Barbara Lynette Jones

Barbara Lynette Jones

Barbara L. Jones, lifelong Detroiter and community activist, organizer, restorative justice practitioner and youth-violence prevention advocate is the community dispute resolution specialist and faculty instructor for the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies Program at Wayne State University. Barbara serves as program director for the Ralph Bunche Summer Institute, a program that delivers expertise training in a higher learning academic setting that provides high school youth development services that focus on civic engagement, conflict resolution intervention, violence prevention, bullying, diversity, civil rights, race relations, negotiation, leadership, international affairs, diplomacy, social justice and crucial life skills with the overarching theme and tools of how to teach students to individually and collectively foster peace within their own schools and communities.

Barbara has over 22 years of broadcast media advertising and marketing experience. She has worked for media organizations including Continental Cable, Media One, AT&T, Comcast, Clear Channel and WDET Detroit Public Radio. Her teaching experience also includes Career Services Advisor and Instructor for Specs Howard School of Media Arts and Adjunct Faculty with Wayne County Community College District.

In addition, Barbara currently serves as the vice president and grievance officer for Wayne State University Union Part Time Faculty (UPTF) Local 477 and is also a negotiation and bargaining team member.

Barbara mentors and advocates for the youth and students at WSU as well as scores of youth in Detroit and in the metro Detroit area in a variety of capacities in schools and organizations such as:

• Ralph Bunche Summer Institute, Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, Wayne State University
• Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA)
• Detroit Rotary High Schools Interact Club Osborn MST High School
• Damon J. Keith Youth Civil Rights Conference, Wayne State University
• East Side Conflict Resolution (ESCRO.US)
• Detroit Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, City of Detroit
• WSU Giant Step Teen Conference
• Covenant House of Detroit
• Visions of Peace Youth Art Exhibition
• International Cities of Peace Youth Peace Educator Ixtapa, Zihuatanejo, Gurrero, Mexico
• Union of Part Time Faculty (UPTF) Local 477 WSU Bargaining Committee Member (2016-present)
• Caretaker - to the late Grace Lee Boggs (2011-2015)
• Housing Coordinator - for The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center to Nurture Community Leadership, The Boggs Center (2011-2020)

Research interest(s)/area of expertise

Barbara’s expertise and training with clients and the community focuses on the following:

• Diversity, equity and inclusion training and facilitation
• Personal/professional conflict resolution
• Workplace disputes
• Specialized youth violence reduction strategies
• Community and neighborhood safety and communication strateegies
• Violence reduction straategies
• Restorative justice and restorative practices
• Community building strategies
• Social justice
• Diffusing conflict
• Peer mediation
• Difficult conversations and crucial conversations
• Getting to “yes” and not be afraid of “no” (negotiation)
• Conflict with customers
• Leadership
• Managing peacefully
• Communication skill building (active listening, interpersonal, intergroup and intrapersonal, intragroup communication and emotional conflict strategies)
• Workplace violence
• Anger management
• Train the trainer in alternative dispute resolution
• Public policy disputes
• Cultural sensitivity and diversity training

Education

• Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications, Rochester College
• Master of Arts in Conflict/Dispute Resolution, Wayne State University
• Graduate Certificate in Peace and Security Studies, Wayne State University

News mentions

• A night for civility at Henry Ford College
• How WSU conflict resolution strategist Barbara Jones works to end neighborhood violence while grappling with her own grief
• Video of Floyd killing can traumatize communities, victims of violence

Selected publications

• Jones, B. L. (2022). Faces of the aftermath of visible & invisible violence & loss: Radical resiliency of justice & healing: Daedalus, 151(1), 97–106. doi.org/10.1162/daed_a_01891, amacad.org/publication/faces-aftermath-visible-invisible-violence-loss-radical-resiliency-justice-healing
• Trujillo, M. & Jones, B. L. (2022). Transformative Pedagogies. S.Y. Bowland; H.Batts; B. Roy, M. Trujillo (Eds.), Beyond equity and inclusion in conflict resolution: Recentering the profession (“pp”. 222-243). Rowman & Littlefield, rowman.com/ISBN/9781538164372/Beyond-Equity-and-Inclusion-in-Conflict-Resolution-Recentering-the-Profession

Courses taught by Barbara Lynette Jones

Fall Term 2023

• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PCS5000 - Dispute Resolution
• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PSY5710 - Dispute Resolution
• PS5890 - Dispute Resolution
• CRJ5994 - Dispute Resolution

Spring-Summer Term 2023

• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies

Winter Term 2023

• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies

Fall Term 2022

• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies

Spring-Summer Term 2022

• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies

Winter Term 2022

• PCS2010 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• PS2830 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies
• HIS2520 - Topics in Peace and Conflict Studies