARC, which provides free cases and simulations in three languages for those who teach collaboration around the world. I am grateful for their service to the Maxwell School and look forward to continued excellence in Catherine’s second term.”

Gerard says that PARC is a “wonderful program with a rich history of research and practice. Over the years, it has maintained its core while shaping the future thinking of the field. One of the most rewarding roles that PARC has served is as a convener for those interested in conflict and collaboration. It was Rosemary who added the new focus on collaboration to PARC’s mission, which was an important contribution to the organization and a project in which she will continue to be involved.” To learn more about PARCC, visit http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/parc/.