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I serve as Faculty Ombudsperson at my university. The last couple of Fall semesters I had four cases each. This term I had ten cases.

That's an increase; for context this past Spring I had five cases.  

Much of my business has to do with interpersonal conflicts, so it is not surprising that the stress of the pandemic would exacerbate such conflicts. It's possible that during the previous two semesters the use of video software for teaching and other forms of interaction may have dampened the conflicts and/or the likelihood of folk approaching me. I am in the third year of a three-year term; it is also possible that folk are becoming more aware of my existence in this role.

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