Screening Committee (Procedure 2.0150)

This Procedure is Under Review

Purpose:

The purpose of this procedure is to outline the steps to be taken by a screening committee used in selecting personnel for employment.

Procedure:

1. Definition: Hiring Manager - The person who approves the Position Advertisement Form (form 81). The hiring manager may serve as a non-voting member of the screening committee.
2. A screening committee is utilized to review applications and select and interview applicants for recommendation for a position.
3. The principle of equal opportunity guides all processes and employment decisions at the College.
4. A screening committee shall be used for all full-time instructional and other contractual positions above pay grade 49. A screening committee may be used for other positions. (For example: secretary, paraprofessional, coordinator, etc.)
5. Appointment and composition of a screening committee
   
   
   1. The hiring manager shall recommend to his/her immediate supervisor names of persons to serve on the screening committee and specify the person to serve as chair. The recommendation is sent through administrative channels to the appropriate director, vice-president, Coordinator, Equity and Employment Services and the Director, Human Resources. Any of these individuals may recommend changes to the committee's membership.
   2. When the membership is certified by the Coordinator, Equity and Employment Services and the Director, Human Resources, the Director, Human Resources shall notify the hiring manager and the committee. The signed recommendation of committee membership shall be filed in the folder of applications for the position.
   3. Committee size may be from three to nine members excluding the Coordinator, Equity and Employment Services (a non-voting, ex officio member of all screening committees).
   4. Committee members should be chosen so as to provide the committee with varied and appropriate points of view. For example, a committee for a faculty member in Nursing might reasonably include a faculty member from Biological Sciences.
   5. Departments or areas of the College which have close working relationships with agencies or businesses in the community may include one or more representatives of an outside agency on the committee if the position to be filled is directly related to the College's work with that agency. It is the responsibility of the hiring manager to insure that any non-college member of a screening committee understands that the Board has the responsibility for employing college staff, unless a contract between the College and the agency specifies otherwise.
   6. Committee members shall disqualify themselves if they are related to any applicant as defined in the College's nepotism policy, or if they do not believe that they can be impartial.
   7. Committee members and persons involved in the employment decision for a position may not serve as references for applicants. If a committee member has written a letter of reference for an applicant, either the letter must be withdrawn or the committee member must resign from the committee.
6. Committee chair responsibilities
   
   
   1. It is the responsibility of the chair, in cooperation with the hiring manager, to ensure that the committee's work is completed in a timely manner.
   2. The committee chair shall appoint a recorder to take and prepare minutes of the committee meetings.
   3. The committee chair shall be the official contact concerning committee work. The chair shall be responsible for making committee contacts with applicants and any college employees involved in the hiring process, unless such duties are delegated in writing to other committee members.
   4. The committee chair shall keep the hiring manager and the Director, Human Resources informed of the progress and work of the committee.
   5. The committee chair shall schedule and coordinate telephone interviews, if appropriate, and on-campus visits of each applicant to be interviewed. The visits shall consist of interviews with the screening committee, administrators and other college personnel.
   6. The committee chair shall contact those applicants who are to be interviewed, informing them of the interview process, the amount of time the applicant should allow, any demonstration or exercise to be completed by the applicant, and any other special arrangements or requirements relating to the interview. Arrangements should include date and time of interview, place where applicants are to be met by college personnel, information that the applicants are to bring to the interview, etc. Information about the College, area transportation, hotels, restaurants, etc. will be provided to out-of-area applicants.
   7. It is the responsibility of the chair to provide information to Human Resources so that persons not selected by the committee may receive appropriate letters in a timely manner.
   8. At the conclusion of the screening committee's work, the chair is to collect the following written material pertaining to the committee's work and submit it to Human Resources so that it may become part of the applicant file:
      
      
      1. Minutes of the committee meetings.
      2. Memoranda pertaining to the work of the committee, both to and from the committee, including the committee's recommendation about the applicants.
      3. Any other documents pertaining to the committee's work.
7. Screening committee meetings
   
   
   1. A screening committee may not meet and has no authority to act until the hiring manager and the committee chair receive from the Director, Human Resources the memorandum indicating that the committee has been approved.
   2. The committee's deliberations are confidential and committee members are expected to limit discussions of committee activity to other committee members. The chair may represent the committee to other interests.
   3. At the first meeting of the committee, the Coordinator, Equity and Employment Services and the hiring manager shall instruct the committee about their duties, responsibilities and limitations.
   4. For any meeting of a screening committee, including interviews, the quorum shall be a majority of the members. A quorum must be present throughout each meeting.
8. Screening applications
   
   
   1. The Human Resources shall screen all applications to determine whether or not applicants meet the minimum qualifications as stated in the position advertisement. No applicant shall be presented for screening committee consideration who does not meet minimum qualifications.
   2. In the event that the number of qualified applicants is large enough to place a burden on all members to review every application, the committee may devise a proportioning of responsibility for initial reviewing of groups of applications. If this happens, at least two committee members shall be responsible for reviewing each application to make recommendations for full committee consideration. Any committee member may bring any application up for full committee consideration.
   3. Point value rating systems are not to be used.
   4. After review of the applications, the committee may recommend that the position be readvertised. If this occurs, the hiring manager shall notify the Director, Human Resources so that applicants can be informed.
9. Interviews with applicants.
   
   
   1. No formal interviews may be conducted until after the application deadline date.
   2. The committee shall prepare a basic core of interview questions for all applicants. Demonstrations, tests or other exercises to be completed by the applicants may be devised by the committee. Demonstrations, tests or other exercises devised by the committee must be coordinated with the hiring manager and approved by the Director, Human Resources. Spontaneous, follow-up questions may be asked during the course of the interview. All prepared or spontaneous questions must be non-discriminatory, and they must logically relate to duties in the position description.
   3. The committee shall determine which applicants will be interviewed.
   4. The hiring manager may provide travel costs for applicants from the cost center's budget with the approval of the President or appropriate vice-president.
   5. It shall be up to the screening committee to determine if the nature of the position is such that it would be appropriate for persons who are not committee members or administrators involved in the hiring process to meet the applicants being interviewed. If such meetings are determined to be appropriate, the committee shall plan the place and time and shall notify the college community of the opportunity to meet the applicants. If such meetings are held, the hiring manager may solicit and take into consideration the opinions of those persons who met the applicants.
   6. Telephone interviews may be used. A telephone interview does not substitute for a personal interview at the College. No applicant can be recommended who has not had a personal interview with the hiring manager.
   7. After the interviews have been concluded, the committee may decide to return to the applicant pool and interview additional applicants.
   8. It is preferable that the same person contact all references. It shall be the choice of the hiring manager as to whether s/he or a member of the committee shall contact references.
10. Recommendation/decision process
    
    
    1. Applicants who are recommended for a position must come from the pool of applicants and must have been interviewed by the committee and appropriate administrators.
    2. After interviews have been completed, the committee, acting through the chair, shall make a recommendation to the hiring manager.
    3. The hiring manager will ask the committee to recommend a maximum of five applicants. Applicants will be recommended in alphabetical order with no ranking indicated.
    4. If the hiring manager does not concur with the committee's recommendation, s/he shall meet with the committee to discuss the lack of agreement. If there is still no agreement between the committee and the hiring manager, the recommendation from the hiring manager to other administrators within the chain of authority shall indicate the lack of concurrence and the reasons for it.
    5. Once the committee recommendation has been made, further contacts by any applicant shall be referred to the Director, Human Resources.
11. The President has the authority to waive any or all of this procedure.