This is not a usual “consumer tips” posting, but I wanted to share this good news about someone making a difference for workers and consumers!

My colleague at the University of Missouri, Rafael Gely, just received the David Petersen Award from the National Academy of Arbitrators.  Rafael directs our Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution and is a fabulous colleague and leader.  Here’s the announcement of the award, which is extremely well deserved:

The National Academy of Arbitrators conferred upon Rafael Gely the David Petersen Award at its annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois. The David Petersen Award recognizes and honors individuals who have given invaluable service to the Academy.

The Academy conferred the Petersen Award because of Professor Gely’s instrumental role in the startup and continual maintenance of arbitrationinfo.com, the neutral website which is a joint venture of the National Academy of Arbitrators and the University of Missouri School of Law.  Through Professor Gely’s work as an editor of the site, he has written content on a regular basis, designed and updated the site, supervised student assistants, and crucially connected with journals both before and after articles are written.  The Academy notes the creation of the website provided a source of information and education regarding arbitration for journalists, professionals, and the public. The Academy believes that the website has immeasurably improved the discourse and understanding of labor and employment arbitration in both United States and Canada.