Subject: Search Committee Guidelines

Purpose: To outline policies and procedures for use in conducting searches for faculty positions at the LSU Libraries.


1. PURPOSE OF THE COMMITTEE

The Screening Committee is an advisory group intended to facilitate the filling of library faculty positions. Its principle functions are as follows:

• Aggressively recruit qualified applicants, particularly minority applicants.
• Screen and evaluate applications for the position.
• Contact references and organize interviews.
• Conduct interviews.
• Submit hiring recommendations to the Dean.

The Screening Committee may also review applications for several positions at once. Committee members will be individuals who will work as a team and who are familiar with the position(s). The focus of the screening committee is on evaluation of applications not on the paperwork associated with a search. The Personnel Coordinator and the Dean's Office Staff provide this support and have form letters and forms they generate.

2. PHILOSOPHY OF THE SELECTION PROCESS

The primary focus of the policies and procedures that guide the selection process is to ensure that hiring decisions are based on objective comparisons of JOB RELATED experience, education, and aptitude. For this reason, it is critical that the process be standardized and documented throughout.

The Screening Committee should become familiar with LSU HRM document Guidelines to Recruiting, Interviewing, and Selection (GRIS) for important legal and LSU considerations in the process, as well as Appendices of examples of forms and questions. Committees should submit to the Library Office all questions to, and requests for information from HRM.

The Position Available notice and job advertisement copy are the core documents of the selection process, because they provide the legal basis of what "job related" means in any given search. Please study these documents carefully, and restrict your interview questions and evaluations to the criteria contained within them. A list of questions you can and cannot ask interviewees is included in GRIS.

When a vacancy occurs in the faculty, the head of the department/unit in which the vacancy occurs is usually responsible for reviewing the staffing needs of the department/unit and then drafting a position description for the vacant position, along with a position available notice and advertising copy. These will be routed through channels and approved by the Dean. The department/unit head should also make recommendations for the appropriate print and electronic media in which the position should be advertised. Once the documents have been approved, the Dean's office staff will distribute to the selected media.

3. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EEOC

The LSU Libraries is committed to recruiting minority group members to the faculty. A minority candidate is one who is black, or of Hispanic, Asian, Pacific Island, American Indian or Alaskan Native descent. Screening Committees are expected to alert the Dean to the presence of any minorities among the applicant pool. Screening Committees are also expected to seek minority applicants aggressively.

4. SCREENING COMMITTEE AS RECRUITERS

The composition and quality of the faculty is the responsibility of all members of the library faculty. To this end, members of the faculty, including the Screening Committee, should be pro-active in seeking qualified candidates to apply for every position. This includes placing the position advertisement on listservs, talking with potential applicants at conferences, and encouraging colleagues in similar positions to suggest applicants. Research libraries across the country are experiencing small applicant pools so recruitment is important.

While the Screening Committee is charged with identifying suitable candidates, it is important to remember that the Committee must also present an attractive image of the library. The Committee must answer a candidate's questions honestly, but a Screening Committee which projects a negative attitude sends a powerful message to a candidate, and reduces our chances of attracting quality candidates to our staff.

The Screening Committee is also charged with attending to all matters relating to hospitality. This usually includes picking up and dropping off candidates at the airport, accompanying them to meals, providing tours of the campus and city, and other services as needed. The LSU Libraries will reimburse the meal expenses of Committee members when accompanying candidates. (One Committee member should pick up the tab at a meal and then apply for reimbursement.)

5. INITIAL SCREENING COMMITTEE MEETING

The Screening Committee, in compliance with PS-36, is selected by the Dean in consultation with the appropriate administrator(s). The Dean presents the charge to the Screening Committee. The first meeting of the Screening Committee is convened by the appointee of the Dean. The purpose of the first meeting is outlined in the Screening Committee Checklist.

6. CONFIDENTIALITY

Applications are confidential documents, and should be read only by Screening Committee members, Dean of Libraries, Associate/Assistant dean, and/or department/unit head. Screening Committee members should contact the Dean's Office Staff to view the applications. All information relating to the search must remain confidential. The letter of application and resume of candidates to be interviewed will be made available for review by other Libraries' faculty and staff prior to the interview.

7. ADVISORY VOTE AND SUBSEQUENT JOB OFFERS

The vote of the Eligible Voting Library Faculty (EVLF) is advisory to the Dean, who makes the final selection of a candidate. The Dean will also consult with the University EEOC officer concerning candidate selection if necessary. The Dean (or a designated representative) contacts the selected candidate for a verbal discussion of a possible job offer and to determine if the candidate is still interested in the position. This is not an official job offer. The official job offer is extended only after proper university approvals have been obtained. The Dean sends all official forms and letters to the candidate. Announcements regarding accepted job offers are made by the Dean to the LSU Libraries after all approvals have been obtained and all forms signed.

8. SCREENING COMMITTEE PROCEDURES

Procedures for Screening Committees are found in the Screening Committee Checklist.