Alison Nygard joins Grand River Solutions with nearly ten years of experience in higher education. Alison served as the Associate Director of Equal Opportunity at her previous University in the California State University (CSU) system. She fulfilled the functions of both Deputy Title IX Coordinator and Deputy Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation (DHR) Administrator for her campus, conducting hundreds of investigations and inquiries along the way.

In addition to having appeared as the investigator witness in Title IX hearings under the May 2020 Final Title IX Rule, Alison also volunteered her time serving as a hearing officer for Student Conduct cases under Title V (CA) where no conflict of interest existed. In cooperation with the Student Conduct Director at her former institution, she also trained campus administrators in serving as neutral hearing officers.

Alison is accustomed to providing calm and efficient consultations in response to complex issues as well as to working with diverse groups of staff, faculty, students, administrators, and even third parties in an ever changing legal landscape. She played a vital role in organizing her former campus’s training and outreach efforts. She has presented trainings to campus communities both on compliance with University policies and on effective and trauma-informed response to reported incidents, particularly those of dating violence, stalking, and sexual violence.

Alison takes seriously the charge of serving as a neutral arbitrator and aims to build trust in any adjudication process. While not everyone will agree with outcome on any given case, she can assure all parties and witnesses that the statements and evidence they provide will be reviewed fairly and in an unbiased manner.

Alison earned her Bachelor’s Degree from Rice University and her Juris Doctorate from the University of California, Davis – King Hall.