Equity and Diversity

Hiring/Diversity

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges remains committed to hiring the best faculty and staff regardless of gender, ethnicity, or disability and to attaining the highest possible rate of success for our students regardless of their background;

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has recently reaffirmed that districts should be required to plan ways to achieve the highest rates of student success for all groups and not leave this highest of priorities to chance;

Fair and Effective Hiring Practices

Whereas, Following the Connerly v. State Personnel Board decision, which struck down portions of the affirmative action provisions in the California Community Colleges' hiring regulations, many districts appear to have abandoned efforts to recruit diverse faculty and administrators and to have suspended compliance with the entire body of Title 5 Regulations related to hiring; and

Whereas, Districts are still required by state and federal law to conduct fair and effective hiring processes

Multiculturalism Across the Curriculum

Whereas, Multicultural understanding is essential not only in the quest for world peace but for living harmoniously within America's pluralistic society and for the enrichment of one's own life;

Resolved, That the Academic Senate reaffirm its commitment to supporting the teaching of multiculturalism across the curriculum as expressed in Resolutions 3.03 F01 and 3.03 F99 and work with local senates on ways to implement this goal.MSC Disposition: Local Senates

Hiring Committee Training

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has a long history of supporting equal employment opportunity and fair hiring procedures; and

Whereas, Persons serving on hiring committees need to be informed of the laws and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and fair employment;

Equity and Diversity

Whereas, The soon-to-be-published report of the Chancellor's Office Task Force on Equity and Diversity will discuss the implementation of specific goals in the areas of equity and diversity by various system constituencies, including the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges; and

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has a long history of support for principles of student equity and the value of diversity, and is therefore positioned to be a leader in modeling the translation of such principles into action;

Faculty Diversity

Whereas, Our community college student population is increasingly diverse and reflects the demographic trends of the state (based on the 2000 Census Report); and

Whereas, The faculty and staff in the California Community College System do not reflect this demographic diversity;

Resolved, That the Academic Senate recognize that faculty diversity must be an integral part of any learning environment that increases student success; and

Resolved, That the Academic Senate take a leadership role in promoting the diversification of faculty of the colleges.

Affirmative Action Compliance

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is proud of its thirty-year history of support for equal opportunity--including but not limited to affirmative action measures;

Whereas, The California Supreme Court's broad interpretation of Proposition 209 in Hi-Voltage Wire Works, Inc. v. City of San Jose may have created the false impression that affirmative action requirements are no longer in effect at California community colleges; and

Faculty Role in Hiring Procedures

Whereas, The Chancellor's Office has decided not to appeal the ruling of Connerly vs. State Personnel Board;

Whereas, This decision will effectively mean that current faculty hiring practices and policies will need to be revised in local districts; and

Whereas, Education Code 87360 states that the criteria, policies and procedures for faculty hiring shall be agreed upon jointly by local governing boards and academic senates;

Prevention of Discrimination

Whereas, Proposition 209 reaffirmed that it was unconstitutional for the state or any of its agencies to discriminate against people "on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin";

Whereas, Proposition 209 has now been held to prohibit certain specific practices intended to prevent or correct such discrimination;

Whereas, California's community colleges now face the challenge of how to prevent or correct such discrimination using new methods and rules; and

Discriminatory Practices in Hiring

Whereas, Both federal and state courts have recently ruled against some practices of affirmative action plans, suggesting that important means for achieving a diverse faculty in the California community colleges might be endangered;

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has consistently expressed its support for hiring increasing numbers of diverse faculty until California community college faculty mirror the diverse make-up of the state;

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