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Office Staff

Thomas Griffin

Campus Ombudsperson/Director of Ombuds Services

Ombudsperson, UCLA Health and Health Sciences

For the past 18 years Thomas Griffin has helped thousands of professionals and students discover meaning and fulfillment in the midst of their conflict at UCLA. After serving the general campus, he was named Ombudsperson for UCLA Health and Health Sciences, and now Campus Ombudsperson and Director of Ombuds Services.

In the past he has held the role of Employee Relations Director at Warner Bros. Entertainment, mediated wetland usage amongst environmental advocacy groups, and advocated for housing justice at Los Angeles’ Inner City Law Center. He has provided training to individuals from around the world, including teenagers in the Pakistan Evolution - Igniting Potential movement, nurses at Kaiser Permanente, and Fulbright scholars from the Middle and Far East in collaboration with the U.S. Department of State.

After becoming first in the University of Colorado system to successfully quadruple major, Thomas earned Juris Doctor and Master of Dispute Resolution degrees from Pepperdine University and the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. Thomas holds a certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and is a fellow of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution.

Natalie Landau Gibson


Ombudsperson

Natalie Landau Gibson is an Ombudsperson for the General Campus at the University of California, Los Angeles. With a particular interest in cross-cultural and interpersonal experiences, she enjoys working with people in conflict to create positive outcomes, and appreciates working with members of the UCLA community.

Natalie has been at UCLA for almost 8 years, and provides Ombuds services including facilitations, workshops, and trainings, to the campus community as well as at conferences in the US and abroad. Prior to joining the Office of Ombuds Services at UCLA, Natalie worked as a Junior Associate Ombudsman in the Office of the Ombudsman at the United States Department of State in Washington, D.C.

Natalie holds a BA in Socio-Cultural Anthropology from Boston University, and an MA in Ethics, Peace, and Global Affairs, with concentrations in Human Rights, Social Justice, Conflict Transformation & Peacebuilding, from The American University School of International Service in Washington, D.C. Natalie is a California state-certified mediator and holds professional certificates in Conflict Management Coaching: The CINGERGY Model; and, Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University. She is a member of the International Ombudsman Association (IOA).

Ariella Morrison


Ombudsperson

Ariella Morrison is an Ombudsperson for the General Campus with 10 years of experience supporting individuals, teams, and organizations through challenging situations. A graduate of the University of Michigan and Wayne State University Law School, Ariella also has training in mediation, conflict resolution, and coaching.

Before joining UCLA, Ariella worked as a Program Director at OneJustice, where she provided nonprofit management consulting, workshop facilitation, leadership development programming, and strategic planning support to legal aid professionals. In addition, Ariella has served as a Panel Mediator with the Riverside Superior Court and a Restorative Justice Mediator with Centinela Youth Services.

Ariella completed the International Ombuds Association’s Foundations of the Organizational Ombuds Course in 2022. She has trained with Rockwood Leadership Institute’s Art of Leadership program and Liberty Hill Foundation’s Commissions Program for Emerging Leaders. Her approach to working with visitors is collaborative, culturally sensitive, creative, and compassionate.

Disclaimer: Please Remember

By only telling a staff member of the Office of Ombuds Services about your situation, you have not formally notified any University official of your conflict, dispute or complaint. In order for the University to take action to remedy your conflict, dispute or complaint, you must share it with someone who represents the University. The staff members in the Office of Ombuds Services do not represent the University and therefore cannot receive formal complaints.

Meeting with an ombudsperson does not affect your ability to pursue formal complaints. An ombudsperson can help you find the appropriate person to speak to in order to request that the University take some action, if that is what you want. Important rights may be affected by the actual date when formal action is initiated and/or when UCLA is informed of allegedly wrongful behavior, and in some situations, you may wish to consult with an attorney regarding your rights.

The Office of Ombuds Services will resist being called to testify as a witness in any formal or legal proceedings to reveal confidential communications. The office also does not maintain any permanent records of individual matters.