Peralta Community College District
AP 7121
Administrative Procedure 7121 Faculty Hiring
(Totally revised; as of 10-28-14)
I.
Philosophy
A. The Peralta Community College District seeks a qualified and diverse faculty dedicated to
student success. The District is committed to an open and inclusive hiring process that
supports the goals of diversity and equal opportunity providing equal consideration and
opportunities for all qualified candidates.
B. The faculty, staff, and administration recognize the importance of an effective hiring process
that reflects mutual professional responsibility and interest in achieving the common goal of
hiring outstanding faculty who best meet the needs of students.
C. The faculty, represented by the Academic Senate, has the professional responsibility to
insure the quality of their faculty peers and to participate in the development and
implementation of procedures for the faculty hiring process.
D. Hiring procedures provide for a collegial hiring process wherein responsibility for selecting
faculty from a pool of qualified applicants is shared cooperatively by faculty and
administration, participating effectively in all phases of the hiring process.
II.
Faculty Hiring Qualifications
The Peralta Community College District has established the following minimum hiring
qualifications for all faculty positions:
A. Minimum qualifications or the equivalent as established by the Academic Senate for
California Community Colleges and adopted by the California Community College Board of
Governors are used to establish the minimum qualifications for each faculty position. These
minimum qualifications are published in the “Minimum Qualifications for Faculty and
Administrators in California Community Colleges” handbook and are typically updated every
two years.
B. Demonstrated sensitivity to, understanding of, and respect for the diverse academic,
socioeconomic, cultural, religious, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status,
disability, and ethnic backgrounds of community college students. (Education Code, section
87360)
C. Desirable qualifications beyond minimum qualifications can be established through a
deliberative process at the college and are reviewed by the Vice Chancellor of Human
Resources and Employee Relations or his/her designee for job relatedness and potential
adverse impact on the applicant pool.
III.
Equal Employment Opportunity
A. The district Office of Human Resources (HR) is responsible for monitoring the District’s
compliance with equal employment opportunity principles including, but not limited to, a
review of the job description and announcement, composition and procedures of the selection
committee, and the adequacy of the pool of applicants.
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Peralta Community College District
IV.
AP 7121
Position identification, approval, request to hire, and hiring process
A. Faculty positions are identified and prioritized through an integrated planning process
established at each College. That process will include appropriate administrators,
faculty/department chair, the Academic Senate President, and the College President.
B. The College President forwards a request to advertise packet to the district Office of
Human Resources and Employee Relations to begin the hiring process. That request to hire
will include the following:
(1) A cover memo regarding the faculty position to be advertised for hiring.
(2) A Personnel Action Form (paper form) – Request to Advertise with the following
information:
(a) Position Control Number
(b) Job Code and Title
(c) Budget Code
(d) Comments, which should include the prior incumbent’s name or state if it is a
new position.
(e) Faculty Hiring and Checklist with all required signatures
(3) Position Description (see section V)
(4) Recommended Composition of the Selection Committee signed off by the college
President and the college Academic Senate President (Faculty Committee
Composition Report form) (see section VI)
(Please note in section I.A.1 of the Faculty Evaluations Policies and Procedures
Handbook the requirement of establishing a Tenure Review Committee and notifying
the Vice Chancellor of Educational Services.)
All items listed above must be submitted for the request to hire to move forward. If any item
is not included, the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations will return
the request to advertise packet to the college.
C. Once the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations has approved the
Position Description and the Composition of the Selection Committee and the Personnel
Action Form has all necessary district signatures for final approval, the college will be notified
and the college Selection Committee, within seven (7) business days, is then required to
meet and develop a Selection Committee Process Timeline which is linked with the Search
Process and Recruitment Plan. The College President will forward to district HR the
Selection Committee Process Timeline. Once the Selection Committee Process
Timeline is received by district HR and the Personnel Action Form has been finalized (has all
required district office signatures of approval), the job will be posted. (see section VII)
D. Once the Selection Committee through an interview process has determined candidates to
be forwarded for final interview and a memo sent to district HR within two (2) business days
regarding the selected candidates, district Office of Human Resources and Employee
Relations shall within three (3) business days review the Selection Committee’s
recommendation and forward a hiring packet to the College President. The College
President, within five (5) business days shall forward to the district HR a College President’s
Process Timeline with specific dates for interviewing the candidates, conducting reference
checks, and forwarding to the Vice Chancellor of Human Resources (or designee, i.e.,
Director of Human Resources) a recommendation memo addressed to the Chancellor
regarding the recommended finalist. The Office of Human Resources will forward the request
to the Chancellor for authorization to hire. (see section IX)
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E. From the time the position closes to the time the President forwards a recommended finalist
to the district for approval, that timeframe typically should be no longer than 45 business
days.
V.
Position Description/Announcement
A. The position description/announcement are prepared and reviewed at the college through a
collaborative process and forwarded by the College President to the district Office of Human
Resources and Employee Relations in the request to hire packet.
B. The appropriate administrator, department chair, discipline faculty, and Academic Senate
President have the responsibility for writing the position description/announcement. The
position description/announcement will include: a description of the position duties and
responsibilities; the required minimum qualifications; a statement in accordance with
Education Code, section 87360 (see II.B above); additional desirable qualifications; and
provision for presentation of qualifications that are equivalent to the minimum qualifications
(see AP 7211 Minimum Qualifications and Equivalencies).
C. The position description/announcement requires the approval of the College President and
the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations.
D. The district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations will post and advertise the
position once the Office has received and approved a Selection Committee Process
Timeline from the Selection Committee and the Personnel Action Form has all required
district signatures for approval before the position can be posted and advertised.
E. Positions shall be advertised widely, both internally and externally, in order to ensure a pool
of highly qualified applicants and to further the district’s Equal Employment Opportunity plan
and goals.
VI.
Composition of the Selection Committee
A. The Selection committee is composed of Faculty and one Administrator.
B. Faculty: The Selection Committee shall include at least three full-time faculty members
(tenured, tenure track, and non-tenure track), at least one of whom will be from the discipline
and other faculty members to be appointed by the college Academic Senate President. The
college Academic Senate President makes the appointments in consultation with the
department chair and the faculty of the discipline. The department chair is typically a
member of the Selection Committee. The college Academic Senate President, if needed,
can appoint a faculty member from another college in the district. A part-time faculty or a
retired faculty member, who has discipline expertise, may be added to the Selection
Committee as an additional member.
The Academic Senate President in appointing faculty to a Selection Committee is expected to
consider balance on the committee reflective of gender and ethnic diversity. The Academic
Senate President may appoint up to two additional faculty members in order to achieve that
balance. Such faculty members may be from related disciplines, non-related disciplines, or
from another college. The committee also may include a classified staff member (for
example, a science lab technician) when appropriate. Such an appointment is made in
consultation with the college Classified Senate President.
C. Administrator: The College President appoints one administrator to the Selection Committee.
This administrator convenes the initial meeting of the Selection Committee as per the
Selection Committee Process Timeline submitted to the district Office of Human
Resources and Employee Relations (see section IV.C). [see also section IV.C. and VII]
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D. The recommended composition of the Selection Committee is signed off by the Academic
Senate President and the College President and per section IV.B. is forwarded to the district
Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations as a part of the request to hire packet.
VII.
Search Process, Recruitment Plan, and Timeline
A. Once the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations has completed the
initial paperwork for the position, has approved the position description, and the composition
of the Selection Committee, and the Personnel Action Form has received all necessary
district signatures for approval, the College will be notified to then send a Selection
Committee Process Timeline (see IV.C). Once that plan/timeline is received at the district
Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations, the position will be posted. The College
President should forward the Selection Committee Process Timeline (see IV.C) no less
than seven (7) business days after it has been requested.
B. The search and selection process for permanent faculty positions to fill vacant or new faculty
positions shall take place during the regular academic year. Exceptions require that the
college Academic Senate President ensures that appropriate faculty members are available
to participate in the recruitment and selection process after the close of the regular academic
year.
C. The length of the advertising period shall be long enough to ensure a sufficient pool of
qualified applicants. In general, a position shall be advertised from four to six weeks before
the screening process begins.
D. A timeline listing the following search activities with dates (Selection Committee Process
Timeline), as noted previously (section IV.C), shall be forwarded to the district Office of
Human Resources and Employee Relations once the college has been notified that the
position description and Selection Committee composition have been approved. It is to be
noted that the timeline must factor in each committee member’s work schedule so that all
committee members can attend all meetings. The timeline shall include the following:
1. The date the Selection Committee met to select a faculty chair and to set the required
timeline (Selection Committee Process Timeline).
2. A proposed date for posting online the faculty position description/announcement
3. A proposed date for meeting for Selection Committee training to be provided by the
district Office of Human Resources regarding all aspects of the selection process, as well
as instruction regarding confidentiality, integrity, and conflict of interest. Further the
training will emphasize that Selection Committee members must be present for all
committee meetings and for each interview in order to participate effectively in the
selection process. Information also will be provide regarding setting screening criteria for
review of applications and writing interview questions and desired responses.
4. Dates for Selection Committee to:
 Finalize the application screening criteria (to be forwarded by the Selection
Committee Chair to HR for review and approval) [see section VIII.B]
 Finalizing interview questions (to be forwarded by the Selection Committee
Chair to HR for review and approval)
5. Dates for review of applications for consideration for interviews
6. Date for a Selection Committee meeting to select candidates for interview and the date
when these will be forward to HR for review and approval (this includes both those to be
interviewed and those not to be interviewed).
7. Dates for Interviews and Selection Committee recommendation on finalists (at the time
finalists are selected, the Selection Committee Chair shall forward a memo within two (2)
business days to HR regarding the selected finalists for HR review)
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E. HR will forward a packet regarding the finalists to the College President and request a
College President’s Process Timeline (see IV.D) for completing the hiring process.
(The Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations will provide the Selection
Committee and college President with a sample timeline with dates.)
VIII.
Review of Applications by district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations and
by the Selection Committee
A. All employment applications are filed electronically with the district Office of Human
Resources and Employee Relations. The district Office of Human Resources and
Employee Relations shall conduct a screening of application materials to determine
whether all required materials have been submitted and to determine if the applicants
meet Minimum Qualifications. All necessary and required transcripts of official
coursework and degree completion are required as part of the application process.
Those applicants who fail to submit all required transcripts and application materials by
the due date will not be considered for the position and will be so informed by the Office
of Human Resources and Employee Relations by email through the applicant tracking
system (selection committee members are not involved in the process at this point in
time).
B. Minimum Qualifications review is in guided by the California Community College
chancellor’s Office manual, “Minimum Qualifications for Faculty and Administrators in
California Community Colleges.” As previously noted, the minimum qualifications are
listed on the job posting. (See section II.A) Those applicants who are determined to not
meet minimum qualifications will be notified by the Office of Human Resources and
Employee Relations and the final determination is not subject to appeal. Whenever the
Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations has specific questions regarding
whether an applicant meets Minimum Qualifications (i.e., the title of a degree does not
exactly match those listed in the Minimum Qualifications), HR will consult with the District
Academic Senate President or the District Academic Senate President’s designee.
C. For an applicant who has made a request for equivalency review (an option provided on
the job description/announcement), his/her request will be forwarded to the District
Academic Senate President for equivalency review and determination within five (5)
business days. That determination will be filed in the district Office of Human Resources
and Employee Relations and will be provided to the Selection Committee. Those
applicants determined not to meet the equivalency requirements, as provided in
Administrative Procedure 7211 Minimum Qualifications and Equivalencies, do not have a
right to appeal the decision.
D. The Selection Committee will only review applicants who have been determined to meet
Minimum Qualifications.
IX.
Selection Committee Responsibilities
A. Once HR has made a determination as to which applicants meet minimum qualifications,
the Selection Committee will review all approved applicants and based on approved
Screening Criteria shall select those applicants to be interviewed per the Selection
Committee Process Timeline previously submitted to the office of Human Resources
and Employee Relations.
B. Selection of applicants to be interviewed is determined in keeping with screening
criteria set by the Selection Committee. The screening criteria are reviewed and
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approved by the district Office of Human Resources prior to the Selection Committee
using them to screen the applicants.
Those criteria may include the following (per the job description duties and desirable
qualifications) :
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Years of experience in the subject area;
Education background/history;
Documentation of professional growth and service;
Experience working with the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural,
religious, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, disability, ethnic
backgrounds of students;
Teaching experience
Experience with development of learning outcomes and design of alternative
learning opportunities;
Documented experience to integrating new technologies;
Experience designing pedagogy-related to learning outcomes.
C. Once the Selection Committee, through this screening process, has determined which
applicants to interview, that list of applicants is forwarded to the district Office of Human
Resources and Employee Relations for review and approval within seven (7) business
days. Within two (2) business days, HR will contact all applicants who have not been
chosen for interview. Communication with applicants is made by e-mail through the
applicant tracking system.
D. Per their Selection Committee Process Timeline, the Selection Committee also must
1. Formulate uniform interview questions and appropriate answers/desired responses
for applicant interviews, which may include a writing exercise or teaching
demonstration, and have them approved by the district Office of Human Resources
and Employee Relations;
2. Establish a standardized question and follow-up procedure;
3. Maintain strict confidentiality of the interview questions;
4. Call the candidates to set interview appointments and shall send confirmation e-mails
and will copy HR on the confirmation e-mails;
5. Conduct interviews and evaluate responses;
6. Tabulate the cumulative scores to identify the top candidates and discuss the
strengths and weaknesses of the candidates;
7. Determine those applicants to be forwarded as Finalists (from 0-3 finalists); and
8. Send to the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations a memo
listing the Finalists and their strengths and weakness within two (2) business days
after the final interview.
X.
Selection of Final Candidate
A. The district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations within three (3)
business days shall forward to the College President a packet with needed
documentation regarding the finalists and for completing the hiring process. It is the
responsibility then of the College President within five (5) business days to forward to
the district Office of Human Resources and Employee Relations a College President’s
Process Timeline with specific dates for interviewing the final candidates, for
conducting reference checks, and for forwarding to the Vice Chancellor of Human
Resources (or designee, i.e., the Director of Human Resources) a recommendation
memo addressed to the Chancellor regarding the recommended finalist. The Office of
Human Resources will forward the request to the Chancellor for authorization to hire.
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(section IV.D)
B. The college President, the appropriate Vice President, the Selection Committee Chair,
and the Academic Senate President or designated Academic Senate Officer shall review
the Selection Committee's recommendations and interview the finalists. The college
President or appropriate Vice President will conduct reference checks.
C. The College President within five (5) days after the interviews and reference checks (per
the College President’s Process Timeline, see IV.D.) may
1. make a recommendation from those candidates forwarded by the
Selection Committee;
2. request additional candidates to be recommended by the Selection
Committee; or,
3. reopen the process.
The College President, in consultation with the Selection Committee Chair, shall
recommend the finalist to the Chancellor for final approval by means of a
recommendation memo addressed to the Chancellor and forwarded only to the district
Office Vice Chancellor of Human Resources and Employee Relations (or designee, i.e.
the Director of Human Resources), along with the completed finalist packet which
includes the Finalist Checklist form and items listed on the form.
If the Selection Committee cannot recommend any applicant(s), or if the President cannot
choose from any of those recommended, the Office of Human Resources and Employee
Relations will be notified immediately and the hiring process may be reopened.
XI.
Notification of Candidate
After the Chancellor's approval, it is solely the responsibility of the Office of Human
Resources and Employee Relations to notify the successful candidate and send a
formal written notification of the employment offer. Non-selected finalists shall not be
notified until after an appointment has been approved by the Chancellor and accepted by the
candidate.
References:
Education Code Sections 87360 (b); 87400 et seq., 87419.1; 87600 et seq.;
Title 5 Section 51025
The original procedure was approved by the Chancellor: October 18, 2012
Revised and approved by the Chancellor:
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