Straus Alternative Dispute Resolution and Social Entrepreneurship Students Present Final Business Pitches Spring 2025

The ADR and Social Entrepreneurship course, a unique class offered only by the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine Caruso Law, successfully ran for a second time at the law school. The course invites students to explore the intersection of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and Social Entrepreneurship. Students apply core principles of conflict resolution, negotiation, mediation, and dispute system design to address pressing social challenges. Over the semester, they develop social business models by strengthening leadership skills, researching social conflicts, collecting data through feedback and evaluation, and ultimately pitching their models for potential funding.

On April 15 and 22, 2025, seven student groups presented their ADR and Social Entrepreneurship pitches in front of a panel of experts. The jury of judges was composed of experts from the JAMS Foundation, the Superior Court Appellate Panel, the Western Justice Center, and Pepperdine University's Graziadio Business School, Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and Seaver College.

The students presented the following projects:

• Future Peace Builders (Griffee Mapps, Joe Deluzio, Jett Landis)
  Empowers youth in post-conflict communities by integrating mental health curriculum into peace education programs. This will enhance mental health literacy, fostering resilience and promoting sustainable peace.
• Divided by United (Cate Cartier, Jane Landeros, Viviana Hernandez)
  To move from a divided nation back to a united nation through education, advocacy, and searching for common ground, addressing misunderstanding with empathy, compassion, and mediation. We also frequently say, " Bringing the “united” back to the United States of America”.
• Harmonia (Delaney Dickey, Nikky Cherukuthota, Brandon Katz)
  Ensuring trust, clarity, and harmony through every stage of the surrogacy journey.
• Redemptive Echo (Basma El Ajou, Nikolus Gashi, Rhea Kumar)
  Empowers individuals facing homelessness and barriers to employment by amplifying their stories, building connections, and creating pathways to reintegration into society.
• Borderless Hands (Deborah Peterson, Darlene Davis, Kuo-Yu Pao (James))
  To empower immigrants through dispute resolution, advocacy, and cultural exchange.
• International Mediation Alliance (Cung Ngaih Lun, Dernard Newell, Vioerl Rabei, Ash, Christopher)
  To empower individuals, communities, and organizations by providing effective mediation training involving emotional intelligence to resolve conflicts and build bridges.
• California Wildfire Mediation Services (Harmeeth Nijjar, Belle Carleton, Eleanor Mashkovich)
  We aim to support California wildfire victims by solving disputes more quickly and effectively than through litigation 

All the pitches reflected the core values of the class, using ADR techniques to bring about a meaningful impact in society. 

On April 15, the jury of judges was comprised of Thomas Stipanowich, Professor of Law at the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, William H. Webster Chair in Dispute Resolution, and President and CEO of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR Institute); David Brandon, Managing Director at the JAMS Foundation and recipient of the Community Boards’ Raymond Shonholtz Visionary Peacemaker Award; Professor Amy Wood, Program Manager for the Most Fundable Companies at Pepperdine Graziadio Business School and Vice President of the MartinWood Group, LLC; and Dr. Zarik J. Boghossian, Adjunct Professor at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership, MBA from Pepperdine University, angel investor with the Science and Technology Angels Network, Co-Founder & CTO of Wovenmedia, and Founder & Chairman of Ridemates Group, Inc. Their combined expertise offered students deep insights into conflict resolution, entrepreneurship, and innovation.

On April 22, the jury included Honorable Linda L. Miller (Ret.), who served for 30 years as a judge in Orange County and two years on the Superior Court Appellate Panel, now mediator and arbitrator with JAMS Foundation, and a member of the Judicial Advisory Board and Peer Court Advisory Committee with the Constitutional Rights Foundation Orange County, as well as the William P. Gray Legion Lex American Inn of Court; Dr. Howard Jean-Denis, Assistant Professor of Strategic Management at Seaver College and recipient of the 2012 Innocentive Entrepreneurial Venture Capital Award presented by the Obama Administration, Pfizer, and the Environmental Defense Fund; William Nix, Adjunct Professor at the Caruso School of Law, Chairman/CEO of Creative Projects Group, and Partner at LOHAS Advisors and Capitals, with expertise in impact investment and creative industries; and Shaune Gatlin, Director of Conflict Resolution Education Programs at the WJC, who ran the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s peer mediation program for over 20 years. Together, this distinguished panel underscored the real-world relevance and societal value of ADR.

These sessions not only gave students a platform to present their ventures but also provided invaluable mentorship and feedback from interdisciplinary experts. As the world faces mounting social and environmental challenges, the integration of ADR and social entrepreneurship offers a path for meaningful, sustainable change. This course represents not just a forward-thinking educational experience but a call to action for future mediators to lead systemic transformation. Dr. Helen Winter recently published an article on this class in the latest Teaching Issue of the Saint Louis University Law Journal (Vol. 69, Issue 3).