Consensus CouncilFounded in 1990, The Consensus Council is a non-profit organization that custom-designs processes bringing diverse viewpoints together to seek common ground from local to international levels.
Council facilitators and staff colleagues provide many services to support building public policy agreements. Under the trusteeship of the diverse Board of Directors, the Council operates with support from foundations, contracts for services and contributions.
Subject areas of consensus processes have included disaster mitigation, economic and rural development, education, environment and natural resources, government restructuring and reform, health care, human services and law. However, the possibilities are boundless. Contact us to begin building agreements to benefit the whole community.
History of the Consensus Council Inc.:
In 1990, North Dakota's private and public leaders considered significant challenges raised by demographic, economic, and social conditions in the state. This discussion produced the concept of a consensus council, to firmly position North Dakota for an effective future in the central region of North America.
The Consensus Council, Inc., is a private, North Dakota, nonprofit corporation dedicated to the improvement of government structure, services, and policy primarily in North Dakota and the Great Plains (Originally called the “North Dakota Consensus Council, Inc.,” the name was change in 1999 to “The Consensus Council, Inc.” to more accurately reflect its growing regional service presence.)
The Consensus Council provides models that can be adapted to and work to enhance other governing circumstances in the region and throughout the world. This approach helps to bridge the gap between how we think and how we act in public life.
Mission of the Consensus Council Inc.:
The Council connects leaders and citizens to build public policy agreements.
Vision of the Consensus Council Inc.:
Citizens and leaders of this region rely on consensus-building and conflict resolution to address important issues of public and community life.
Values of the Consensus Council Inc.:
The Council contributes a tradition and a model for
consensus-building. In this process, we are committed to the following
values:
We seek cooperative resolution of issues, clearly articulated by leaders, and tested by broad citizen conversation.
We actively involve persons from diverse viewpoints, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, ages, life experience, and geographical areas of the state to strengthen the collegial wisdom of the process.
We value innovation, welcome new ideas and encourage adaptability to new opportunities, while affirming the wisdom of our tradition.
We value the graces of hospitality to encourage conversation and active listening in developing relationships among participants in the consensus-building process.
We are committed to fundamental fairness and honesty in providing neutral services to leaders in the consensus-building processes.
We support leadership and citizenship. We seek to ensure citizen participation in the process of building and implementing public policy. We seek to support the role of leaders in their institutional memory, and in their ability to see, hear, and interpret the views of citizens on issues of importance to public life.
We value the spectrum of political views and are nonpartisan in our services.
Fargo, ND.
Bruce is a Trust Officer and Public Relations person at State Banks in Fargo. He is the former Interim Director at North Dakota Workforce Safety and Insurance. He was also the Mayor of Fargo from 1994-2006. His current activities include serving on the Board of Directors of State Bank and Trust, Tri-College University, Red River Zoo, INREIT Investment Trust and the North Dakota Economic Development Foundation.
Dennis HillBismarck, ND.
Dennis is the Executive Vice-President and General Manager of the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives. Through his work, he oversees a statewide trade association that provides government relations, communications, safety, professional development and economic development services to the state’s electric cooperative industry.
Christine HoganBismarck, ND.
Christine
is the former Executive Director of the State Bar
Association of North Dakota and a Committee Chair of the North Dakota
Judicial system. She
is a spokesperson for the legal community.
Betty KeeganRolla, ND.
Betty is the former Director of Rolette County Social Services where she served 20 of her 49 years as the director. She also recently served for six years as President of AARP North Dakota. She has deep understanding of tribal interests along with public health and human needs.
David L. KemnitzMandan, ND.
David
is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the
statewide American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations
(AFL/CIO).
He is the leading spokesperson for labor interests in
North Dakota.
Andrew MaragosSecretary/Treasurer, Minot, ND.
Andrew is a businessman and Vietnam veteran, who is involved in family business pursuits. He is also a former State Legislator, having served in the ND House of Representatives from 1993-2005.
Jerry L. NagelVice-Chair,
Lake Park, MN.
Jerry is President of Northern Great Plains, Inc., a research and demonstration organization working to maximize the economic potential of rural communities; and co-convener of the Meadowlark Institute, a transformational leadership training and development collaborative.
Senator Carolyn NelsonCarolyn is the Assistant Senate Minority Leader and member of the Senate Judiciary and Government and Veterans Affairs Committees. She is a senior lecturer emeritus of mathematics at North Dakota State University.
Barry VickreyChair,
Vermillion, SD.
Barry is the Dean of the School of
Law at the University of South Dakota. Prior to his current position,
Barry was the Associate
Dean of the School of Law at the University of North
Dakota. He is involved in education and natural resource issues.
Executive Director. Rose has experience in process design, facilitation, programming, implementation, legislative initiatives, community conversations, program evaluation, and presentations. She received a degree in social and behavioral sciences from the University of Mary.
Rose has past experiences as the Executive Director of the Mental Health Association in North Dakota where she received the Mental Health Services Award from the North Dakota Psychiatric Society and the Welcome Back Award from the Eli Lilly Company. She also worked, for 17 years, with the North Dakota Department of Human Services. She is a graduate of the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber Leadership program, is a past Chair of the Bismarck Human Relations Committee, serves on the Department of Human Services Institutional Review Board along with serving on many governing and policy boards statewide and regionally. Rose is a founding member and currently serves as Vice-Chair of the North Dakota Womens Network.
Contact: 701-224-0588 x 101
rstoller@agree.org
Shelly DillingerExecutive Assistant. Shelly brings experience in state government, financial operations, human resources, education, documentation, coordination, meeting logistics and computer skills. She has experience in public, private, and non-profit business operations and holds a Associates degree from Bismarck State College
Shelly has worked with the Mental Health Association as the Marketing Manager and Office Manager, as an Audit Technician for the Office of Attorney General and as the Office Manager for a private contracting company and has served as a past board member of the Mental Health Association in North Dakota.
Contact: 701-224-0588 x 100
shelly@agree.org
Dick GrossDeputy Director and Legal Counsel. Dick brings experience in facilitation and strategic planning, process design and implementation at all levels in the public and private sectors. He holds degrees from Marquette University and the University of North Dakota School of Law and has taken post-graduate courses at the John F. Kennedy School at Harvard University and the Duke University Governors Center, and he has been an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center.
Dick served in state government as attorney to the legislature, Director of the Crime Victims Reparations office, General Counsel to the Workers Compensation Bureau, Chief Counsel to the Tax Department and Legal Counsel to the Governor. Following his years in state government, Dick headed the Council of Governors Policy Advisors, an organization of the top four policy advisors appointed by each Governor.
Contact: 701-224-0588 x 102
dgross@agree.org
Paul GriffinSenior Program Director. Paul has experience in program development, service delivery, management and planning in the public and private sectors. He holds a bachelors degree in psychology from Jamestown College and a Masters degree in education/counseling from North Dakota State University.
Paul has worked with Lutheran Social Services where he was the program and social service director at the Svee Rehabilitation Home, and with Catholic Family Services, where he was first the supervisor of guardianship services and later the Executive Director. Most recently he was the operations manager at Freedom Resource Center for Independent Living, Inc. He has served on many boards, task forces and working groups that have addressed a wide variety of public policy issues. He is currently the Board president of Partners, Inc. and a past president of the Guardianship Association of North Dakota.
Contact: 701-224-0588 x 106
paulg@agree.org
The staff is structured to work as a team to
accomplish Council goals. A high value is placed on collegiality and
communication. All staff colleagues have gifts and talents that can be
effectively contributed and enhanced in this effort as part of a
cooperative, energetic environment.
| The Consensus Council is an equal opportunity employer and values all applications. While there are no current employment opportunities or internship openings, we are excited to receive applications from interested individuals and discuss future opportunities. |