NC State Faculty and Staff Ombuds Roy Baroff to Retire

NC State Faculty and Staff Ombuds Roy Baroff has announced that he is retiring effective June 30. Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Warwick Arden and Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Charles Maimone made the announcement today.

Baroff, with 40 years in the conflict resolution field as a mediator, attorney, educator and ombuds, joined NC State as the university’s first faculty ombuds in December 2014. He also took on the title of staff ombuds in January 2017. The NC State Faculty and Staff Ombuds Office is a confidential, informal, impartial and independent unit established to provide issue and conflict resolution services for employees.  

“Throughout his service to the university, Roy has been an invaluable resource for our faculty and staff,” said Arden. “He has helped to create a more welcoming and inclusive environment at NC State, and we wish him the best in his retirement.”

During that time, he served as a confidential resource to empower people to reach their full potential, acting as a navigator and sounding board, as well as a coach and information resource to help NC State faculty and staff consider a situation and determine how to proceed.

His career at NC State focused on empowering people and the university to reach their full potential; engaging with people and the university to help inform critical decisions; helping people build and strengthen relationships across the university; surveying the university terrain, monitoring trends and promoting fair processes. 

“Roy’s work to help faculty and staff look at issues from a variety of angles and turn them into opportunities for personal and professional development has been an important part of NC State’s strategic advancement as a top employer in the state,” said Maimone. “He has set a strong foundation for staff and faculty support at our university.”

Baroff joined the International Ombuds Association in 2007 and became a Certified Organizational Ombuds Practitioner® in 2017. He recently finished a four-year term as a member of the International Ombuds Association Board of Directors. He became a member of the NC State Bar in 1987 and began serving as a North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission Superior Court Certified Mediator in 1992.

Baroff received his Bachelor of Arts in anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, his Master of Arts in anthropology from the University of South Florida, and his J.D. from UNC-Chapel Hill. He has been an adjunct professor at the Elon University School of Law, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Schools of Law and Government, and at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

“It has been an honor and privilege to serve as NC State’s initial faculty and staff ombuds. Over the last eight years, I’ve met and worked with people across the university and appreciated their support for ombuds services. People were willing to fully share their concerns, and together, within the scope of the ombuds role, I worked to help people engage with and solve problems. I also provided aggregated data and observations to the university for its use in addressing and resolving issues. I look forward to NC State building on the current foundation of ombuds services as part of its overall efforts to support faculty and staff and to address workplace concerns,” said Baroff.

The university has begun the process for contracting the next faculty and staff ombuds and will make an announcement in the fall when the individual is in place.