Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found athttp://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=uarp19

Download by: [72.93.44.241] Date: 19 August 2017, At: 06:14

NASPA Journal

ISSN: 0027-6014 (Print) 1559-5455 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uarp19

Recruiting, Advancing, and Retaining Minorities inStudent Affairs

Mary Ann Sagana & Linda K. Johnsrud

To cite this article: Mary Ann Sagana & Linda K. Johnsrud (1991) Recruiting, Advancing, andRetaining Minorities in Student Affairs, NASPA Journal, 28:2, 105-120

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220973.1991.11072195

Published online: 03 Feb 2015.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 17

View related articles

NASPA JOURNAL, VOL. 28, No.2, WINTER 1991

Recruiting, Advancing, and Retaining Minorities

in Student Affairs: Moving from Rhetoric

to Results Mary Ann Sagaria and Linda K. Johnsrud

The authors argue that to increase minority participation in student affairs, the professwn must attend to (a) the crucial roles of key administrators,

(b) the breadth and diversity of administrative and staff roles, and (c) the informal processes by which persons are matched to administrative jobs.

No need is more urgent today than the full participation and achievement of minorities in higt.er education. We must reverse current trends in declining participation, create a wholly new momentum, and sustain our efforts until all minority groups .. especially blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian­Americans and Pacific Islanders, participate and achieve fully as students, administrators, and fa.culty (Stewart, 1988). Failure to redress racism and its consequences of racial and ethnic differences in educational accomplishments is morally irresponsible and undermines the efforts of individuals to realize their potential. Moreover, such a failure undercuts our society at large by crippling efforts to develop a fully functioning and engaged workforce and to improve the quality of life for both present and future generations.

Chief student affairs officers (CSAOs) occupy the single most important position to provide leadership in improving the recruitment and advancement of both minority professionals and students at predominantly white institutions. By increasing the minority presence in student affairs, student services divisions can cultivate a more racially and culturally diverse campus environment, which can in turn enhance the achievement of minority students.

Mary Ann Sagaria .. Assodate Professor, Educational Policy and Leadership, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1177. Linda K. Johnsrud, Assistant Professor, Educational Administration, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822.

105

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

The importance of increased minority representation in student affairs posi:ions lies both in the role individuals in these positions play and the training opportunity the positions provide. In general, the inclusion of minority professionals strengthens the capabilities of a student affairs division to generate, apply, and examine new ideas and perspectives from all sources and thereby enhance both organizational and individual efficacy.

In particular, midleveladministrators and staff members such as associate deans and directors are likely to have more contact with students than senior administrators such as vice presidents and deans. Thus, minorities in midlevel positions have the potential to be role models for both minority and majority students, and thereby increase retention (Astin, 1975). Furthermore, entry and midlevel administrative positions are the training ground for many senior level positions. Consequently, for long term goals of enhancing the performance of student affairs, it is essential to increase minority representation at a[ levels and across all functional areas in student services divisions.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: THE NUMBERS

Minority group members make up 21.3% of the U.S. po?ulation, and 17% of the students in higher education. However, of all administrators in all types of institutions in 1983, only 10.2% were members of minority groups (American Council on Education, 1987). This figure represents a negligible 0.8% increase since 1977. Sample data on administrators in student affairs indicates we are doing no better: minority representation in student affairs also increased negligibly from 9.9% in 1980-81 to 10.0% in 1983-84 (Rickard, 1985c).

Minorities in CSAO Positions Minority administrators are most likely to be middle managers, holdi::1g positions as support staff, specialists, or managers below the level of vice president or dean. Nonetheless, due to the emphasis on chief student affairs officers (CSAOs) in the student affairs literature, more is known about the progress of a few minorities in attaining senior level positions than about the careers of most minority student affairs staff members. Three studies of the representation of minorities and white women in NASPA member institutions conducted over nine years documented the percentage af minorities serving as CSAOs at 2% in 1970, 4.4% in 1972, and 4.6% in 1974 (Appleton, 1971; Myers & Sandeen, 1973; Wilson, 1977). In a national study of new CSAOs (serving in their positions for three years or less), Rickard (1985a) reported that 9% were minorities (excluding those from historically black institutions).

The most current information regarding diversity within student affairs is found in unofficial NASPA records of the 1988 membership renewals of 1092 voting delegates, who are typically CSAOs. Of the 630 CSAOs who Frovided demographic information, 89.2% (562) were white and 10.8% (68) were minorities (NASPA, 1988). Further breakdown indicates that 1.9% were Asian­Americans, 9.5% were blacks, and 0.3% were Hispanics. Of the 68 m~norities, 30.8% (21) were women and 69.1% (47) men. To the extent that these data can be compared with the aforementioned studies, we see a modest imprDvement although far short of what would be desired.

Progress toward equity varies by race, gender, and type of institution. In an attempt to measure progress toward equity in filling CSAO positions, Rickard

106

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

(1985b) examined the share of those positions attained by minorities as compared with their share of director level positions in student affairs. Male minorities modestly improved their proportional representation in the CSAO position in public institutions with shares of 11 % in 2-year colleges, 12% in 4-year colleges, and 13% in 4-year public institutions. Position shares at private institutions, however, remained within the range of 1 % to 3%. Female minorities had 3% of the positions at the director's level and from 1 % to 3% of the positions at the CSAO level in all institutional categories.

Minorities in Middle and Entry Level Positions As middle managers, minorities hold fewer types of positions than their white counterparts (American Council on Education, 1987). Specifically, minority adninistrators are most often found in two positions-student financial aid officer and affirmative action officer (Frances & Mensel, 1981). In the NASPA member institution studies, minorities occupied primarily entry level positions or positions devoted to minorities or minority programming (Harter, Moden, & \\,ilson, 1982; Myers & Sandeen, 1973; Wilson, 1977).

The positions held by minorities in student affairs and academic support areas typically are not the ones which lead to senior leadership positions such as vice presidencies and deanships. Too often they are within special programs, funded on short-term monies, and, most critically, viewed as peripheral to the primary mission of the institution. As a result, minorities SEldom have opportunities for undertaking activities highly valued and visible t~ key institutional leaders.

Minorities by Ethnic Group Even less is known about the race and ethnicity of the total student affairs population. Overall, blacks increased their representation in higher education adninistration slightly from 7.0% in 1977 to 7.2% in 1983. Hispanic administrators increased from 1.4% to 1.6%. Asians increased from 0.8% to 1.1o/c, and American Indians gained in number (298 in 1977 to 413 in 1983) but their relative proportion remained the same (American Council on Education, 1987). Despite the increasing attention to the racial and ethnic diversity of our students, we have failed to systematically and sensitively look within our households to the racial and ethnic representation of our student affairs staffs.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: THE CONTEXT

The underrepresentation of minorities in student affairs is a more complex issue than is conveyed by enumerating figures. The negligible gains in minority representation have come during a period of administrative growth. In the past decade, student services staffs added positions devoted to minority counseling, advising, recruiting, and programming. Thus, minority gains occurred in positions where they did not come at the expense of majority group members. This pattern is consistent with the hiring practices of minorities in the service sector (Kanter, 1977) and suggests that the representation of minorities could decline as the growth in administration lapers off unless significant institutional initiatives are taken to enhance participation and achievement of minority student affairs administrators.

The underrepresentation of minorities must also be viewed within the larger social context. The current crisis follows in the wake of civil rights activism and

107

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASPA JOURNAL

a national awareness of the need for fair hiring practices and equal opportunity. In keeping with the federal legislative effort in the mid-seventies, most campuses attempted to institute formal recruitment procedures, to publicize vacancies, and to clarify hiring and promotion guidelines. Virtually all campuses have an individual responsible for equal opportunity or affirmative action. And yet, progress has been dismal.

Despite growth in the numbers of staff serving students, in formal recruitment efforts, and in the direct challenge to student services staffs to enhance the participation and achievement of minority students, student affairs has been slow to attend to the condition within its own staffs. Renewed commitment, creative strategies, and major long-term efforts are essential to effect change.

REFRAMING THE PROBLEM

The scope and urgency of the need to recruit, retain, and advance minority student affairs staff demand a fresh perspective. We need to think in new ways about the development and selection of administrators and staff. Specifically, we must attend to (a) the crucial roles of key student affairs administrators, (b) the breadth and diversity of student affairs administrative and staff roles, and (c) the informal processes by which persons are matched to administrative jobs.

Role of Key Student Affairs Administrators Leadership and commitment from chief student affairs officers is vital to achieving racial and ethnic diversity. CSAOs must be visionaries guiding the direction and activities of student affairs, as well as campuswide efforts. They are entrusted with identifying and articulating the goals, acting as catalysts for change, and securing the resources necessary to sustain and enhance services provided to students. CSAOs must be committed to change if they are to improve the recruitment and achievement of minorities. Their efforts make a strong statement about the expectation they hold for others' efforts. Their role in grooming and mentoring other administrators, especially members of minority groups, can set a standard for others in supervisory roles. Moreover, their appointment of minorities to positions of leadership and responsibility is a significant prerequisite for achieving diversity and enriching the education of students and the delivery of services.

Breadth of Student Affairs Roles Student affairs ranks are many and varied, and minority representation is needed at all levels. Senior level positions such as vice presidencies and deanships are few in number relative to middle management positions such as directors and entry level positions such as academic advisors and head residents. The sheer number of midlevel positions means that more of them are usually available to be filled by minorities. In a typical hiring season, while two or three senior level vacancies may occur at a large institution, there may be one to two dozen entry and midlevel vacancies. At small institutions, the vacancy ratio may be similar, with one senior level position to three or four midlevel and professional staff positions. Not only are the opportunities more plentiful, but entry and midlevel administrative positions are also the training ground for many senior level positions such as chief student affairs officer and

108

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

directorships. For long-term goals of diversity at all levels, it is important to increase minority representation in entry and midlevel administrative positions.

Thus, each vacancy must be treated as a potential opportunity to enhance minority participation. Generally, too little attention is paid to filling the majority of administrative vacancies. Unless the appointment is considered senior level or a highly visible position, only the supervisor of the unit may be aware of or involved in the search and recruitment process. In order to expand the career options of minorities, hiring officials must expand their appointments of minorities beyond narrowly defined functional areas or offices exclusively serving minorities. Every vacancy must be carefully evaluated for the qualifications needed for success. The variety of skills and competencies required for student affairs tasks can be reconceptualized to demand broader thinking about individuals qualified to fill vacancies. Despite the fact that specific academic credentials and experiences may not predict administrative effectiveness or successful performance, these requirements serve to screen out candidates. Our priority, however, must shift from excluding to including those persons who, in the past, may have been eliminated because they did not provide an easy match with the traditional requirements.

Broadening candidate pools requires efforts to encourage the candidacy of minorities wlthin and outside of higher education. Federal, state, and local governments have fared better than higher education in recruiting minority professionals. The talents and skills developed in these roles are transferable to many student affairs roles in colleges and universities. We need to begin actively tapping these pools. Although broader thinking in evaluating the education and experience of prospective hires is important, it should also be noted that minority group degree recipients hold degrees predominantly in the social sciences and education, as do the majority of higher education administrators (Moore, 1983a).

Informal Hiring Processes Broadening our formal search and recruitment efforts is essential for achieving diversity, but it is also important to closely examine our informal processes. Finalists for positions are often the beneficiaries of grooming, enticing, and personal and institutional sponsoring. These efforts are crucial if we are to enhance the potential of minorities within student affairs and to draw minorities from outside of higher education. Moreover, efforts to look beyond paper credentials must be coupled with the ability to recognize and reward the potential of an individt:.al-a risk more often taken with a white male than a minority or a white woman.

In order to draw minorities into the student affairs ranks and provide for their advancement, a long-term commitment to their career and professional development is required. In our selection of candidates for positions, we must be sensitive to the current needs and talents of individuals as well as to their potential for development over time. Individual talent and potential must be considered h terms of the challenge and growth opportunities in the position vacancy. This is not to suggest that hiring officials make decisions for candidates as to their match with specific jobs but to recognize that the relationship between persons and tasks is fluid. Both evolve and change. Hiring officials need to make every effort to shape the possibility for a good

109

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

match between a minority candidate and a vacancy-and to share their perspective with the candidate to enable mutually informed decisions.

GETTING RESULTS

Much of what is needed to ensure the adequate recruitment and retention of minority group members in student affairs can be summarized as good employment practices beneficial to organizational vitality. However, the slow progress in the numerical gains and status of minority administrators demands more. Good employment practices need to be coupled with an effective affirmative action program to educate individuals about the institutional goals of diversity and the efforts required to implement those goals. Such efforts need to be supported with institutionwide commitment and incentives. Such commitment must come from the top. Thus, recommendations begin with broad-based initiatives required from senior administrators. Many will be expanded as we address strategies directed at the recruitment, advancement, and retention of minorities.

Concomitantly, the specific strategies advanced here to recruit, retain, and advance minority group members can be used to give further advantage to white men with the unintended consequence of disadvantaging minorities. For example, deemphasizing specific academic credentials and experiences can be advantageous to white men as well as minorities. Although the strategy is intended to provide an equitable basis for comparison, the white male retains the advantage of race and gender. The only safeguard against exploitation in this regard is the genuine commitment to diversity within higher education-a commitment which rests upon the integrity of its leaders.

Student Affairs Divisionwide Initiatives CSAOs influence their campuses by their actions. Their commitment to increasing the numbers and status of minority staff members is demonstrated in the policies they create and enforce, the hires and promotions they make, and the incentives they provide.

• Demonstrate highly visible and informed leadership to bring about change within student affairs. Issue a statement that (a) clarifies why the student affairs division is committed to enhancing the recruitment, advancement, and retention of minorities in administrative roles, (b) mandates efforts beyond federal and state guidelines, and (c) signals a change in posturing from nondiscrimination to active advocacy to enhance the participation and achievement of minorities .

• Examine carefully the recruitment and selection procedures used for filling specific student affairs administrative vacancies. Precedent and/or policy determines those vacancies for which search committees are used and those for which the search responsibility rests with an individual. Appointments to staff vacancies, assistant-to positions, and acting and other temporary positions are often made without the benefit of a search committee. The hiring official to whom the incumbent will report is often given the discretion to appoint the candidate deemed the "best fit." Too often the "best fit" is seen as the person most similar to the hiring official-typically white and male. However, these staff, assistant, and acting positions should be used to provide opportunities for the training, development, and advancement of

110

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

minority administrators. Encourage broad consultation by the hiring official in order to expand the candidate pool beyond traditional sources .

• A.."Sign rewards for acceptable levels of effort in meeting desired goals and EaTIctions for unacceptable levels of effort. Financial rewards and public acknowledgment provide incentives for changing behavior. Make both rewards and sanctions meaningful; for example, rewards might include discretionary funds for program use or increased monies for professional da'elopment and training, while sanctions might include postponement of fining positions or elimination of vacant positions. Include the responsibility for increasing minority participation in administrators' job descriptions, and Evaluate outcomes as part of performance appraisals .

• Emphasize minority climate issues and other related topics such as discrimination and fairness in personnel selection, orientation, and training programs. Campus communities must be educated about the behavioral outcomes of tokenism (use, for example, the film, The Tale of "0" by R. M. Kanter or Valuing Diversity by Copeland Griggs Productions, as training tools) and sensitized to their personal unconscious stereotypes and expectations. MO£eover, members of the campus community must be clear as to the specific procedures to follow in addressing charges of harassment and the consequences resulting from any behavior determined to be harassment.

• Assess and evaluate internal policies, procedures, and decision-making practices to determine their impact on minorities. Policies designed to meet specific needs of one group can have negative, albeit unintended, consequences for another group. For example, the broad practice of interpreting the qualifications required for positions must be monitored to ensure that this does not justify the appointment of white male candidates instead of increasing opportunities for minority candidates. Thus, it is important that policies be examined to ensure they serve their intended purposes.

• Create and maintain data profiles in order to identify problems and monitor progress unit by unit in recruitment, advancement, and retention-by all student affairs units and types of positions. Data collection efforts must be ao:urate and complete for the data to be useful for policy decisions. For example, in order to address the loss of minority candidates in a search pocess, it is necessary to pinpoint when they withdrew. Different strategies cm be employed if it becomes evident that minority candidates withdraw from the process prior to interview decisions as opposed to after on-campus interviews, or before offers are made as opposed to after. Without the information needed to interpret the loss of candidates, it is difficult to institute specific changes to address the problem.

• Develop a talent bank of minority professionals to be tapped for consultation, presentations and workshops, and potential candidates for student affairs administrative positions. Collect names and background information on minorities through contacts at professional meetings and conferences. Request permission from minority professionals identified through recruitment efforts to be included in a talent bank for future involvement with the student affairs G.ivision. The opportunity for minorities to serve as experts on campus, to present and consult, provides an important formal means of acquainting them with the institution as well as acquainting the campus community with minority student affairs professionals. Moreover, administrators report that

111

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

paid consultantships are the single most important professional activity for enhancing advancement (Moore, 1983b).

Search Committees Hiring is one of the most important tasks undertaken within a student affairs division because the recruitment of new talent is critical for ensuring the vitality of the organization. The important task of recruiting and screening candidates has been delegated to search committees in many institutions in order to bring to bear the talents and energies of a group of interested persons. Accordingly, the composition of committees should be broad and representative. Specific attention needs to be paid to two roles within a search committee.

• Appoint a chair for the committee committed to recruiting minority candidates. The chair plays a central role in the conduct and success ofthe search. Members of the committee need to hold credentials or expertise relevant to the vacancy, but it is paramount that the individual chairing the search be committed to actively enlarging the candidate pool and seriously considering minority candidates.

• Identify at least one person on the search committee who is knowledgeable about federal and institutional guidelines for equal opportunity and affirmative action. This may be a representative from the office of equal opportunity or affirmative action or it may be an individual who agrees to serve as an informed advocate. The role of the advocate is to ensure that the committee conforms, in its efforts and deliberations, to both the letter and the spirit of acting affirmatively to enhance the recruitment and appointment of minority group members.

Charge to the Search Committee Despite the importance of an administrative search, search committees are too often short-changed in the time needed to initiate their efforts. Advertising deadlines typically dictate the time spent evaluating their charge! Thus, it is incumbent upon the individual with responsibility for the hiring decision to allow for sufficient lead-time for the committee to do its work effectively .

• Specify the task before the committee. The charge to the committee is brought by the hiring official who has (a) assessed the long-term needs of the administrative area of the vacancy, (b) anticipated problems and future directions, and (c) based the minimal qualifications of the vacancy on known and anticipated needs. With this insight, the charge to the search committee can be made specific, and yet, can provide alternative configurations of skills and talents that could serve equally well in meeting the needs of the position.

• Clarify essential qualifications and broadly define the skills and experiences needed. Whenever possible, use generic skills and competencies as opposed to specific degrees and experiences. The objective is to identify the qualifications in such a way that persons who could succeed in the position are encouraged to apply.

• Weigh carefully the need for faculty rank and tenure as a qualification for a student affairs position. Determine whether faculty credentials are essential to accomplishing the position's tasks. Requiring faculty rank and tenure will make a difference in the composition of the pool. The number of minority candidates will be fewer. Moreover, as the numbers of available faculty shrink

112

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

as we move into the 1990s, administrative positions requiring faculty credentials will be increasingly difficult to fill.

• Focus on the tasks and responsibilities of the position in the advertisement copy. Do not include qualifications designed only to narrow the pool.

• Spend time early in the search process to consider the relative weights to be given different sets of education, training, and experience. Deal with committee members' preconceived notions of what qualifications the "most qualified" candidate should possess. Discuss the weight to be given to the candidate's ability to contribute to the cultural and ethnic diversity of the student affairs staff and the campus community.

• Specify to the committee that the position may not be filled unless recommendations are forwarded for hiring a minority candidate.

Enlarging the Pool The search committee's task is to search. Only an active and sustained effort will enlarge the pool of candidates. The majority of senior positions are filled by nominations, and most candidates hear of openings through personal contacts (Sagaria .. 1984). This knowledge, coupled with the fact that minority candidates are less likely to apply (Sagaria & Salimbene, 1986), underscores the need for an active and informed search effort.

The following strategies are designed to have broad application; however, it is important for the search committee to distinguish between senior, midlevel and entry leyel student affairs administrative vacancies. For example, positions for which faculty rank and tenure are prerequisites require different resources to be called upon and different candidate pools to be created. Efforts to enlarge the pool must be "custom-built" for each vacancy, based upon the particular skills and credentials demanded in the position.

• Exhaust the possibilities for specialized advertising and direct mailings. Resource g'.!ides and bibliographies of minority professional groups are readilv available.

• Charge any consulting firm aiding in the search process to place high priority on recruiting minorities. Consider retaining a firm that specializes in minority recruitment.

• Use a personal approach in contacting potential candidates. Brainstorm as a group the names of possible resource persons, such as graduates, faculty, professional contacts, community leaders. Have each committee member make a commitment to contact by telephone or in person a specific number of prospects each week and report back to the committee.

• Initiate ongoing efforts to cultivate prospective candidates' interest in your institution through national and regional conferences, exchanges and consulting at institutions, and sustained contacts with recent minority graduates. Talented persons are often not looking for positions; thus, efforts need to be made to create interest in your institution and student affairs administrative positions.

• Use professional conference placement centers for preliminary interviews to expand the pool. Do not eliminate potential minority candidates based on individual subjective assessments.

• Look outside of higher education. One of the primary reasons there is such promise in enhancing the participation and achievement of minorities in student affairs administration is that the search effort can move easily beyond

113

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

conventional academic pipelines. Look where minority professionals are. Seek contacts with federal, state, and local governments, and school districts. Consider recruiting minorities from the private sector. For example, experience in public relations or personnel administration may be highly beneficial to work in admissions or career planning and placement, while experience in social work may be highly beneficial to "helping" roles in student services. Use job referral services or agencies that wor~< outside of higher education.

• Encourage minority undergraduate students to pursue graduate degrees in higher education, student personnel, and related fields. Provide field experience on campus to blcourage them to return to their baccalaureate campus.

• Keep track of the names of minority prospects, learn their career interests, and invite them to apply for appropriate vacancies. Personal networking and sponsorship typically work because they are based upon knowledge of another and mutual trust. Such relationships are cultivated; howeVEr, they must be based on genuine interest in and concern for the candidate.

• Communicate with potential candidates. Informally convey encouragement and genuine interest in their candidacies. Much of the insight candidates need into a position is often provided informally. Seek to meet candidates' need for information about the position and the setting. Be h.onest.

Recommendations to Interview Once the pool of candidates is acquired, it is time to screen those candidates for campus interviews. It is tempting at this point to seek clear-cut criteria to lessen the ambiguity inherent in the process. It is important, however, to once again think broadly about the skills and competencies required to do the job.

• Address directly the issue of what qualifications the "most qualified" candidate will have. Determine what factors are most likely to pred:ct success in the position. Adhere to the original criteria established when the position was assessed and advertised.

• Select for the potential evident in a minority's candidacy. Look beyond paper credentials. Call for further information. Call references. Gather suft1cient information to make an informed decision before eliminating any minority from the pool.

• Acknowledge and fight the inclination to avoid risk by selecting a person who is similar to one's self or who has had similar experiences. Be careful when evaluating qualifications of individuals from less well-known institutions. Members of a search committee at a predominantly white 4-year college or university may lack experience with predominantly black insti:utions or community colleges-both likely sources of minority graduates and administrators. Lack of familiarity with an employing or deg:ee-granting institution should not be a reason to eliminate a candidate. Rather, members of the search committee should educate themselves about institutions with which they are not familiar.

• Avoid conventional biases as to what positions are antecedent steps to the vacancy. As a result of past hiring practices, many minority administrators have been pigeon-holed into special program areas such as developmental education or minority student programs. Think broadly about the skills and competencies gained. The admissions counselor who focused on minority

114

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

recruitment may have cultivated the essential skills directly applicable to a position in the dean's office. The ability to evaluate transferable skills is particularly important when evaluating candidates from outside higher education. Be sure to gather sufficient information to adequately understand and assess the candidate's experience and skills.

On-campus Interviews The choice of candidates for campus interviews is crucial to achieving success in the effort to enhance diversity. Search committees typically recommend to the hiring official a short list of those persons they judge to be most appropriate for the position. The hiring official should look carefully at the short list as well as any minority candidates who have been eliminated from consideration. The broader insight and perspective of the hiring official may :esult in reconsideration of minority candidates for this or other anticipated oositions.

Extreme care should be given to the rating of candidates on short lists. Rather than rank-ordering candidates, search committees should provide brief assessments of the strengths and weaknesses of each. The candidates assigned :0 the short list have emerged as the most qualified for the position. Relevant differences between individual candidates become more difficult to discern at this stage in the process, and further rankings are easily influenced by personal biases. Thus, minorities included on the short list should be interviewed. Moceover, at this point the candidate's ability to contribute to the cultural and ethnic diversity of the student affairs staff and the campus community should be a major consideration in determining the opportunity to interview.

• Extend interview opportunities to minority candidates. This is not to suggest that interviews should ever be token gestures. However, the opportunity to interview should be provided whenever there is genuine interest in further information on the candidate .

• Secure additional financial resources to support additional on-campus interviews if necessary to ensure the inclusion of minority candidates.

• Establish a comparable agenda for each candidate to be interviewed. Provide sufficient time for both the candidate and those involved in the decision to hire to gather information necessary to make informed decisions. Arrange for both minority and majority candidates to meet with minority members of the campus community. While this is important for all candidates to gain insights as to what the campus and larger community climates are like for minorities, it also provides an opportunity for minority administrators, staff, faculty, and students to form opinions about the candidates' philosophy and views regarding minority participation in the institution. This kind of interview demonstrates a commitment to hiring administrators with a sensitivity and commitment to diversity .

• Ask candidates if there are particular individuals or groups they would like to meet or particular questions they have that might best be answered by those n;)t included in the formal interview process. Do not make assumptions about candidates' interest in these contacts, ask.

• Prepare for the interview by establishing a list of questions relevant to the position that will be asked of all candidates. Examine the questions to determine if any of them may have the effect of screening out minority

115

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASPA JOURNAL

candidates. Search for any biases that may undergird questions or concerns about individual candidacies.

Decisions to Offer Employment If the process has been conducted effectively to this point, sufficient information should be available about every candidate to make an informed and mutually beneficial decision to hire. Information should be solicited from all the constituencies that met with the candidates, but the decision to hire administrative personnel is typically an individual decision made by the perscn to whom the position reports. Thus, the commitment of this individual to diversity within the student affairs division, as well as his or her felt responsibility for the success of new staff members is crucial. Particularly those hiring decisions based on a minority's potential must be accompanied by th.e commitment to cultivate talent, both to ensure the individual's success in the immediate position and to provide for his or her professional grow:h and development for future advancement.

• Identify persons with promise and offer them employment. Offers of employment to minority candidates should include discussion of the commitment to professional development. Potential for advancement is a primary consideration for minorities in their decision to move to an institution (Sagaria & Salimbene, 1986). Assistant and associate dean positions and directorships should be filled with the goal of cultivating talent for advancement to senior positions. Clarify opportunities for professional growth and advanced training or education.

• Be prepared to meet financially the market demand for the hiring of minority student affairs administrators. Considerations should be analogous to the market considerations in high demand faculty specialty areas.

• Offer second campus/community visits, to include family members if appropriate. The quality of life within the community (such as the school system, the religious community, and housing) may be important for a minority candidate to accept employment at an institution. Second visits are routinely offered to senior level administrators and need to be extended to prospective minority hires at all administrative levels.

• Be frank regarding spousal employment opportunity in the area and specify what assistance can be provided.

• Clarify the institutional role a minority administrator will be expected to assume. If the appointment includes expectations regarding special relationships with the community or students beyond what is stated in the job description, these need to be negotiated prior to employment. The hiring official needs to acknowledge the realities of institutional, community, and student expectations and demands upon minority student affairs administrators, and to clarify which roles (such as service, liaison, advising. and counseling) are rewarded or expected. Similarly, the minority administrator needs to clarify individual priorities regarding these roles and requirements for professional development.

Retention and Advancement Retention of student affairs administrators should be the outcome of good matches between persons and contexts. Good matches are mutually determined, shaped, and cultivated. Hiring officials have, however, the ethical responsibility for ensuring the best possible chance for success and growth of

116

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

each student affairs staff member hired. Opportunity for growth and advancement are prime factors in the retention of personnel, and have been found to be more important determinants for minority administrators in deciding te' remain at or leave institutions than for majority administrators (Sagaria & Salimbene, 1986). Opportunity for growth and advancement is often a necessary but not sufficient condition for retention.

• Orient new minority student affairs staff members. Effective orientation provides appropriate information on the job, the administrative unit, the institution, and the community. If expectations of role have been made explicit during the hiring negotiations, there should be no surprises at this point. Bo:h formal and informal efforts should be made to welcome minority members to the student affairs staff and the community and should extend beyond the first week of employment.

• Aim for a critical mass of minority hires. Feelings of tokenism and isolation of minority group members can only be eliminated by more balanced ratios of minority and majority professionals on student affairs staffs and on campus.

• Identify, groom, and train talented minorities for senior roles. Sponsorship is wen-established as a means to advancement for administrators but it needs to be intentional in the case of minorities. Developmental relationships between administrators should be consciously cultivated in order to develop the competence, the contacts, and the confidence crucial for advancement. Relationships differ in intensity and duration but may include such diverse roles as role modeling, peer counseling, coaching, career advising, sponsoring, and mentoring. Sensitive attention is required, however, to the quality of the relationships between majority supervisors and minority staff members. Mutual acceptance, comfortable interaction, and ease of communication cannot be assumed but should be developed and nurtured.

• Examine ;:arefully institutional policies and practices regarding.internal promotion and advancement. Most public institutions have written procedures guiding the filling of vacancies; all institutions have unwritten practices. Both formal and informal processes should be examined for unintended consequences that could be detrimental to the advancement of minorities. For example, newly created positions provide a readily available means to facilitate advancement of current employees; however, evidence indicates that new positions are typically filled by white men (Moore, 1983b; Sagaria & Johnsrud, 1987). All student affairs units should be charged with planning to fill new positions by ensuring that minorities within the institution are offered training and development sufficient to meet the requirements of changing position requirements.

Another policy that may be a disadvantage to minorities is the preference given to internal candidates. In those institutions with small percentages of minorities, internal promotion can result in the advancement of white men to the exclusion of minorities (Sagaria & Johnsrud, 1987). External searches should be conducted in situations where there are no minorities in a pool of candidates to be considered. Both policy and practice regarding hiring and promotion must be carefully examined to ascertain their impact upon minorities.

• Create meaningful opportunities for professional growth and development such as job rotations, institutionwide projects, and task forces. Consider opportunities carefully in terms of the developmental needs of individuals.

117

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

Enable staff members to learn different skills and functions, especially those of central concern to the institution, such as financial support and development, long-range planning, and enrollment management. Such experiences are especially important to enable minorities to move out of narrowly defined roles such as minority student counseling or special programs. Be sure visibility for the individual and not showca:;ing for the institution is the intent of service projects.

• Sponsor minority administrators to national leadership development programs such as the ACE Fellows program, Harvard's Institute for Education Management, and Bryn Mawr's Summer Institute. Initiate institutional and regional opportunities for leadership training, internships, and networking for minority student affairs staff.

• Negotiate release time for minority administrators to pursue professional development. Reduce the burden of committee service for a quarter or semester or relieve the administrator from assigned duties to create time for project tasks. Opportunities for leaves to pursue graduate education are especially important for the advancement of minorities, who are less likely than majority administrators to have earned doctorates.

• Provide appropriate, timely, and constructive evaluation of performance. Supervisors sometimes hesitate to offer constructive criticism to a minority staff member. Institute growth contracts or other formal mechanisms for evaluation to facilitate the evaluation process.

• Provide the needed financial support for travel and telephone expenses and professional memberships. For isolated minorities, maintaining professional reference groups based on expertise and race may be particularly important for professional and personal support. Moreover, the institutio~ benefits as minority group members aid in identifying other prospective talent.

• Attend to the climate of the campus community. Be proactive in efforts to promote and honor cultural and ethnic diversity on campus and in the community. Be quick in response to allegations of harassment or to racial incidents. Have procedures for handling such charges established and easily accessible.

• Make counter-offers when minority administrators are considering opportunities to leave the institution. Talented individuals whD have contributed to an institution and whose continuing service car. be mutually beneficial should be enticed to remain.

• Conduct exit interviews. Learn why minority group members chose to leave the institution and use the information to initiate needed changes to enhance future retention.

REMOVING THE OBSTACLES

The strategies outlined above to enhance the recruitment, retenEon, and advancement of minorities in student affairs are not easily implemented. They require commitment, time, energy, and resources. Although these preconditions can and should be mandated from the senior administrative level, there are other obstacles that need to be acknowledged and addressed.

One is the diffusion of responsibility that accompanies decentralized administrative hiring and retention. Centralized efforts are easiEr to monitor, control, and hold accountable. However, the profeSSional expertise, shared

118

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

SAGARIA, JOHNSRUD

authority, and autonomy of student affairs administrative units are realities in ~1.igher education organizations, and thus, responsibility for enacting a divisionwide priority such as increased participation of minorities is subject to this organizational decentralization. The buck is easily passed. The larger the student affairs division, the more difficult it is to mandate commitment and action. One means to address the obstacle of diffused responsibility is the :realion of a task force spanning student affairs units and representing each unit through the participation of key personnel. The goal is to provide an integrative force for change by involving those able to command attention, respect, and commitment from diverse units. Another means is financial inducements such as requiring units to return a certain percentage of their budgets to the CSAO to be reallocated to units that are most successful in hiring and advancing minorities.

Another obstacle emerges as the goal of this integrative task force is considered, and that is the difficulty of enacting any change that requires a shift in attitudes and norms. The often unstated cause of the lack of minority representation in higher education is racism and prejudice. Consciously and unconsciously, negative decisions are made at every level of education and employment about the ability and the desirability of minorities. In administrative hiring, the subjective nature of the criteria relevant to the decision to hire opens the door to unconscious racism. Skills tend to be more objective and proscribed at lower administrative levels, but at senior levels, the criteria for appointment are amorphous qualities like leadership or ease of communication or how comfortable one feels toward a person (Sagaria, 1985). Discretion and trust are considered in lieu of more objective criteria at these levels. Thus, white men are more likely to be hired when subjective criteria are applied because white men, who are predominantly the hiring officials in higher education, tend to trust those who seem most like themselves (Kanter, 1977).

Confronting racism and changing attitudes and norms require that policy and practice be addressed within every unit and level of the student affairs division. Individuals need to be called upon to scrutinize their own assumptions and values regarding the recruitment and retention of minorities. The responsibility lies not only with individual decision-makers, however, but also in the structures and policies that govern the workplace. The strategies outlined above call for structural changes: the examination of policy and practice, the removal of minorities from stereotyped and dead-end jobs, the balancing of numbers in order to combat the isolating effects of tokenism, and the intentional identification, grooming, and advancement of talented minorities.

CONCLUSION

It is time to move from rhetoric to results. CSAOs must act boldly and deliberately to recruit, advance, and retain minorities on their staffs. Increasing the minority presence in student affairs is an essential step toward solving such urgent campus problems as attrition, loneliness, isolation, and harassment. At the same time, the urgency of these problems must not obscure the overarching goal-creating campus environments that mirror the cultural richness of our country and ensure full equity. The limited racial, ethnic, and

119

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7

NASP A JOURNAL

cultural diversity of our campuses compromises the educational experience of all students. We must provide environments that enrich the lives of students by deepening their appreciation of racial, ethnic, and cultural Cifferences and challenging their prejudices. Not until we begin to change the profiles of student affairs staffs will we begin to realize the goal of egalitarian campuses that model for majority and minority students, faculty, and administrative staff, the value and benefits of diversity.

References American Council on Education. (1987). Background paper I: A status report Of! minorities in higher

education. Washington, DC: Office of Minority Concerns. Appleton, J.R (1971). Survey of minority group persons employed in student affairs positions

at NASPA member institutions. NASPA Journal, 9(2), 96-105. Astin, A.W. (1975). Preventing students from dropping out. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Frances, c., & Mensel, RF. (1981). Women and minorities in administration of higher education

institutions. Washington, DC: College and University Personnel Association. Harter, c., Moden, G.S., & Wilson, P. (1982). Women and minority professional staff in

student personnel: A census and analysis. NASPA Journal, 20(2), 42-50. Kanter, RM. (1977). Men and women of the corporation. New York: Basic Books. Moore, K.M. (1983a). Women and minorities: Leaders in transition-a national Etudy of higher

education administrators. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University, Center for the Study of Higher Education.

Moore, K.M. (1983b). Leaders in transition: A national study of higher education administrat()Ts. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University, Center for the Study of Higher Education.

Myers, E., & Sandeen, A. (1973). Survey of minority and women student affairs staff members employed in NASPA member institutions. NASPA Journal, 11(1), 2-14.

National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA). (1988). Unpublished raw data. [Database compiled from membership renewals.] Washington, DC: Author.

Rickard, S.T. (1985a). Career pathways of chief student affairs officers: Making room at the top for females and minorities. NASPA Journal, 22(4), 52-60.

Rickard, S.T. (1985b). The chief student affairs officer: Progress toward equity. Journal of College Student Personnel, 26, 5-10.

Rickard, S.T. (1985c). Student affairs salaries: Progress toward equity. NAS!-'A Forum. Sagaria, M.A. (1984). Academic staff job changes: Winning characteristics in organizational

musical chairs. Research in Higher Education, 21, 137-149. Sagaria, M.A. (1985). The managerial skills and experiences of men and women

administrators: Similarities and differences. Journal of Educational Equity and Leadership, 5, 19-30.

Sagaria, M.A., & Johnsrud, L.K. (1987). Many are candidates, but few compete: The impact of internal position change of administrative and professional staff on white women and minorities. Columbus, OH: Ohio State University, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership.

Sagaria, M.A., & Salimbene, A.M. (1986, April). Mobility and stability motives of administrators: Evidence from the Leaders in Transition study. Paper presented at the mee:ing of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.

Stewart, D.M. (1988). Overcoming the barriers to successful participation by minorities. Review of Higher Education, 11, 329-336.

Wilson, S. (1977). Survey of minority and women student affairs staff members employed in NASPA member institutions in 1974. NASPA Journal, 14(3), 57-73.

120

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

72.9

3.44

.241

] at

06:

14 1

9 A

ugus

t 201

7