Instructional and Administrative Faculty Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Plan
July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2008

Introduction and Commitment

Blue Ridge Community College is fully committed to equal opportunity in employment (EEO) and affirmative action (AA) for women and other-race applicants. With the development of this plan, the College reaffirms its continuing commitment to recruit, employ and retain Faculty members in these categories.

The College's internal review of its personnel and employment practices demonstrates that the College in no way discriminates and that personnel are employed without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, age, or disability.

The College's hiring practices have not led to a significant disparity in the number of female employees versus the available population. Therefore, the balance of this plan will emphasize actions and activities intended to recruit minority Faculty members.

All college personnel involved in the selection process are thoroughly apprised of the recruitment objectives of the EEO/AA Plan and the seriousness with which the College approaches its commitment to these objectives. Appropriate staff members also attend periodic EEO/AA recruitment and interviewing training seminars to ensure that they are fully informed regarding current laws affecting EEO/AA as well as the intentions and expectations of the College concerning the implementation of this plan.

The College participates in state-sponsored programs to enhance minority recruitment and retention. Blue Ridge Community College Faculty and administrators are well aware of the difficulties of recruiting and retaining minority faculty, and even more aware of the difficulties of recruiting minority professionals to the Shenandoah Valley. The College is therefore committed to the following:

1. supporting the statewide Minority Faculty Recruitment Program;
2. supporting the Faculty Mentor and Retention Program;
3. participating, as appropriate, in other statewide programs developed to enhance faculty recruitment, promotion, and retention.

Dissemination of Policy

Equal Employment and Enrollment Opportunity Policy Statement

It is the policy of the Virginia Community College System and Blue Ridge Community College to maintain and promote equal employment opportunity without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, age, political affiliation, disability or veterans status (except where a bona fide occupational qualification has been established).

The BRCC Equal Employment and Enrollment Policy is included in the BRCC Faculty/Staff Handbook published on the College's homepage and Inside BRCC

The following statement is always the final paragraph of any advertisement for any college position:

"Blue Ridge Community College is an EEO/AA Employer.
Minorities are strongly encouraged to apply".

Various posters describing the EEO/AA policy and complaint reporting procedures are posted on bulletin boards throughout the College.

On the Application for Employment, required of all prospective employees, the following statement appears after the heading:

"Employees of the Commonwealth and applicants for employment shall be afforded equal opportunity in all aspects of employment without regard to race, color, religion, political affiliation, national origin, disability, sex or age."

Each new employee is provided with a copy of the Plan. When the Plan is revised college personnel are notified of the revision and directed to the revised plan on the home page.

Responsibility for Implementation

The president of the College has the overall responsibility for the College's Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action policy for the College. The President has delegated the authority for the administration of the plan to the EEO/AA Officer, who is the Vice-President of Financial and Administrative Services (VPFAS). The VPFAS assists college officers, faculty and staff in the interpretation and administration of the College's plan and will prepare pertinent EEO/AA reports and plans.

The VPFAS is also responsible for monitoring employment procedures and practices to ensure the effective use of human resources in compliance with Federal regulations and State equal employment practices.

Each administrator will be responsible for ensuring that the EEO/AA plan is carried out within his/her respective area.

Recruitment and Hiring Practices

1. The following is a description of the College's recruitment and hiring practices. This document will be published in the Faculty/Staff Handbook.
   1. Blue Ridge Community College seeks to locate and employ highly qualified and dedicated individuals for available faculty positions. To accomplish this task, thorough planning and open communications are necessary at all stages of the recruitment and selection process.
   2. The selection process used at BRCC for all full-time teaching, professional, and administrative faculty appointments is as follows:
      1. Vacancy announcements are prepared by the appropriate VP, in consultation with the immediate supervisor. The VP and the supervisor in the creation of the vacancy announcement also consider recommendations of faculty members working in the same or similar discipline. The President (or his designee) reviews all vacancy announcements prior to their release. The EEO/AA officer (or designee) advertises vacancies nationally, statewide, and locally (see B. below). In the case of vacancies for restricted appointments, the option of nationally advertising the position will be at the discretion of the VP in consultation with the immediate supervisor.
      2. A screening committee is appointed by the VP or President in consultation with the immediate supervisor to whom the successful candidate will report. The VP and EEO/AA officer (or designee) meet with the screening committee to discuss the recruitment and interview process.
      3. The committee establishes specific job-related qualifications on the basis of the advertisement and determines selection criteria for the position in consultation with the immediate supervisor. These criteria are reviewed by the EEO/AA officer (or designee) to ensure that qualifications are free of discriminatory references.
      4. The Personnel Analyst reviews each application and determines which applicants meet the minimum job qualifications.
      5. The screening committee and the immediate supervisor recommend to the VP candidates from the qualified applicants for interview. The committee chairperson reports to the Personnel Analyst which candidates have been selected for interview.
      6. Reference checks are performed before invitations for interviews are extended. Reference checks are performed by the immediate supervisor or their designee.
      7. If none of the candidates selected is a minority and there are minority applicants who meet the minimum job qualifications, the screening committee is reconvened. The committee reviews again the files of the minimally qualified minority applicants and, in consultation with the immediate supervisor, determines whether any of the minority candidates could be considered as reasonably competitive candidates worthy of an interview. If the committee and immediate supervisor believe any of the minority candidates would be reasonably competitive, then they recommend to the VP to extend an offer to interview. However, if in the opinion of both the immediate supervisor and the committee, an interview would not be productive, then no offer to interview will be extended.
      8. The candidates are interviewed by the screening committee, the immediate supervisor, and the VP. The President may also choose to interview the candidate.
      9. The committee submits a list of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the interviewed candidates to the supervisor and the VP. The supervisor and the VP meet with the committee to discuss the list of strengths and weaknesses, clarifying any questions and soliciting any further comments from committee members. The supervisor and the VP consult regarding a hiring recommendation. The VP then submits the committee’s list to the President, along with a hiring recommendation. The president reviews the list of strengths and weaknesses drawn up by the committee, and the recommendation of the VP. The President determines to whom to extend an offer to hire.
      10. The VP informs the immediate supervisor and the screening committee chairperson regarding the decision of the President.
      11. The position is offered to the selected candidate and, when accepted, is announced by the President.
2. Further, the College also advertises its faculty and administrative vacancies nationally and locally, in geographic areas with large minority populations, and in national media targeted to minority professionals including the following:
   1. Selected colleges and universities with large minority enrollments. A copy of the announcement is sent to the university placement office.
   2. The Virginia Community College System Personnel Office. They, in turn, advertise the position within each community college, as well as nationally.
   3. The local office of the Virginia Employment Commission.
   4. The Chronicle of Higher Education and/or selected professional and trade journals for specialized fields where a shortage of qualified persons has typically existed (e.g., veterinarians for the Animal Science faculty positions are usually advertised in such journals as Veterinary Economics and the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.)
   5. The four newspapers in or near the College's service region: the Daily News Record in Harrisonburg, the News Leader in Staunton, the News-Virginian in Waynesboro and, the Charlottesville Daily Progress.
   6. At least two regional or national newspapers, such as the Richmond Times Dispatch, and/or a Washington, D.C. area newspaper.
   7. In Black Issues in Higher Education and/or other appropriate minority publications.
   8. The College's faculty bulletin board for at least seven calendar days.

Targeted Recruitment Activities

The following activities are continued from prior programs and are intended to attract more qualified minority applicants for faculty positions.

1. Recognizing the difficulty of attracting qualified minority applicants, the College includes information in its vacancy announcements about the communities being served, proximity to urban centers and other institutions of higher education, population characteristics, and scenic and recreational opportunities that all make this area an appealing place to live.
2. When appropriate, the College sends a representative to an appropriate national conference (such as the National Association of Equal Opportunity in Higher Education) to gain exposure for the institution among potential applicants and sources of applicants as well as recruitment and strategy ideas.
3. The College solicits advice from members of the local minority communities on improving the response to vacancy announcements from qualified minority candidates.
4. The College makes a concerted effort to identify qualified minority faculty to teach on a part-time basis.

Accountability and Documentation

The following are actions to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the EEO Plan.

1. The following records are maintained by the Personnel Analyst for a period of at least three years from the date the position is filled: position description, records related to recruitment efforts, copies of advertisements, employment applications, race and gender data on all applicants, screening and selection criteria applied, interview questions and notes on applicant response, and reference checks.
2. The Resources Committee includes in its annual report to the president its internal assessment of the Faculty EEO/AA Plan, making recommendations as appropriate for corrective actions or modifications to the EEO/AA Plan.

Resources Committee

A College Resources Committee is appointed in accordance with the College governance structure. This Committee represents a cross-section of the College's employees.

1. The Resources Committee represents the administration, classified employees, and faculty, for three-year terms.
2. The duties and responsibilities of the Resources Committee include the following:
   1. Serve as an independent channel for individuals and groups within the College for expression of views on equal opportunity matters.
   2. Assist in the writing of appropriate EEO/AA plans and reports as requested by the Vice President of Finance and Administration.
   3. Conduct exit interviews. The Personnel Analyst will contact departing employees and inform him/her of the opportunity for an exit interview to be conducted by the human resources sub-committee chair.
3. Meetings are held periodically during the academic year.
4. The agenda is developed by the committee chair with input from members.
5. The minutes are published in the College's Intranet along with other committee meeting minutes.
6. These duties may be further delegated to a Human Resources Subcommittee of the Resources Committee.

• Approved by the Resources Committee and Recommended for the Presidents Approval 10/18/04
• Approved by the President's Staff 07/11/05
• Approved by the President 07/12/05