The Fairfield Center in Harrisonburg, VA, is offering any and all Virginia certified mediators the opportunity to complete the bulk, if not all, of their required continuing education units in just one day: the Fairfield Mediator Bonanza! This bonanza provides a variety of general and family topics that provide Continuing Education by the Virginia Supreme [...]

See a flyer about Fairfield’s upcoming two-part training on Handling Differences and Disagreements in Congregations (PDF) .  Register below! Are tensions mounting in your congregation?  Have you been through some painful conflict and wish things had gone differently? Do you foresee potential difficulties ahead in dealing with the differences in your congregation? This is a [...]

Frequently, leaders of groups, teams, committees, and organizations must lead conversations.  These conversations can be complex, focusing on topics ranging from strategic planning, to marketing ideas, to project development.  Facilitating conversations is a sometimes daily tasks for many business and nonprofit leaders, however few of us have had an opportunity to hone our skills.  Here [...]

Fairfield Center is proud to be part of implementing effective peer mediation programs in schools.  Over the years, Fairfield has encountered some frequent questions regarding peer mediation.  Here is a selection with answers. Learn more about Fairfield’s Peer Mediation Program and/or contact us for more information. What qualifications should students have to be mediators? Students [...]

This article relates to a concept in Listening 101, a Fairfield Center Communications Training program. Silence.  Just silence. Silence can sometimes be a powerful addition – even a contribution – to a conversation.  It is normal to want to say something after the other person has stopped talking.  It shows we’re interested, that we’re engaged in [...]

Listening is easy, right? After all, most coursework and training is focused on writing, speaking, and presenting (how to get a message OUT) rather than being focused on listening (how to take a message IN). So, everyone must be born a great listener, without need to learn, practice, and master listening skills.  Well, let’s consider [...]