Assessor Profiles

An original founder of the BC Network for Compassionate Communication in British Columbia, Canada, Penny has offered trainings in the Nonviolent Communication process to people, organizations and corporate and government groups in North America since 1999. She has offered her services as a CNVC assessor since 2005. She writes, “The practice of NVC is, in my experience, the development of an ongoing, evolving, life-long consciousness of compassionate interplay and outreach in which personal authenticity plays a key role. For without deep personal authenticity, ongoing inner awareness and accountability, empathic presence for others is certainly limited. How can I reach out to others if I am unwilling to reach into myself, unwilling to honour and experience this place of inner knowingness and intuition where life just somehow fits?” Penny views the assessor/certification candidate relationship as a mutual collaboration to support the evolution of NVC consciousness in the world. Her web site is www.pennywassman.ca

We have known each other for several years. We all learned from Beate Ronnefeldt, among others. Also, we had met at various occasions, for example at the yearly held trainer-meetings in Munich and Niederkaufungen.
In our work, we are connected in particular by our process-oriented approach, focusing on what matters for the participants and on group processes.

From the beginning we cared for fostering a process to certification which gives priority to the process of personal development and growth, enabled by the certification path we three experienced as a huge enrichment.

Therefore we took time during our first year as assessors to concretize this process with the support of other trainers and to describe it (more information at: http://www.gewaltfrei-niederkaufungen.de/?trainerzertifizierung).
We are thrilled by the concept of group assessments and are in the act of developing it further by integrating other NVC trainers, for example, trainers mentoring our candidates. We offer mentoring- and assessment-days bi-annual to complete group assessments or to give our candidates the opportunity to experience us, other candidates and the procedure of a group assessment, and to get feedback and stimulations.

In our accompaniment for our candidates the mentoring by other NVC trainers or by ourselves plays an important role. For that, we are working together with some other German-speaking trainers. By this, we try to realize our vision of a rich NVC trainer network. Moreover, to foster an enriching culture of learning, of giving and receiving feedback and of networking, we encourage our candidates to build groups with other NVC persons to intervision and accompany each other.

We have been working together since Winter 2009. We met during the Assessor’s Training in Stuttgart with Marshall in Summer 2008. There we developed, together with all participants, the first ideas about group assessments and mentoring as one effective strategy to support each other and to realize power with. We understand our work as our contribution to social change. We feel connected with the worldwide trainer group and enjoy working together in the Education Service Team.

Clinical psychologist and hippotherapeute since 1979, Vinciane works in the area of individual counseling and group inspired by Rogerian approach. Certified trainer in Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg in 1996, Vinciane is involved in psychiatric settings and personal assistance.

The accompaniment that sets Vinciane's practice, to help people get closer to their "being in the making", is based on fundamental values such as confidence in life, the power to choose, the strength of love, the power of intention and the art of presence. Vinciane has collaborated on many international and intercontinental projects with CNV since 1995 - in Belgium, France, Switzerland, Burundi, Quebec. She loves working with several projects and joined the French certification team in 2013.

We have been working together since Winter 2009. We met during the Assessor’s Training in Stuttgart with Marshall in Summer 2008. There we developed, together with all participants, the first ideas about group assessments and mentoring as one effective strategy to support each other and to realize power with. We understand our work as our contribution to social change. We feel connected with the worldwide trainer group and enjoy working together in the Education Service Team.

All three of us are self-employed and have our own business. We have different fields we are working in beside our work as trainers in NVC: Rita is working in companies as a consultant, Doris is a counsellor and Edith is working as an undertaker.

We speak German and English. Candidates from other countries are heartily welcome. We will offer once a year a group assessment in German and English. For more information please contact one of us.

We have known each other for several years. We all learned from Beate Ronnefeldt, among others. Also, we had met at various occasions, for example at the yearly held trainer-meetings in Munich and Niederkaufungen.
In our work, we are connected in particular by our process-oriented approach, focusing on what matters for the participants and on group processes.

From the beginning we cared for fostering a process to certification which gives priority to the process of personal development and growth, enabled by the certification path we three experienced as a huge enrichment.

Therefore we took time during our first year as assessors to concretize this process with the support of other trainers and to describe it (more information at: http://www.gewaltfrei-niederkaufungen.de/?trainerzertifizierung).
We are thrilled by the concept of group assessments and are in the act of developing it further by integrating other NVC trainers, for example, trainers mentoring our candidates. We offer mentoring- and assessment-days bi-annual to complete group assessments or to give our candidates the opportunity to experience us, other candidates and the procedure of a group assessment, and to get feedback and stimulations.

In our accompaniment for our candidates the mentoring by other NVC trainers or by ourselves plays an important role. For that, we are working together with some other German-speaking trainers. By this, we try to realize our vision of a rich NVC trainer network. Moreover, to foster an enriching culture of learning, of giving and receiving feedback and of networking, we encourage our candidates to build groups with other NVC persons to inter-vision and accompany each other.

Gina Cenciose has been practicing and learning Nonviolence and healing in different forms for over 30 years. She has had a private practice incorporating different healing modalities for 15 years. She has specialized in sharing Nonviolent Communication, as her profession, sharing NVC in prisons, faith communities, non profits, and in 7 yearly 17-day programs she offers with others to incorporate NVC practices and principles into their lives. She has co led and co created 22 such programs of 1-3 year length., some with themes such as NVC and Social Change, NVC and Transformation of Consciousness, etc. She has been training trainers in NVC  in 3 year long programs, and in Scott peck's method of Community building and has incorporated Dominic Barter’s Restorative Circles  process into her life and her work. She is an Inner Relationship Focusing facilitator as well, and combines Inquiry and IR focusing in some of her programs. Gina speaks French and English. Her web site is www.embodyingempathy.com

Robert Bouchard is Francophone and has always lived in Quebec (Canada). Lawyer, professional coach, mediator, trainer and adviser on team building and conflict resolution, he studied music, law, communication and management. He has worked as a mediator, trainer and consultant since 1977. For over twenty years, he has been interested in the development of consciousness in humans and maximizing the potential of individual and collective wisdom. He takes a great interest in communication within organizations, leadership as well as the impact of leaders. He is invited to speak in many public and private organizations. He is a trainer at Université Laval’s Continuing Education where his services are requested for sessions in Communication, Conflict Management and Business Administration. He is president and co-founder of Groupe Conscientia inc. He has been practicing NVC since 1999 and has been a certified trainer since 2004. He presents NVC not as a technique, an instrument or a tool, but rather as an approach to "sharpen" consciousness that precedes, accompanies and follows all communication. An approach that nurtures the ability to observe what happens inside of us, before, during and after the communication so that we can offer a caring presence to ourselves as well as to the other. Through NVC, he shares the importance of being rooted in the present to appreciate our life and discover, in ourselves and in the other, the vast reservoir of patience, kindness and intelligence that dwells within us. An experience that gives a taste of Oneness. Robert is a marathon runner.

Marcelle Bélanger is Francophone and has always lived in Quebec (Canada). She is a trainer, mediator, facilitator and professional coach. Her life experience as a professional athlete (trapeze) and as a therapist, as a coach in accompanying personal growth taught her the utmost importance of presence and kindness in the action. She has developed a keen interest in the role of intention in the role of intention in the development of human consciousness. She has been practicing NVC since 2001 and has been a certified trainer since 2004. She shares the approach in various NVC full-time programs both in Quebec and Europe. She acts as a trainer and speaker in many public and private organizations. Holding a degree in Special Care Counseling, she is a mediator and trainer in conflict management and Nonviolent Communication for Groupe Conscientia inc. as well as at Université Laval’s Continuing Education where her services are requested for sessions in Conflict Management and Nonviolent Communication. She is co-founder of Groupe Conscientia inc. Marcelle is a marathon runner.

Thera Balvers is a certified trainer and assessor with CNVC. She is also member of the English speaking European Assessor Team (E-SEAT. Thera has her own practice and training organisation as a Psychotherapist, NVC trainer, Mediator, Coach, Hypnotherapist, Simontontherapist (cancer treatment) and Master in Flower Art. Thera has a lot of knowledge and experience in personal growth and development. She has more than 30 years of experience in giving trainings in various subjects and target groups (organizations, welfare sector, medical sector) Humour is important in her life and she likes to balance between depth and lightness in her work. The experiences and wisdom from the collegue assessors is a great source of inspiration and growth for her. In turn she loves to inspire and support people on their certification path towards sharing NVC in the world. The priority for Thera, in her role as an assessor, will be focused to support candidates from the Dutch speaking community. More information on www.therabalvers.nl

We have known each other for several years. We all learned from Beate Ronnefeldt, among others. Also, we had met at various occasions, for example at the yearly held trainer-meetings in Munich and Niederkaufungen.
In our work, we are connected in particular by our process-oriented approach, focusing on what matters for the participants and on group processes.

From the beginning we cared for fostering a process to certification which gives priority to the process of personal development and growth, enabled by the certification path we three experienced as a huge enrichment.

Therefore we took time during our first year as assessors to concretize this process with the support of other trainers and to describe it (more information at: http://www.gewaltfrei-niederkaufungen.de/?trainerzertifizierung).
We are thrilled by the concept of group assessments and are in the act of developing it further by integrating other NVC trainers, for example, trainers mentoring our candidates. We offer mentoring- and assessment days bi-annual to complete group assessments or to give our candidates the opportunity to experience us, other candidates and the procedure of a group assessment, and to get feedback and stimulation.

In our accompaniment for our candidates the mentoring by other NVC trainers or by ourselves plays an important role. For that, we are working together with some other German-speaking trainers. By this, we try to realize our vision of a rich NVC trainer network. Moreover, to foster an enriching culture of learning, of giving and receiving feedback and of networking, we encourage our candidates to build groups with other NVC persons to inter-vision and accompany each other.

 We have been working together since Winter 2009. We met during the Assessor’s Training in Stuttgart with Marshall in Summer 2008. There we developed, together with all participants, the first ideas about group assessments and mentoring as one effective strategy to support each other and to realize power with. We understand our work as our contribution to social change. We feel connected with the worldwide trainer group and enjoy working together in the Education Service Team.

All three of us are self-employed and have our own business. We have different fields we are working in beside our work as trainers in NVC: Rita is working in companies as a consultant, Doris is a counsellor and Edith is working as an undertaker.

We speak German and English. Candidates from other countries are heartily welcome. We will offer once a year a group assessment in German and English. For more information please contact one of us.

Cate Crombie is based in Brisbane, Australia and has more than 30 years experience in facilitating communication skills courses and workshops. To increase her knowledge of teaching, in 1998, Cate completed a bachelor’s degree in Adult and Vocational Education with a double major in Human Resource Training. During Gina’s NVC foundation training and mediation training in Australia in 2000, Cate was inspired to become an NVC trainer. Gina soon became her valued mentor and friend.

Sylvia Haskvitz lives in Tucson, Arizona, USA and has been a certified trainer since 1989 and one of the original 20 certified trainers. She completed her masters degree in Speech and Communication studies with a focus on interpersonal and intercultural communication. As a communication consultant, coach and trainer, she has brought NVC consciousness to workplaces across the US, coached couples, families and individuals and has worked on many diverse projects including co-facilitating a 9 day NVC training in Israel/Palestine in 2011. She began the first year course in Nonviolent Communication in 1998, recognizing the need for regular practice in community. She co-created the group Compassionate Communication for the Jewish Soul as a way to support healing in the Jewish community. She was the co-founder of CALF (Candidates/Community Active Learning Forum) - an online and in person learning community for NVC practitioners and CNVC Certification Candidates. As a nutritionist, she wrote Eat by Choice, Not by Habit, an NVC application to our relationship with food and our bodies. It is because of her deep desire to support the integrity of the NVC process and its sustainability that she has taken on this role of assessor. Her website is nvccalf.com and nvcarizona.org.

My main focus is NVC with parents, teachers and everybody living and working with children. I am an NVC trainer since 2005, an assessor for the CNVC certification process, mediator and coach. i am co-founding member of the German-speaking network, D-A-CH, and member of the Munich network. I developed the “Giraffentraum” programme with Gundi, my wife, which introduces NVC in kindergartens and schools. This programme runs now in countries all over the world. In addition, I have experiences of NVC family camps in Germany, Austria and the USA. my passion is to experience NVC off the beaten track -away from the limitations of words and languages. I focuse on intuition, empathic presence, body language and theater technics. I love to play and enjoy miracles. I live with my family near Munich, Germany.

I first heard about NVC in the summer of 2003. By the end of February 2004 I had spent 10 days with Marshall at the top of a mountain in Switzerland and I determined in myself to be like one of those NVC Trainers he was working with. I loved the ease of connection between them all, the fun and the depth- a delicious combination for me. I immediately found the NVC community in the UK and spent as much time as possible learning with them and other trainers around Europe and also the US. I became a Certified Trainer in 2006 and have since that time have shared NVC both publicly and within my role as an Educational Psychologist. I moved into working with the English Speaking European Assessor Team in the summer of 2015 and found a space to learn, live and share NVC with integrity and in collaboration. I love to support people to grow and develop their skills as practitioners, trainers and human beings doing their best.

Towe Widstrand lives in Sweden and has more than 20 years experience of sharing NVC in various settings, both public groups and in organizations. Towe has also been a board member for CNVC for several years and has served as a trainer in many IITs. Towe has offered courses in more than 20 countries over the years and was one of the founders of the NVC-Training Institute. She has served as an assessor since the process was established and has done many assessments in various places. Now Towe is serving the English-speaking part of Europe.

Gina Lawrie is based in Dorset, UK and has been a certified trainer with CNVC since 1997, integrating NVC into her practice as an independent consultant, trainer, and coach in the field of personal and organizational development. Gina has been as assessor since 2004 and loves the challenge of assessment in the partnership paradigm. Gina has traveled extensively with her NVC work and introduced the process in Australia, New Zealand where she has just handed over the assessor role to Cate Crombie. Gina is well known in the NVC community for her co-creation of the NVC Dance Floors and as an associate trainer with the NVC Training Institute.

Deborah is delighted to join the English-speaking European team since May 2014 after being a year and half in the team as Assessor in training. She really enjoys working in the team as she is experiencing partnership relationship and at the same time has respect for the "elders" who have been in this role for many years.  She has chosen this way  of contributing to  NVC consciousness/integrity after being a certified trainer for 10 years. She is based in Vienna so has the focus on supporting eastern european candidates. She cofounded a network in Austria"Gewaltfreie Kommunikation Austria" in 2003 where now over a hundred memebers get to have the opportunity of learning, growing and contributing to the NVC consciousness.  Deborah has worked over the years internationally and locally with a variety of NVC trainers and has enjoyed working side by side with others.  She brings in her lightness,humour and joy to others and has a big heart for others to evolve as individuals to bring their gifts to the world.  When she is not in her role as assessor she is right now training/coaching in the business and social enviroment and passionately offers NVC and Clowning playshops. She enjoys also coaching individuals and couples. She is very grateful to the NVC community of trainers who have supported her in her own personal development. Specially  Marshall who invited  her to assist at an IIT in 2006.Gina Lawrie and Bridget Belgraves, Klaus Kärstadt, Robert Gonzales, Isolde Teschner and mentor Towe Widstrand. Deborah speaks both English and German (with an Austrian accent)She has been in two teams exploring Sociocracy and Restorative Circles over the last 7 years  in  the Austrian NVC network.

Greetings Friends,

I’m happy to join the Educational Services Team as an Assessor. I am grateful for the support of Katherine, Sabine, Kathleen and Karl along this path. A deep bow of gratitude also to Rita, Sylvia, Michael and Alison who have helped me to regain my balance after stumbling along this path for the past three years. (Actually, my path began in 2007. With Rita’s assistance, I became and assessor for the first time just a few days before the certification stop of 2007, so for me it has been a 12 year journey!)

And of course, the deepest bow to our teacher, Marshall.

A major part of my mission since 2007 has been to support the next generation of trainers. Beginning in 2007, Jori, Rodger, and I (Along with the late Kathi Aichner) founded Compassionate Leadership. I became an assessor in training in 2015. If you care about the details of my efforts, I added them below the signature.

My intention can be summed up briefly: To live and radiate interdependence and compassion*.

As an assessor, I relish the opportunity to live this purpose, to the best of my ability with all of you, as well as candidates who enter into a relationship with our organization dreaming of service to our mission.

Every day, I wonder, who needs what right now, and how can I help.

I see one important aspect of my role as an assessor as supporting others in living into their dream of service to our shared mission. I want everyone's dreams to come true!

I see this next step in my service to CNVC as a continuation of my life’s work, to integrate NVC consciousness as fully as possible and to support others with the same goal.

I am inspired and hopeful by what I generally see amongst trainers who have followed me on this path. I deeply long for all of us to remember the purpose and intention of NVC as Marshall defined it. To remind myself, and all of us, I keep it posted on the bottom of most of my emails:

“The primary purpose of Nonviolent Communication is to connect with other people in a way that enables giving to take place: compassionate giving. It’s compassionate in that our giving comes willingly from the heart. We are giving service to others and ourselves –not out of duty or obligation, not out of fear of punishment or hope for a reward, not out of guilt or shame, but for what I consider part of our nature. It’s in our nature to enjoy giving to one another.”  -Marshall B Rosenberg, Ph.D.

I also long for me, and all of us, to continue a never-ending process of self-assessment, using the Matrix, Marshall’s books, the work of other CTs and candidates.

Finally, I long for feedback. I rely on each of you, my community and my team, to be honest with me. I invite you to catch me when I contribute to your wellbeing. Likewise, I long to know if there is anything I do (or don’t do) that contributes to your life being less than wonderful. I intend to keep the lines of communication wide open, in the service of mutual learning.

With warmth and inspiration,

Jim

*This is also the purpose statement of the NFP NVC Community.

Assessment Activities

First contact with Marshall in November 2000

Registered as candidate in 2002

Certified in May 2003 with Robert Gonzales as Assessor

Fall 2006 Became part of Leadership Team (LT) with Marshall and Valentina, focusing on GCC

Spring 2007. Along with Wes Taylor, invited to an assessor by Rita

Spring 2007 Assessment Paused

Spring 2007 Collected and collated feedback for Assessment team, wrote report and made recommendations about how to restart certification

2007 Began working on the Pathways to Liberation: Matrix of Self-Assessment with Jori, Jack Lehman and former CT Jake Gotwals

2011 Published the Matrix with Jake, Jack and Jori.

February 2008:  Started Compassionate Leadership with Rodger Sorrow, Jori Manske, and Kathi Aichner

During Compassionate Leadership period from 2008-2014 coached, mentored or supported the following candidates who became Certified Trainers:

Kathi Aichner

Faye Landey

Bren Hardt

Anne Walton (Participated in Final Assessment)

Yonmi Lee (Participated in Final Assessment)

Diane Diller

Ronnie Hausheer (Participated in Final Assessment 2017 with Katherine)

Carlene Robinson

Cynthia Moe

Jaqueline Muller

James Prieto

Leslie Ritter-Jenkins

Lora Kim Joyner

Roxy Manning (pre-assessment Matrix)

William Pohner

Jack Lehman (extensive mentoring before and after pre-assessment)

Jake Gotwals

Attended Group Final Assessment in Korea (2012) with Gina Lawrie and Katherine Singer

From 2014 to present supported the following with mentoring, coaching or trainer training

Andrea Pro (mentoring before Pre-Assessment)

Go Goto (Extensive mentoring before Pre-Assessment and Assessment)

Yuko Goto (Extensive mentoring before Pre-Assessment and Assessment)

Shigeko Suzuki (Registered, Attended Pre-Assessment/Final Assessment 2018

Haruno Olgaswara (Registered,Attended Pre-Assessment/Final Assessment 2018

Ken Anno (Registered, Attended Pre-Assessment/Final Assessment 2018

Marylyn Muller

River Dunavin

Rosanna Hung (mentoring before and after pre-assessment)

Aukye Byker

Elana Bernasconi-Tabellini

Maya Diaz (Final Assessment with Kathleen McFerren 2018)

Liu Yi (online pre-assessment with Kathleen McFerran is 2018)

Stephanie Bachmann Mattei was born and raised in Florence, Italy, where she earned the equivalent of a Bachelor in Languages and the Laurea cum Laude in Philosophy. In 1993, she and her husband relocated from Italy to the USA. They currently reside in Florida, Tampa Bay area with their 3 children.

Stephanie first met Marshall in 2002 and, soon after, CNVC Certified Trainer Inbal Kashtan, who wholeheartedly shared with Stephanie the heart and soul of NVC in parenting and family life. It was with the intention of more fully supporting Inbal’s vision of sharing NVC with parents and people working with children that Stephanie decided to pursue CNVC certification. The journey was a delightful experience, nourished by consistent encouragement to stretch and expand her NVC awareness under the loving guidance of Penny Wassman, who served as her assessor. Her journey with Penny still serves as an experiential reference of how partnership may be embodied on the certification path in the relationship between assessor and candidate. Stephanie has continued to bring forth Inbal’s legacy, and together with CNVC Certified Trainer Ingrid Bauer, Stephanie has been co-leading the Parent Peer Leadership Program since 2009.

Stephanie also worked for over 5 years with the NVC Academy collaborating with various CNVC Trainers and being exposed to the richness of different facilitation styles. These connections continue to serve and influence Stephanie's growth and development. Her connection with Sylvia Haskvitz resulted in an invitation to join the CALF Program (Candidates Active Learning Forum) and, a few years later, to consider serving as an assessor. Stephanie enthusiastically embraced this proposal as an opportunity to touch more lives and create more of a ripple effect in her sharing of NVC with the world. Dr. Bruce Perry states that "Being born a human being does not ensure a child will become humane. Humans become humane. The capacity to care, to share, to listen, value and be empathic – to be compassionate – develops from being cared for, shared with, listened to, valued and nurtured.” Stephanie holds NVC as a path to support the very journey from human to human.

Kathleen works with CNVC trainer candidates through the Trainer Candidate Community Path (TCCP) Click here for details. In conjunction with the CNVC certification process, the TCCP program is for CNVC trainer candidates who would like to walk the certification path in community, with a clear structure (designed by individual candidates and Kathleen, that would include individual work, work with two other certified trainers and the TCCP community), and who are interested in the areas of building sustainable community and restorative justice. The program involves meeting one-four weekends a year as a community, exploring a variety of ways to share NVC including co-leading trainings candidates and/or certified trainers in a variety of  venues to be mutually decided upon. For more information about TCCP, visit the website www.livinginterdependence.org. For more information about Kathleen visit her web site www.StrengthofConnection.com.

TCCP is  one of the prototypes for the new CNVC organization's Recognized Role weaves (a group supporting living and sharing of NVC in the role of Certified Trainer or soon to be NVC Ambassador).

To join the waiting list please follow this link.
https://goo.gl/forms/zzJ7jlbOQizc7hQ73