EDU 529 Educational Personnel Management Unit 1
1. Describe the responsibilities of the Board of Education. What is the role of the Board of Education in
relation to the human resources function?
2. Define affirmative action and determine its significance in establishing accountability within the human
resources department.
3. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is the most comprehensive legislation ever passed to
protect the rights of individuals with disabilities. Several provisions of ADA impact recruitment and hiring.
Analyze the following provisions from the point of view of the human resources administrator: those
protected, the selection process, undue hardship, and accessibility.
4. Examine four issues that affect recruitment and analyze the relationship of employment variables to
career choice.
Unit 1 – Organizational Dimensions
Key TermsAssistant superintendent for human resources:
Asynchronous:
Cyberethics:
Datamart:
Generation Y:
No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB): The law requires all children to be proficient in reading and mathematics by
2014. Other provisions of the law mandate improved communications with parents and improved safety at school
for children.
Online analytical processing:
Risk management
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Local boards of education create the policies that govern school districts, and such boards hire
superintendents of schools to administer the educational services and implement the policies of their
respective boards.
School districts are perhaps the most democratically controlled of any agencies of government.
Board members, as individuals, exercise no authority outside a legally constituted meeting.
Policies can be agreed on only in an official meeting, and individual members cannot commit the board to
any definite action except as authorized by the board at a legal meeting.
Board policies must not conflict with the U.S. Constitution, federal law, or federal court decisions.
Regulations issued by a state department of education should be considered by a board in creating policies
but may be ignored.
Local traditions, opinions, and goals should also be taken into consideration because policies objectionable
to the local community will weaken citizen support.
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The policy may also suggest how it is to be carried out, but it should never be executive in substance or tone.
In like manner, policies authorize all school programs and activities, and provide stability when there is a
change in personnel.
After the board of education establishes its policies, the superintendent of schools and his or her staff are
responsible for establishing administrative processes and procedures that implement the board policies.
Administration is the social process of managing human, financial, and material resources toward the
fulfillment of a mission.
Historically and, in most states, by statutory mandate, school boards have delegated the responsibility for
implementing policies to a chief executive officer—the superintendent of schools.
The superintendent is the only employee who deals with the board of education on a regular and direct basis.
Question 2:
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The director of affirmative action is responsible for administering the school district’s affirmative action
program.
Advising the superintendent on recruitment of minorities, women, older workers, and people with
disabilities for those classified, and positions in which they may be falling short of the district’s affirmative
action goals.
Maintaining liaison with local, state, and federal agencies and with organizations concerned with promoting
fair employment practices.
Most federal legislation contains an equal opportunity clause, which in turn dictates the organization of a
detailed program for carrying out the intent of the law in all phases of the human resources function.
However, the manner in which boards of education, superintendents, and human resources administrators
establish and interpret policies and procedures can violate the principle of fairness. This is seen in the human
resources function, particularly in regard to affirmative action and equal employment opportunity.
Rawls’ second principle asserts that social and economic inequalities must benefit everyone, not just the
least advantaged, and that equal opportunity to secure offices and positions must be open to all.
“There can be justice for none if there is not justice for all.”
Affirmative action programs are detailed, result-oriented programs that, when carried out in good faith,
result in compliance with the equal opportunity clauses found in most legislation and executive orders.
Affirmative action, therefore, is not a law within itself, but rather an objective reached by following a set of
guidelines that ensure compliance with legislation and executive orders.
This executive order, which had the force of law, established a policy of equal employment opportunity in
regard to defense contracts.
The EEOC was greatly strengthened in 1972 by the passage of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. It
extended coverage to private employers of fifteen or more persons, educational institutions, state and local
governments, public and private employment agencies, labor unions with fifteen or more members, and joint
labor management committees for apprenticeships and training.
Eight steps emerged from federal guidelines9: First, each board of education should issue a written policy
covering equal employment opportunity and affirmative action to be enforced by its chief executive officer,
the superintendent.
Commitments that should be included in the policy are a determination to recruit, hire, and promote for all
job classifications without regard to race, creed, national origin, gender, age, color, or disability
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a determination to ensure that all human resources matters—such as compensation, benefits, transfers,
layoffs, returns from layoffs, and continuing education—will be administered without regard to race, creed,
national origin, gender, age, color, or disability.
Second, the superintendent should appoint a top-level official to be directly responsible for implementing
the program.
He or she should be responsible for developing policy statements and affirmative action programs.
Third, a school district should disseminate information about its affirmative action program both internally
and externally.
Step four begins with a survey and analysis of minority and female employees by school and job
classification.
This determines underutilization, defined as having fewer minorities or women in a particular job category
or school than could be reasonably expected, and concentration, defined as more of a particular group in a
job category or school than would reasonably be expected.
With this information, the school district’s administration should proceed to step five, developing
measurable and remedial goals on a timetable.
Step six calls for developing and implementing specific programs to eliminate discriminatory barriers.
Recruitment procedures for each job category must be analyzed and reviewed to identify and eliminate
discriminatory barriers.
Through careful record keeping, existing barriers may be identified and specific remedial programs initiated.
These programs may include providing training for targeted minorities and women who are currently
qualified for upward mobility, and more extensive training for those who are not yet qualified.
Under affirmative action guidelines, the criteria for deciding when a person will be terminated, demoted,
disciplined, laid off, or recalled should be the same for all employees.
Seemingly neutral practices should be reexamined to see if they have a disparate effect on minority groups.
Step seven is to establish internal auditing and reporting systems to monitor and evaluate progress in meeting
the goals of the affirmative action program. Quarterly reports based on the data already outlined should be
available to all administrators, enabling them to see how the program is working and where improvement is
needed.
Developing supportive district and community programs is the final step in an affirmative action program.
It may include developing support services for recruiting minority and female employees, as well as
encouraging current employees to further their education in order to qualify for promotions.
Question 3:
THOSE PROTECTED
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This is the most comprehensive legislation ever passed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.
Title I sets forth who is qualified to be protected by the ADA. Essentially, under the ADA, a person has a
disability if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.
The term physical or mental impairment in this definition includes cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy,
multiple sclerosis, AIDS, HIV infection, emotional illness, drug addiction, alcoholism, and dyslexia.
However, conditions such as a person’s height, weight, or muscle tone, if these are within normal ranges,
do not qualify under these terms.
Further, having a particular hair or eye color, being pregnant, and having served a sentence in prison are not
examples of a physical or mental impairment.
The EEOC takes into account three factors when determining if a disability substantially limits a major life
activity: (1) the nature and severity of the impairment, (2) its duration or expected duration, and (3) the
actual or expected permanent long-term impact resulting from it. Thus, a broken limb, influenza, and a
tonsillectomy, for example, are not disabilities.
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In March 1995, the EEOC issued an interpretation of the ADA stating that it protects people from
employment discrimination who are healthy but who carry abnormal genes. If the results of these tests are
known by potential employers, some of them might discriminate against those applicants who carry
abnormal genes in order to avoid future lost days from work and higher employer-paid healthcare premiums.
SELECTION PROCESS
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An applicant for a position in a school district that is protected by the ADA must be otherwise qualified for
the job. The term otherwise qualified means that the applicant can perform the essential functions of the job
with or without reasonable accommodation.
Therefore, the applicant must satisfy job requirements for educational background, employment experience,
skills, licenses, and other qualifications that are job related.
This determination about essential functions must be made before carrying out certain processes of the
human resources function.
All of the above, with the addition of reassignment to another position, must be considered for an employee
who becomes disabled.
First, determine the essential functions of the job. Second, consult with the individual who has the disability
in order to determine his or her precise limitations and how those limitations may be overcome. Third, also
with his or her assistance, identify potential accommodations and assess their effectiveness. Fourth, after
considering the preferences of the individual with the disability, implement the accommodations agreed on
by the individual and the employer.
As long as the accommodation selected provides the employee an equal opportunity to perform the job.
UNDUE HARDSHIP
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It is not necessary to provide a reasonable accommodation if this would cause an undue hardship on the
school district.
This means that the accommodation would be unduly costly, extensive, substantial, or disruptive, or would
fundamentally alter the nature of the operation of the school district.
Factors that can be considered in making this determination of undue hardship are the cost of the
accommodation, size of the school district, financial resources of the district, and nature or structure of the
district’s operations.
If a particular accommodation would be an undue hardship, the school district staff must try to identify
another accommodation that does not pose a hardship.
The applicant or employee must also be given the opportunity to provide or pay for a portion of the
accommodation that constitutes an undue hardship.
ACCESSABILITY
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This self-evaluation provided an opportunity for input from interested individuals, from individuals with
disabilities, and from organizations representing people with disabilities.
Each school district is to maintain a file that is open to inspection by the public that includes the names of
the interested persons consulted, a description of the areas examined, the problems identified, and a
description of any modifications made.
School districts must also maintain on file a transition plan open to inspection by the public that sets forth
the structural changes to facilities that were to be undertaken in order to make their facilities accessible.
The ADA also required school districts to appoint a staff member responsible for investigating complaints
regarding noncompliance, and to develop a procedure for the prompt and equitable resolution of such
complaints.
Question 4:
ISSUES THAT AFFECT RECRUITMENT:
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AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
o Many school districts make a practice of promoting already hired employees into supervisory or
administrative positions. This is, of course, a legitimate practice, with many advantages for building
morale within the school district.
o This places responsibility on the administration to develop procedures that ensure promotion
opportunities for those who have demonstrated that they are capable of handling higher-level tasks.
The appraisal process is the vehicle for documenting the quality of such performance.
o The concept of equality in opportunity, however, must eventuate in a set of recruitment procedures.
Internal promotion as a practice does not nullify affirmative action requirements.
o Except for bona fide occupational qualifications, a district must establish promotion procedures that
clearly do not discriminate against minorities and protected groups of employees.
o A district can demonstrate equal opportunity by advertising promotional opportunities, establishing
promotion criteria, and offering equal access to career advancement training programs. No position
should be filled without giving qualified employees an opportunity to apply.
o Affirmative action does not require the promoting of unqualified employees; however, it does
require that qualified individuals be given an equal opportunity.
o The days should be gone when a person can be hired simply because he or she is someone’s friend
or relative. Physical appearance and the interviewer’s “hunch” are also no longer acceptable criteria
for hiring or promoting an individual.
PUBLIC IMAGE AND POLICIES OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
o Prospective candidates may not be interested in pursuing a job opportunity in a particular school
district because of that district’s image in the community.
o For example, a district that offers an inferior curriculum, is understaffed, or lacks support services
will find it difficult to attract the best people in education.
o The policies of the board of education and the administrative processes and procedures of the district
are also important considerations to most candidates.
POSITIONS TO BE FILLED
o A third constraint in recruiting for a position centers on the attractiveness of the job itself.
o A position viewed as anxiety laden or that lacks promotion potential may not interest the best people.
o The most common situation that falls within this category is the succession problem.
o Following either a successful person or a person who was a failure is difficult.
SALARY AND FRINGE BENEFITS
o The best people for a job become candidates only if the financial compensation is in line with the
responsibilities of the position.
o Recruiters may need to negotiate compensation with candidates.
o In school districts, however, the salary for a position is usually fixed on a salary schedule, and the
fringe benefits are universally applied to all employees in a certain category. This makes the
recruitment of highly skilled candidates a difficult task, particularly if the job is undesirable or if
the district has a poor image.
o The exceptions to this rule are the central office administrative positions at the superintendent and
assistant superintendent levels.
CAREER CHOICES
 First, people have different interests, abilities, and personalities that, nevertheless, will qualify each
person for many different occupations.
 When recruiting people for a particular position, the recruiter should understand how ability, interest,
and personality interface in various occupations.
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Second, occupational preferences, competencies, and self-images of people change with time and
experience, making personal adjustment a continuous process.
Third, satisfaction in both life and work depend on how well an individual can use his or her abilities
and find adequate outlets for his or her interests, personality traits, and values.
It is obviously important to link the interests, abilities, and personality traits of potential candidates to
how such individual characteristics will be challenged in the position.
Fourth, the process of occupational choice is influenced by employment variables such as salary, fringe
benefits, location, and opportunity for advancement, and nature of the work to be performed.
Finally, career choices are compromises between personal characteristics such as interests and abilities
and external factors such as the type of work to be performed.