Search Procedures Committee Meeting Minutes
06 September 2000

Susan & Debbie reported on their meetings with Grant Cochrane and Rebecca McGee, during which they requested clarification/updates on some search procedures:

1. Faculty/Professional jobs must be posted with the USG Applicant Clearinghouse prior to appearing in any other publication. Rebecca is the person authorized to post to Clearinghouse, and she can also post jobs to the Human Resources website if we wish. She scans them first before posting to be sure that everything is in order, and she also sends Search Committee Chair the multi-part form for the Clearinghouse. Not many faculty positions are posted to the HR website, but they would prefer that all would be, since people interested in relocating to this area look at it.
2. The Clearinghouse will send us a set of labels to be used for contacting those who have signed up with the Clearinghouse and who are eligible for the position. We are to send a job description and applicant data sheet to those persons.
3. All staff, not just the Search Committee members, should be sensitive to what are correct/incorrect questions which can be asked of candidates. If a candidate brings up a "forbidden" topic, we can respond, however (for example, if they talk about their children). Grant will be glad to do a pre-Search workshop for staff whenever asked.
4. At the end of a Search, it is only necessary to notify candidates who were actually interviewed that the job has been filled and this is our responsibility, not HR's.
5. We are still required to complete an Affirmative Action Checklist; Grant says that Patsy has this (but Patsy says that Grant has it! We will get clarification on this). Grant is the Affirmative Action Officer on campus, but Vicky has the Office of Federal Compliance both are willing to meet with any of our Search Committees if asked.
6. Employment records need only be saved for 2 years (not 7, as our current policy says). A candidate has 180 days to file a complaint if s/he feels there has been any impropriety in hiring. HR feels we are saving too much material: "the more you have, the more they can ask for." Therefore, only *official* documents should be saved (e.g., ballots on scrap paper may be thrown out.) Because of this, personal comments should NOT be written on official documents, such as the list of questions to be asked of each candidate. Any audiotapes of phone calls to check references are part of recruitment, and should be kept.
7. Grant encourages us to go to the Society for Human Resources Management website and see what documents listed there we might wish to have for reference (e.g., Guidelines for Lawful Interviewing, etc.). Grant is a member, and thus has password to access whatever we want and print materials off for us.
8. Re: Hiring Procedures for Faculty document dated 11/1/94: Grant did not know about this, and advised us to check with Patsy Barr in VPAA's Office.

Next, Michael reported on his conversation with Patsy Barr:

1. The 1994 edition of Hiring Procedures for Faculty is the most current version, however she is planning to revise it this semester: changes will not be substantive, mostly changing references to "quarters" to "semesters."
2. Only one interview is required, if there is one candidate who is clearly superior to all other applicants on paper.
3. Interviews should be limited to one day only, in order to preserve travel money.
4. Affirmative Action Checklist: she says that Grant has this (we will check further).
5. Policy still says files should be kept 7 years, however, this *may* have been a Board of Regents requirement, now obsolete, from the days when we were under Federal order due to past incidents of discrimination.
6. Patsy would like to see copies of all advertisements placed, and VPAA's Office will pay for them.
7. Memorandum I positions still require that 3 acceptable names be submitted to the Chancellor (these are only the highest administrative positions, probably not applicable to us except perhaps Director).

ACTION PLANS:

• Michael will resolve discrepancies between what Grant/Rebecca and Patsy told us. He will also ask Patsy to check with BOR regarding 7-year retention of records, and get more information on precisely what we are required to send to Clearinghouse applicants.
• Add full addresses for listservs to which job ads might be posted, so they don't have to be looked up.
• Michael has already prepared a draft of revised Search Procedures for Library Faculty based on what we did last week.
• Carol will send Michael copies of form letters she used for last search (Gloria's position) to be reviewed by Committee and included in an appendix of sample letters for Search Committee Chairs to refer to.

Next meeting: Thursday, September 21, at 9:00am.

Meeting adjourned at 10:15 am.

Respectfully submitted,
Carol Goodson, Secretary