About the Program

From left, Founding Director and Professor Emeritus of Sociology Louis Kriesberg (1986-1994),
Professor of Anthropology Robert Rubinstein (1994-2005),
Director of PARCC and Associate Director of Executive Education Catherine Gerard (2005-Present), and
Distinguished Professor of Public Administration and former Co-Director of PARCC Rosemary O'Leary (2005-2009).

PARCC was established in 1986 with a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Its founding director was Professor Emeritus Louis Kriesberg, who continues to make important intellectual contributions to PARCC and to the field of conflict resolution. Professor Robert A. Rubinstein was director from 1994-2005. Under Robert’s leadership, PARCC expanded both its domestic and international reputation in the field of conflict resolution. In July 2005, Rosemary O'Leary and Catherine Gerard became Co-Directors of the PARCC program and in 2009 Catherine Gerard became the Director.

Catherine Gerard
PARCC Director
Associate Director, Executive Education Programs
M.A., University of Toronto
M.P.A., Rockefeller College

Catherine M. Gerard serves as Associate Director of Executive Education Programs and Director of the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration (PARCC) at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. In that role, she manages the Executive Master of Public Administration degree program, serves as graduate course professor for the Department of Public Administration, and designs and delivers executive education programs for domestic and international customers.

Before joining Syracuse, she was Assistant Director for the New York State Governor’s Office of Employee Relations where she led a consulting and training organization devoted to statewide training and organizational effectiveness. Throughout her State government career, she specialized in assisting leaders with organizational change and in the design and development of training programs. In addition, Ms. Gerard was a key architect of the State’s total quality management program and served as adjunct faculty member at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs at SUNY Albany.

Ms. Gerard teaches leadership for managers at many levels. Her graduate course at the Maxwell School is targeted for mid-careers managers from public and nonprofit organizations in the United States and abroad. She recently conducted leadership training for Senior Executives in the Department of Defense and New York State government. She co-developed and delivered a workshop, entitled, “Leadership and Learning,” for almost 8,000 managers in federal and New York State agencies. A recent project was leadership development for school superintendents and Board presidents through the Central New York School Boards Association.

Ms. Gerard has consulted with public and non-profit organizations in the areas of strategic planning, leadership/management, organizational change, team-building and conflict resolution, labor-management partnerships, and total quality management.

Her current government customers include the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the New York State Department of Health. Her most recent public sector projects include curriculum development of a multi-day leadership program and a year-long Certificate Program in Advanced Public Management. Selected strategic planning clients include Arise and Child and Family Services, Onondaga Citizen’s League, Rape Crisis Center, Fabius-Pompey School District, Jordan-Elbridge Central School District, the City of Syracuse Board of Education, and Onondaga Central School District. She recently completed a major facilitation project for the Salvation Army.

Administrative Assistant: Responsibilities include program budgets, payroll, reimbursements, travel and speaker arrangements, grant writing, grant administration, coordinating the Summer Institute for Creative Conflict Resolution, assisting PARCC co-directors with the day-to-day administration of the Institute, and assisting PARCC faculty with various research and course related activities.

Records and Publications Coordinator: Responsibilities include keeping PARCC records, running the certificate of advanced study in conflict resolution program, advising students in the certificate program, serving as webmaster for PARCC, and crafting the institute's annual report. In addition, she assists the PARCC Director with the day-to-day administration of the institute, and assists PARCC faculty with various research and course related tasks. Contact Debbie Toole at: datoole@syr.edu