There are several options in advertising a position:
University bulletin
Chronicle of Higher Education
Appropriate professional publications
Send the job description to appropriate departments and faculty at other
institutions (Ohio State University Handbook, 1988).
Consider placing job announcements that explicitly stress the importance of
diversity in higher education and emphasize the meaningful contribution that
diverse candidates can offer to the academic institution (Zamboanga & Bingman,
2001).
Job announcements that highlight the value of diversity could minimize
negative biases directed at diverse candidates (Zamboanga & Bingman, 2001).
Shifting the focus from simply recruiting or "strongly encouraging minorities to
apply" to emphasizing the importance and value of diversity might allow
individuals to gain a better sense of the institutions intentions and their
conceptualization of diversity (Zamboanga & Bingman, 2001).
Attention should be paid to the language used in the position:
description. Sample phrases include (Turner, 2002)
Experience with a variety of teaching methods and/or curricular perspectives
Previous experience interacting with communities of color
Experience in cultures other than their own
Academic experiences and interests in culturally diverse groups
Interest in developing and implementing curricula that address multicultural
issues
Demonstrated success in working with diverse populations of students
Develop broad descriptions of scholarship, experience, and disciplinary
background; take into consideration the specific needs of the department as well
as the broad needs of the institution (Turner, 2002).
Where appropriate, label qualifications preferred instead of required; use
should instead of must (Turner, 2002).
Whenever possible, be flexible with arbitrary numeric measures, such as years of
experience (Turner, 2002).
In addition to a letter of application and a curriculum vitae, request other
materials such as copies of articles, letters of reference, and samples of
course syllabi (Turner, 2002).
Ask applicants to describe their experience with diversity issues, diverse
students, and working in multicultural environments (Turner, 2002).
The job advertisement no longer needs to cover everything about the institution
or position. Instead a brief advertisement can include a link to the full job
description posted on the departmental or university web site. This use of
technology keeps advertising costs to a minimum and provides even more
information to candidates. The web page on which the position description is
posted can also include links to various university resources - cultural
centers, women's centers, family/community information, related research centers
on campus, a statement of commitment by senior administrators concerning
diversity hiring, etc. (Turner, 2002).
Mail position announcements to minority groups and organizations such as:
academic discipline minority caucuses; minority colleges or universities;
minority fraternities and sororities; and local, regional and national
organizations ("Best Practices," 1998).
Position announcements should incorporate content that addresses the importance
of issues of diversity, the value placed upon those who can share and teach
differing points of view, and a description of an atmosphere where ethnic
minority faculty members can receive support from other minority faculty members
(CEMRRAT, 1996).
In the position announcement, use statements that convey an interest in the
contributions that minority candidates can make and the impact their work can
have on the overall training and goals of the academic program (CEMRRAT, 1996).
Preparing the position announcement to convey the goal of filling two or more
positions with minority faculty will serve a useful recruitment purpose. This
will let potential minority candidates anticipate the presence of other minority
faculty, who would provide support for dealing with the negative forces of
tokenism or be available for discussing shared concerns (CEMRRAT, 1996).
Factors that distinguish or enhance a job applicant's interest and a
position's attractiveness for minority candidates include:
Campus and community demographics
Special research opportunities with specific groups or in specific situations,
e.g. migrant farmers, inner city communities,
Special library collections,
Native American reservations
Availability of ethnic minorities to serve as research subjects
Presence of other faculty of color
Possibility of achieving tenure and being promoted in rank
Success of other faculty of color in the program and/or on campus
Infusion of diversity issues into the curriculum
Social support network in the community
Community resources that include ethnic churches, stores, restaurants, hair
stylists, and professionals of color to provide medical, dental, and legal
services
Availability of a large metropolitan area within a short traveling distance (CEMRRAT,
1996).
TTry not to define categories or fields for searches in traditional ways (Knowles
& Harleston, 1997).
Online announcements can include unlimited amounts of information about the
institution, include multimedia content such as film and audio clips, live
camera shots, virtual campus tours and links to related resources such as
faculty handbooks (Dyrli, 2001).
With online announcements, prospective applicants anywhere can use search tools
to locate positions by keywords, post resumes at job sites, and even submit
applications online (Dyrli, 2001).
The University of Connecticut site typically receives more than 200,000 hits
each month, and anyone who visits the main administrative page sees links to job
openings, policies and procedures displayed prominently (Dyrli, 2001).
Departments can institutionalize diversity by writing job descriptions that
define expertise in diversity as part of the job requirement. Departments may
also opt to create entirely new faculty lines (McTighe Musil et. al., 1999).
