Hello! This is my first time posting in this group, but I'm excited to be part of the conversation on issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
We just finished creating an inclusive hiring toolkit at my library (we're a mid-size, private university), drawing upon some best practices, such as the Core Best Practices for Academic Interviewing document, some resources we found that were recently put forth by Grand Valley State University, several readings, and recommendations from our university's HR department. We have learned that you can't just passively post a position to something like ALA Joblist--recruitment begins with how you write your position description, and extends throughout the interview process. We are trying to be very mindful of not putting too much in our minimum qualifications, and of using inclusive, gender-neutral language. We know that there are online communities that are spaces specifically created by and for BIPOC library workers, such as We Here, so we post on their job board and make sure we include our minimum salary. We try to make the interviewing process as pain-free and as accessible as possible. We share formal interview questions with candidates ahead of time; we share the names and pronouns of search committee members with candidates ahead of time; we make sure we provide accessible technology for presentations; we turn on live captions for Zoom interviews, etc. We just really try to make all of our candidates feel as comfortable and as welcome as possible.
However, it is still very challenging recruiting candidates from systemically marginalized groups. Geographic location is a big factor--we are in a state that has been leaning more conservatively the last few years, and issues like abortion access, LGBTQ+ rights, public library book bans and restrictions on curriculum, these are all things that can have a chilling effect on a candidate pool. We do nationwide searches for our faculty librarian positions, but relocation isn't always possible for candidates, and that can limit our pool as well if we are trying to diversify our workforce.
I'm curious to hear what others have encountered, and what's working (or not). Although I think we have made great strides in making our hiring processes much more inclusive and equitable, we don't have many opportunities to hire full-time faculty librarians, and when we have, the applicant pools we have gotten have still remained almost entirely white. Many BIPOC library workers are leaving the field, and I think we really have to ask ourselves some hard questions as to why that is happening.
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Ione Damasco
Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence, Engagement, and Operations
University of Dayton Roesch Library
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Original Message:
Sent: Feb 15, 2023 12:42 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Diversity in our employee ranks?
I'd welcome members input on approaches they have taken to increase the diversity of their workforce (assuming that this is a challenge in your setting).
What are specific obstacles in recruiting and retaining diverse candidates for professional librarian positions?
Are there unique challenges associated with recruiting and retaining staff?
How about student assistants, part-time, or volunteer roles?
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Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
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