University Of Massachusetts Amherst Expert Named Interim University Ombudsperson

Lea Occhialini has been appointed interim ombudsperson at UMass Amherst. She began her new position June 27. The Ombuds Office provides confidential, impartial, informal and independent resolution services for students, faculty and staff. Martha Patrick, who led the office since 2021, has been named ombudsperson at UMass Boston.

An attorney and expert mediator, Occhialini has extensive experience as lead campus ombudsperson, including most recently at Holyoke Community College, where she established and led the Office of the Ombudsperson and served as the college’s chief culture officer. Previously, she worked as ombudsperson at Hampshire College and as a mediator/trainer in the Office of Equity and Inclusion at Smith College.

In addition to her time in higher education, Occhialini has experience as a contract ombudsperson and a court and community mediator through her work with The Mediation and Training Collaborative in Greenfield, managing the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Face-to-Face Mediation program at the district courts in Holyoke, Northampton and Greenfield. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Smith College and Juris Doctor degree from American University Washington College of Law.

Occhialini has advanced expertise with the International Ombuds Association Standards of Practice and is an accomplished trainer in areas including communication, conflict resolution, mediation, equity and inclusion, facilitation, group dynamics and team building. She is also well versed in state and federal employment law.

Established by the Faculty Senate in 1969, the UMass Amherst Ombuds Office is one of the oldest public university ombuds offices in the country. Its services are available to current members of the campus community.