Lois Gold, M.S.W. is past president of the national Academy
of Family Mediators and has been prominently involved in the
development of mediation since the 1970's . She began the
first mediation service in Oregon in 1980 and maintains a
private practice as a therapist and mediator in Portland,
Oregon. Her practice currently focuses on divorce, family,
and workplace mediation, consultation and training in conflict
resolution, and therapy to individuals, couples, and families.
She also specializes in loss and healing and has had extensive
training in shamanic practices.
Ms. Gold holds a B.S. degree from the University
of Pittsburgh and an M.S.W. from New York University where
she was awarded a National Institute of Mental Health fellowship.
A former adjunct assistant professor Portland State School
of Social Work, she has published numerous articles in the
area of divorce, including the book Between
Love and Hate: a Guide to Civilized Divorce. Her new
book is The Sacred Wound: Healing
from the Death of a Child. She is working on a book
on marriage titled Bridging Differences: A Couples Guide
to Resolving Conflict.
Ms. Gold was a founding board member of
the Oregon Mediation Association and has served on the board
of several professional organizations, including the Oregon
Chapter of the American Association of Marriage and Family
Therapists and the International Association of Family and
Conciliation Courts. She co-chaired the Academy of Family
Mediator's committee on Standards and Practices and was instrumental
in the development of their Standards and Practices. She is
currently a member of the Parenting Plan and Custody Evaluation
subcommittee of the Oregon State Family Law Advisory Committee.
She hold memberships in the Academy of Family Mediators, Oregon
Mediation Association, National Association of Social Workers,
the International Human Learning Resources Network, and the
Foundation for Shamanic Studies.
Workshops and training have been sponsored
by organizations including: National Association of Social
Workers, Oregon Psychological Association, Oregon Mediation
Association, National Academy of Family Mediators, Oregon
Woman Lawyers, Oregon State Bar Family Law Section, Oregon
Counseling Association, Jewish Community Center, Morrison
Center, Providence/St. Vincent Medical Center, Oregon Health
Sciences University, Kaiser Permanente, Emanuel Hospital,
Texas Association of Mediators, New York Mediation Council,
and Farmington District Court. She has been a regularly featured
guest expert on family matters on KGW Noon News, and has appeared
on other local television, including guest host for Town Hall.
She was employed as a caseworker for the
New York City Bureau of Child Welfare prior to her degree
and for Multnomah County Family Court Services as a marital
therapist and custody evaluator from 1971-1980. Concerned
about the impact of custodial conflicts on children and families,
she left the court and founded the Family Mediation Center,
the first alternative in the state to adversary approaches
to divorce. She has mediated over 1,000 cases. |
