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Amy Cronin, New York Six Liberal Arts Consortium

Kiernan Mathews, Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education

Jessica Wise, Higher Education Recruitment Consortium

Vicki McGillin, John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education, Moderator

Leading an Equity-Minded Consortium

ACL Virtual Professional Development is sponsored by:

9/24/19

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Your microphones will be automatically muted during the presentation;
If you experience any technical difficulties (e.g., no sound) please feel free to use the ZOOM Chat function to alert us ( “Chat” icon )
If you have questions for the panelists at any time during the presentation, please feel free to type those using the “Q&A” icon
The panelists will happily respond to questions at the end;
This webinar is being recorded and the recording will be made available;
A link to a short survey will be provided at the end of the webinar; please let us know what you think.

We will

Webinar Reminders

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Overview

Introduction & Context

Building a Diverse Workplace

Diversifying Your Consortial Presence

Leveraging Partnership for Greater Diversity

Q&A

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Building a Diverse Workplace

Kiernan Mathews�COACHE

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The Collaborative �on Academic Careers in Higher Education

A Research Practice Partnership

http://coache.gse.harvard.edu | @coacheproject

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The distance between the status quo and more equitable representation in the workplace is measured in leadership.

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Gigliotti, D., Chernin, P., Topping, J., Williams, P., Melfi, T. (Producers) & Melfi, T. (Director). (2016). Hidden Figures. [Motion picture]. USA: 20th Century Fox.

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How COACHE Broadened �Its Perspective

Strategy #1�Leverage our “casual” workforce to broaden organizational perspectives.

Strategy #2

“Experience in a higher ed setting.”

(We hire the ‘what’, not the ‘where’.)

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COACHE (brief salient intro to who we are/what we do)

Based at HGSE
5 FTE + variable number of student employees
Collaborative data-gathering and sense-making project, followed by leadership development for institutional change
My board(s): Advisory Group of provosts; Steering Committee of Harvard faculty; and report up to Dean’s office.�

Diversifying consortium staff:

CASUAL WORKFORCE (WITH STUDENTS, TEMPS)

Partnering with local institutions who use co-ops and interns (undergrads)
Looking to HGSE grad students, area higher ed programs for graduate student interns

FTE

Change mindset to hiring for the skill, not for the higher ed know-how
We used to hire “out of the (higher ed) program” – after all, vetted by Harvard! – because we assumed they needed to know about the landscape of higher ed and about faculty issues, how to “speak the language.” This was filtering our pool too much… and the folks we were hiring weren’t even that great.
Since focusing on the THING THAT WE WERE HIRING FOR--marketing, application development, accounting/finance—every hire has brought a perspective not typically represented in higher ed. And they’ve been outstanding--even if it’s required extra mentorship on my part (which is one of the parts of my job I most enjoy!)

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Additional Consortial Leaders �Recruitment Recommendations

Spread the net

Use non-traditional sites for higher ed hiring (Monster.com, Indeed.com, local non-profit sites, local hiring sites);
Draw from the local community;
Connect with the HR offices on member campuses – have they seen good diverse talent in their pools?
Join local groups focusing on diversity in the workforce; support efforts to expand professional skills development.

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COACHE (brief salient intro to who we are/what we do)

Based at HGSE
5 FTE + variable number of student employees
Collaborative data-gathering and sense-making project, followed by leadership development for institutional change
My board(s): Advisory Group of provosts; Steering Committee of Harvard faculty; and report up to Dean’s office.�

Diversifying consortium staff:

CASUAL WORKFORCE (WITH STUDENTS, TEMPS)

Partnering with local institutions who use co-ops and interns (undergrads)
Looking to HGSE grad students, area higher ed programs for graduate student interns

FTE

Change mindset to hiring for the skill, not for the higher ed know-how
We used to hire “out of the (higher ed) program” – after all, vetted by Harvard! – because we assumed they needed to know about the landscape of higher ed and about faculty issues, how to “speak the language.” This was filtering our pool too much… and the folks we were hiring weren’t even that great.
Since focusing on the THING THAT WE WERE HIRING FOR--marketing, application development, accounting/finance—every hire has brought a perspective not typically represented in higher ed. And they’ve been outstanding--even if it’s required extra mentorship on my part (which is one of the parts of my job I most enjoy!)

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Additional Consortial Leaders �Recruitment Recommendations

Revisit the position and hiring process:

Examine the credentials “required”; are they inflated given large numbers of trailing spouses?
Consider the advantages of your positions:

Flexibility for working parents (hours/ tele-commuting, etc.)

Consider the social/cultural context of your interviews (sense of belonging/comfort/imposter syndrome)
Examine your culture; Hiring is just the beginning

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COACHE (brief salient intro to who we are/what we do)

Based at HGSE
5 FTE + variable number of student employees
Collaborative data-gathering and sense-making project, followed by leadership development for institutional change
My board(s): Advisory Group of provosts; Steering Committee of Harvard faculty; and report up to Dean’s office.�

Diversifying consortium staff:

CASUAL WORKFORCE (WITH STUDENTS, TEMPS)

Partnering with local institutions who use co-ops and interns (undergrads)
Looking to HGSE grad students, area higher ed programs for graduate student interns

FTE

Change mindset to hiring for the skill, not for the higher ed know-how
We used to hire “out of the (higher ed) program” – after all, vetted by Harvard! – because we assumed they needed to know about the landscape of higher ed and about faculty issues, how to “speak the language.” This was filtering our pool too much… and the folks we were hiring weren’t even that great.
Since focusing on the THING THAT WE WERE HIRING FOR--marketing, application development, accounting/finance—every hire has brought a perspective not typically represented in higher ed. And they’ve been outstanding--even if it’s required extra mentorship on my part (which is one of the parts of my job I most enjoy!)

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Diversifying Your Consortium Presence

Amy Cronin�New York Six Liberal Arts Consortium

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Diversity Beyond Numbers

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Live Your Inclusive Values

Reflect your organization’s diversity in all that you do.

Two important areas:

Communications/Marketing
Programs

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Communications & Marketing

Use diverse “voices” - Who is delivering your message?
Use inclusive images - Do the pictures tell your inclusive story?
Select diverse topics for articles, web/social media posts, podcasts - Are the stories you’re telling reflective of your diversity (of people and of thought)?

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Programs

Consider how issues of diversity, inclusion, and equity impact all topics and can be woven in
Choose your presenters accordingly
Develop programs specifically addressing issues of diversity and inclusion
Support diverse/inclusive communities of practice
Ensure policies, procedures, practices are equitable

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Challenging Harvard to put its money where its values are.

A (very recent) COACHE Case Study

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KIERNAN:

Incorporating D&I beyond hiring:

Programming: Putting your money where your values are

In 2018, I had a successful inaugural leadership development program: 40 provosts and deans for the “Seminar on Leadership of the Faculty”.
In 2019, I felt pressure to grow it, even though it’s not my “day job”.
So I said, put your money where your values are, Harvard: give me the “full-pay” number I need to hit in order to let HBCU reps participate at 50% off.
But you can’t just wave a magic wand: I had to do the work. Researched addressees, sent letters to all HBCU provosts, followed up with an email blast.
Once I hit 50 attendees, I received/accepted applications from 9 HBCUs. And got 6 other participants over the transom.
Between HBCU reps and others, the institute was 33% non-white, and 23% African American. (Also: 64% women!)
Best of all, everyone’s learning experiences were enriched by the greater diversity of perspectives in the room.

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Energetically advocate for greater diversity in the room.�

Reflect leadership’s language back to them�(For example: “If you believe diversity is necessary for learning, we must expand participation.”)

Do the math ($) for them.

Use direct marketing to spread the word. Personal notes, relationships are most effective.

Marketing list targets: focus on underrepresented

Enrollment targets: focus on institutional mission/profile

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KIERNAN:

Lessons learned:

I have to actively advocate for greater diversity in the room. It doesn’t just happen.
I had to put the language of my seniormost leadership (e.g. presidents/boards) in their faces. If diversity is necessary for optimal learning, then let’s bring in participants beyond the usual suspects (maybe even outside the consortium!).
I had to do the math for them. How much will it cost us to bring in X people we wouldn’t otherwise have? Can we charge the others a little more to defray those costs?
I had to use direct marketing—personal notes and relationships help—to advertise the opportunity.
And you CAN set goals for the composition of URGs in those mailing list.
Generally advised NOT to use race/ethnicity for ENROLLMENT targets, though… instead, set targets based on institutional missions/profiles (e.g., HBCUs, HSIs, Community Colleges), and focus your recruitment efforts there.

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Leveraging Strategic Partnerships

Jessica Wise�HERC

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HERC Partnerships

HERC’s strategic partners are an incredible source of:

Sector knowledge (including best practice, policy changes, etc.)
Audience awareness
Candidates
Champions
Content

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HERC Partner: AbilityJOBS

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HERC Partner:

Military Spouses Employment Network

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HERC Partner:

San Francisco LGBTQ Center

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Questions/Discussion

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Submit your thoughts using the Q&A function of Zoom.

Click on the Q&A Icon at the bottom of your screen
Type in each question and click send
We will not be using the “raised hand” function

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We want your feedback.

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A recording of this discussion �will soon be available to all ACL members. �In the meantime, please complete this very brief poll:

bit.ly/ACLSept2019

Your feedback really does set the agenda for ACL!

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Thank you for joining us!

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This has been another production of the�

ACL Virtual Professional Development Committee�

Suronda Gonzalez | Upstate New York College Collaboration

Kiernan Mathews | The Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education �Michael (Mickey) McDonald | Great Lakes Colleges Association�Vicki McGillin | John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education�Timothy Newcomb | Big Ten Academic Alliance�Jim Yankech | University of Nebraska-Lincoln

ACL Virtual Professional Development is sponsored by:

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