Minority hiring is plan's aim

The policy would allow direct recruitment of individuals without a search.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Youngstown State University is considering a change in its "Strategic Hiring Policy" to make it easier and quicker to recruit minorities for faculty and staff positions.
The plan would allow the university to target specific individuals to fill jobs without going through job postings and national searches, said Dr. Robert Herbert, provost.
The goal is to recruit from underrepresented groups, primarily on a racial basis, by allowing a recommendation for employment to be made without a national search, provided that a waiver is first secured from the university's director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity.
The YSU Trustees' Internal Affairs Committee approved the plan a week ago, and the board of trustees is expected to approve it Friday.
The university came under criticism last week from the former coordinator of diversity initiatives at YSU, who asserts it isn't doing enough to expand diversity among employee groups on campus.
The proposed policy would be "a significant step" in dealing with minority recruitment in staff and faculty, said Dr. David C. Sweet, YSU president.
The university reports that slightly more than 9 percent of its approximately 1,200 full-time faculty, classified and administrative professional staff members are black. Only 21 of the 428 full-time faculty members are black.
Limited to certain positions
Trustee Scott Schulick questioned how the program will be monitored, noting that the university has been criticized in the past regarding search waivers.
Herbert said the waiver wouldn't extend to include top jobs in the university such as administrators or executive officers, but would be limited primarily to faculty positions.
It would allow the university to target selected recommended individuals for job openings, he said.
Process
Candidates for employment under the search waiver will be reviewed by the hiring department or academic unit. If that unit thinks the individual has appropriate credentials and skills compatible with the department's needs and the mission of the university, the unit can recommend that individual for recruitment without a search.
Each department must agree that this is how they want to proceed with filling a vacancy. It won't be forced on them, Herbert said, adding that anyone hired under the search waiver policy would be subject to the normal probationary period and other regulations governing new employees.
The proposed policy is in line with existing federal employment regulations and is consistent with YSU's institutional strategic plan to increase campus diversity, he said.
Sweet said the strategic hiring plan launched this year has recruited three black faculty members to YSU for next year.
Atty. Holly Jacobs, YSU general counsel, said that, at this point, the policy is in compliance with all regulations, but she advised the trustees to deal cautiously when implementing it.
gwin@vindy.com