Overview and Summary of Faculty Search Protocols

Overview & Summary FACULTY SEARCH PROTOCOLS

Introduction to New Faculty Search and Hiring Protocols

Seattle University will be one of the most innovative and progressive Jesuit and Catholic universities in the world, educating with excellence at the undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels.

Background and Context

Under Seattle University’s Reigniting Our Strategic Directions Goal 4 efforts, we are adopting hiring protocols that are mission aligned and inclusively excellent. These protocols will apply to all faculty hiring in the 2023-24 academic year.

These protocols were created via a partnership between the Provost and the Vice President of the Office of Diversity & Inclusion. Much foundational work was led by the LIFT SU Goal 3 Working Group.

Foundations for Process Development

Rigorous Research on High-Impact Practices

• Loyola Marymount University

• Oregon State University

• UCLA

• University of Michigan

• University of Southern California

• Rutgers

• Columbia University

• UW

• Texas Tech

Collaborative Authorship

Members of the working group collaborated on writing and assembling these processes and practices.

Ignatian Inquiry

• Continual growth

• Dynamic, meaningful discernment

• Ongoing reflection and evalution

• Responding to emergent needs

• Transformational

Hiring and Implementation Plan: An Overview

Seattle University has designed thIs faculty hiring process:

• To recruit and hire outstanding faculty and academic staff who are aligned with the Jesuit and Catholic nature of the University and its mission;

• To recruit and hire outstanding faculty and academic staff who are committed to advancing inclusive academic excellence;

• To ensure implementation of principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and equal opportunity in hiring faculty and academic staff;

• To permit review and authorization of academic position requests with respect to budget and program priorities; and

• To provide substantive and procedural accountability for unIversity commitments to a fair, legal, and effective recruitment process which advances our mission and inclusive academic excellence.

Phase One: Planning & Pre-Search

In this phase, we provide the policies and procedures for departments, schools, and colleges to follow to begin an inclusively excellent and mission-aligned faculty search and recruitment process.

Before the search process can begin, the Provost must authorize the hiring of the faculty position or line. All faculty searches for tenure line, term faculty and visiting positions must first be approved in writing by the Provost or designee.

PLANNING. College or School and Provost’s Office collaborate on 3-to-5year Faculty Resource Plans and potential “target opportunity” hires.

APPROVAL. College or School to annually provide Provost’s Office with hiring plans for upcoming and current AY. Provost’s Office reviews and approves.

AUTHORIZATION. College or School must request in writing any faculty position or line. Provost’s Office must approve.

Phase Two: Search Launch

This phase provides information about ways to successfully launch a mission-aligned and inclusively excellent search. Primary among considerations is to ensure the search committee has a proper foundation in search and recruitment practices that promote a fair and equitable process.

APPOINTMENT. College or School to appoint a Search Committee. Each Search Committee Member must complete faculty search committee training.

SEARCH PLAN. College or School to prepare a search plan in collaboration with Human Resources and the Office for Diversity and Inclusion.

APPROVAL. Office for Diversity and Inclusion must approve the search plan.

SPECIALIST. After Search Plan approval, ODI will collaborate with Deans to identify a Search Equity and Mission Integration (SEMI) specialist to the Search Committee. This aspect of the hiring protocols will be piloted in AY 2023-24 with a select group of search committees.

Phase Three: Search

Executing the search through the lens of our mission-aligned and inclusively excellent commitments requires the search committee to take steps to pause and reflect at each step of its recruiting, screening, and selection process. In this phase, the applicant pool must be certified before the search committee moves forward with its initial application screening. Once certified, the committee can interview candidates with the goal of bringing a set of applicants to campus and securing a set of finalists for the position.

Phase Three: Search

RECRUITMENT. College or School to post the position description and advertise. Text and plan approved as part of the Search Plan.

CERTIFICATION. Search Committee to certify the initial applicant pool. ODI must approve the certification

CANDIDATE SCREENING. Search Committee to develop inclusive candidate pool, screen, and select candidates.

INTERVIEW AND DECISION. Campus interviews and recommending vote by search committee. Written hiring recommendation to Provost’s Office. Provost’s Office must approve before offer can be made.

Phase Four: Post Search

As the search process reaches its final stage, it remains important to be intentional and thoughtful. This section includes suggestions about how to successfully conclude the search and evaluate the search and recruitment process once it is complete. Information gathered during the evaluation process can be used to adjust future searches to create the most inclusively excellent and mission-aligned hiring process possible.

College or School to close out the search and draft a post-search analysis report. Report sent to Provost’s Office, the Office for Diversity and Inclusion, and Human Resources.

Key Processes Summary and Timeline

• 3-5 Year Planning, in collaboration with Provost’s Office

• Initial Authorization Requirement

• Required Search Committee Training

• Search Plan Approval

• Applicant Pool Certification

• Proposal to Hire

• Post Search Analysis Report

• Faculty Search Equity and Mission Integration Specialist (Limited Pilot AY 2023-24)

Implementation Timeline

SPRING 2023

• Search Committee

Workshops Offered (Part One offered in May)

SUMMER 2023

• Finalize Guidebook & Hiring Toolkit Forms

FALL 2023

• Search Committee

Workshops Offered

• Guidebook & Toolkit Available

• Pilot Faculty

Search Equity & Mission Integration

Specialists with select departments/schools/ colleges

• Finalize Hiring

Protocol Website

Next Steps: Faculty members complete Part One Search Committee Training in preparation for Fall searches