ACR-GNY upcoming events

ROUNDTABLE BREAKFAST: Trauma Informed Mediation: Screening for Meaningful Participation Using CALM-SPJ (Thursday, October 01, 2026)

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

ACR-GNY & CUNY Dispute Resolution Center at John Jay College present:

Trauma Informed Mediation:
Screening for Meaningful Participation Using CALM-SPJ

This presentation will introduce the T.I.M (Trauma Informed Mediation) ecosystem and explore how the CALM Structured Professional Judgment (CALM-SPJ) framework assists mediators in assessing participation capacity and adapting the mediation process to promote psychological safety, process equity, decision clarity, and durable agreements. It will be an engaging discussion about the practical application of trauma-informed mediation and how structured observational frameworks can strengthen decision-making within mediation. The session moves beyond theory and always includes operational resources and tools to apply in real life. Tired of taking workshops that taught approaches but then left her with the question "Now what?", Trisha Wright's framework aims to fill that gap!

TRISHA WRIGHT

Trisha Wright, MBA, MA (Forensic Psychology), is an Accredited Family Mediator (AccFM), On-Site Family Mediator with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Certified Clinical Traumatologist, and a member of the clinical panel of Ontario's Office of the Children's Lawyer (OCL). She is the founder of Clearpoint Mediation and the Insight Learning Institute, where she develops trauma-informed education for professionals across the legal, healthcare, and community sectors, including training accredited for CPD by the Law Society of Ontario. She also leads the Association of Trauma-Informed Professionals, a community of practice serving the family law sector.

Drawing on a forensic psychology lens , Trisha is the developer of TIM™, the Trauma-Informed Mediation Framework — an integrated professional practice system supporting practitioners from intake to durable agreement. Within that ecosystem, she created CALM-SPJ™, a structured professional judgment screening framework assessing Capacity, Adversity, Load, and Mediation Safety to guide decisions about participation capacity and process suitability. Her practice focuses on high-conflict family matters, including cases involving trauma, mental health, neurodivergence, and intellectual and developmental disabilities. Her recent article, "Calibrated Neutrality: Advancing Process Fairness in Mediation," was published in Attorney at Law Magazine.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

The Roundtable Breakfasts are online meetings via Zoom. The link will change each month and will be distributed to all registrants the day before and the morning of the event. All listed times for ACR-GNY events are for Eastern Time.

8:00 am – 8:30 am | Join call to network with attendees

8:30 am – 10:00 am | Presentation and discussion

About the Roundtable Breakfasts

The Roundtable Breakfasts are organized by ACR-GNY and the CUNY Dispute Resolution Center at John Jay College. They take place the first Thursday of the month and are ongoing since 2001.

Views expressed in connection with any Roundtable event publicity or at sessions are those of the speakers and participants and not of the CUNY DRC or ACR-GNY.

This program is supported by ACR-GNY's 365 Sponsor:

Multisession Practice Group: Employment and Commercial Mediation (Wednesday, October 07, 2026)

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT

Presented by Elizabeth Grossman

Introducing our next multisession practice group!

ACR-GNY is launching a new Employment and Commercial Mediator Practice Group exclusively for its members!

Mediators strive to encourage understanding and bridge boundaries. Yet many work alone, with few opportunities to share their questions, frustrations, and ideas with colleagues. To provide support and education to members of the ADR community, ACR-GNY is starting a new five-part practice group for mediators working in the employment and commercial spaces, creating a confidential forum where practitioners can come together to share puzzling moments and give each other honest feedback.

Starting in October 2026, this Practice Group will meet every other Wednesday morning via Zoom from 8:30 – 10:00 am and will be limited to 15 participants. It will be led by Elizabeth Grossman, ACR-GNY Treasurer and Board member, and will include guest facilitators in some sessions. Mediators at all experience levels are welcome to attend. To promote community support in a small group space, participants are expected to make their best efforts to attend all sessions.

Group discussions will address:

October 7 Topic: Navigating Power Imbalances

October 21 Topic: Managing Challenging Behaviors

November 4 Topic: Ethical issues – Who’s in the Room?

November 18 Topic: Challenging Scenarios (participants share)

December 2 Topic: To be Determined with Group Input

Registrants are expected to attend all five sessions.

These practice group sessions are interactive and a safe space for questions and honest feedback; registration will be capped at 15 participants, and sessions will not be recorded.

The Details

Frequency: Every Other Wednesday

Dates: October 7, 2026 | October 21, 2026 | November 4, 2026 | November 18, 2026 | December 2, 2026

Time: 8:30 - 10:00am (Eastern Time)

Price: Free for ACR-GNY members

Format: Virtual (Zoom)

Elizabeth Grossman

Elizabeth Grossman serves as a mediator and consultant in employment discrimination and a wide variety of other civil rights and commercial matters. For over thirty years, Elizabeth worked as an attorney and manager for the federal government and non-profit organizations, with a focus on employment, housing, and disability discrimination. Throughout her career, she led litigation teams working on individual and systemic lawsuits. Elizabeth serves on the mediator panels for the Southern District of New York, the Eastern District of New York, New York State First and Ninth Judicial Districts General Civil and Commercial Divisions, and as an Arbitrator in New York State Small Claims Court. Previously, Elizabeth conducted mediations with the Institute for Mediation and Conflict Resolution, and she currently mediates for the New York Peace Institute and assists as a Coach during new mediator training. Her prior work experience includes: Executive Director/General Counsel, Fair Housing Justice Center; Interim Chief Legal Officer, Southern Poverty Law Center; Legal Director, Lenox Hill Neighborhood House; Regional Attorney, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, New York District Office, and Program Director, Disability Rights New York.

This program is supported by ACR-GNY's 365 Sponsor:

ACR-GNY's 25th Anniversary Celebration (Thursday, October 15, 2026)

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 22:00:00 GMT

ACR-GNY's 25th Anniversary Celebration

LEADERSHIP

Twenty-five years ago, a group of conflict resolution practitioners came together to build a network to provide mutual support and peer learning for the conflict resolution community in the Greater New York area. What emerged was the Association for Conflict Resolution’s Greater New York Chapter, an organization that has supported practitioners, connected colleagues, and made quality programming accessible to everyone.

This October 15, we’re gathering to celebrate. We'll be raising a glass to the leaders whose vision and dedication have shaped our organization over the past quarter-century.

Join us for an evening at The Helm in the historic Helmsley Building in Midtown Manhattan. Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP is graciously providing both the venue and catering for this celebration.

Our theme for this event—Leadership—celebrates the individuals whose vision and commitment have guided our association through its first quarter-century and ACR-GNY’s role in advancing and expanding the field of conflict resolution.

Details

Thursday, October 15, 2026, 6:00–8:30 pm
The Helmsley Building | The Helm
230 Park Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10169
Guests must present a current (non-expired) government-issued photo ID to access the building

Business casual and festive attire
Drinks and light fare will be served.

Purchase your ticket

Every ticket includes a tax-deductible donation that supports ACR-GNY’s mission to expand and advance the field of conflict resolution.

Contribute at the level that is meaningful for you. If cost is a barrier, reach out to us at leardership25@acrgny.org.

ACR-GNY'S 25th Anniversary Celebration is generously supported by:

Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP

This program is supported by ACR-GNY's 365 Sponsor: