Faculty, staff and even graduate students at Texas A&M University-San Antonio can confide in a new set of ears about their concerns or issues on campus.
Dr. Gary Coulton, an associate professor of psychology, has served as faculty ombudsperson since summer 2021.
The ombudsperson acts as a bridge between the university and his constituents to be a neutral middleman.
Coulton, whose services are entirely confidential, said he had a slow start in the midst of the pandemic as he underwent training and promoted the new position.
“It was pretty slow starting because people don’t necessarily understand what this ‘ombuds’ stuff is about,” Coulton said.
He also had to work to earn the trust of peers who confided in him.
“There was a trust issue, just kind of in general going to somebody and trust in the confidentiality,” Coulton said.
The Faculty Senate created the position in March 2021 for the betterment of the faculty/staff relations with the university.
Megan Wise de Valdez, vice president of the Faculty Senate, first introduced the motion to create the position in February of last year.
Wise de Valdez said it was important to create the position because it was a needed resource for faculty, who can discuss their concerns in a confidential, “non-biased” environment with the ombudsperson before possibly taking the issue to Human Resources.
It’s “a safe place to discuss issues without it going on record,” she said.
Coulton’s availability as ombudsperson is 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesday and 2-4 p.m. Thursday, or by appointment.
To contact Coulton, email facultyombudsperson@tamusa.edu or call 210-784-2203.
Bookings for appointments can be done here.
