January 2021 Updated Hiring Review Overview – Affirmative Action and Hiring

January 29, 2021

We have recently become aware that departments/schools have been requesting approval from the Provost's Hiring Freeze Committee to hire an individual, and on the basis of that approval seeking to either do a search which will, of course, yield the preapproved individual as the selectee or request a variance from the search altogether.  Both of these procedures run counter to the University's commitment to Affirmative Action.

To ensure that the principles of Affirmative Action are maintained, effective immediately any hire that needs to be first approved by the Provost’s Hiring Freeze Committee must follow these two procedures:  

1) the Provost's Hiring Freeze Committee must pre-approve the posting of the position in RAPS, and

2) the Provost's Hiring Freeze Committee must approve the selectee before the position is offered to the individual.   

A department/school should not recruit a person for a position and then seek central review and Affirmative Action clearance (see Hiring Review Overview - Updated January 2021).

Questions about the new procedures can be addressed to Carmen DeLeon, Assistant Provost for Academic Appointments, and/or Sheanine Allen, Senior Associate Director of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.

Latha Venkataraman
Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs

Jeri L. Henry
Vice Provost for Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action