Inclusive Faculty Hiring

The ongoing demographic shifts in our world are reflected in our higher education populations. As institutions strive to prepare students to live and work in an increasingly diverse world, it is imperative that these students encounter faculty and staff with equally diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and lived experiences. Diversifying our current faculty requires us to adopt alternative methods to create a more equitable workforce. 

Inclusive hiring is an intentional process initiated by search committees to cultivate a diverse pool of candidates. This process requires a depth of knowledge that begins with the search committee members themselves. Hiring committees must become self-aware of their own biases and how they may filter into decision making processes. They must also enact specific strategies that not only focus on how best to attract a faculty candidate but consider the support needed for faculty retention and advancement. 

This guide provides a variety of accessible resources to inform the faculty hiring process. A key feature of this guide is its inclusion of information from national conversations on faculty diversity and the implications for minoritized faculty whose disparate experiences in higher education are instructive. This guide represents a centering of the lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion to enhance the faculty hiring process.