College of Education
Minority Faculty Recruitment
June 2008
Consistent with the Conceptual Framework, the College of Education recognizes the importance of
providing diverse faculty who reflect the composition of American and Kentucky communities. A diverse
faculty has the knowledge and experience to prepare candidates to work in a variety of settings with
students from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. While recognizing that Murray State
University’s service area is primarily a culturally homogeneous region, every good faith effort is made to
increase and maintain faculty diversity.
The College of Education follows all University plans, policies and procedures for the hiring of minority
faculty. In addition, the College has supplemented these plans with additional initiatives to increase the
success of minority recruitment and hiring. The following recruiting initiatives and hiring procedures are
used to address all faculty vacancies.
Murray State University has specific guidelines and procedures for hiring faculty that places a special
emphasis on the recruitment of minority candidates. A requirement in the process is that all positions be
advertised in national publications to attract a pool of diverse applicants. Following the recruitment process
by each screening committee, the pool of applicants is reviewed by the Office of Equal Opportunity, the
Dean and the Vice President to determine that an adequate pool of diverse candidates exists. Inclusion of
minorities in the pool is encouraged. If minority applicants are not to be interviewed, specific reasons why
they are not being interviewed must be stated on the form; the reasons must identify deficiencies related to
the job description. Following the acceptance of an offer, minorities who were interviewed, but who did
not receive a job offer, are listed on the Employment Summary Form along with the reasons for not hiring.
This ensures that the University’s hiring practices are documented and can be audited for fairness and
equity.
In an effort to attract and hire excellent practitioners from the field, the College has implemented the
Distinguished Practitioners initiative. In this program, teachers take leave from their school districts and
are hired on a Memorandum of Agreement to teach full time in the College. Efforts have been made to
identify and hire minority candidates for this initiative. The COE has obtained Endowed Professorship
funds to create the Ashland Oil College of Education Distinguished Lecturer position to augment and
support the salary and activities of a position to attract African American candidates. Funds may be used to
support the lecturer in pursuing a terminal degree, supporting the university’s desire to enhance the number
of minority faculty on campus. To support the College’s efforts the Provost Office also provides assistance
through the Ph.D. Financial Assistance Program for minority faculty.
During the past several years the College has hired minority candidates with strong credentials but without
terminal degrees. With the beginning of the 2007-2008 academic year, fortunately the College was able to
hire six (6) minority candidates; three (3) minority with terminal degrees and three (3) with strong
credentials but without terminal degrees. The Provost’s office and Dean’s office offer minority faculty
support in their pursuit of advanced degrees and to move them into tenure track appointments.
College of Education
Minority Student Recruitment
June 2008
The primary aim of the College is to develop candidates who are reflective decision makers and successful
professionals in a diverse society. The goal of minority student recruitment is to increase the number of
minority candidates in order to provide the public schools with a diverse pool of potential teachers and to
provide candidates opportunities to interact and work with candidates from diverse cultural and
socioeconomic backgrounds.
The Teacher Quality Institute (TQI), through its Coordinator of Minority Recruitment, is active in the
recruitment of minority students to the College of Education (COE). The coordinator meets with minority
students at approximately 20 schools/events each academic year. TQI administers the Kentucky
Department of Education (KDE) Minority Recruitment and Scholarship Program. KDE provides Murray
State University with approximately $100,000 annually to support capable high school graduates, students
already in college who want to enter teacher preparation programs. In addition, TQI sponsors a one-day
Minority Future Teachers Institute for minority students and their parents from the nine regional high
schools that have the highest minority enrollment. The program includes talks by all College Deans and
the Dean of COE presents educational opportunities that are available to minority students. TQI instituted
dual credit programs and provided alternative routes to certification as a means of recruiting minority
candidates to the teacher education program. TQI actively sponsors and supports Future Educators
Association (FEA) chapters and summer camps in an effort to recruit minority and first generation students
to the College of Education. TQI has sponsored six Regional FEA Conferences and six Summer Camp for
high school students. Approximately 300 students attend the regional conference and 15 to 20 students
attend the Summer Camps.
Gear Up Kentucky II, administered by the CPE, assists the College in its effort to recruit and retain
minority and first generation students. The College begins with seventh grade students and works with
them through high school. Gear Up II supports 11 schools. Schools with significant African American or
other minority populations that visited Murray State were: Sebree Elementary [40 students; a K-8 school
with 12% Hispanic population]; Hopkinsville Middle [161 students; Grades 6-8 with 30% African
American population]; Mayfield Middle [82 students, Grades 6-8 with 23% African American and 19%
Hispanic population].
The Provost Office and the Dean’s Office in the College of Education have cooperatively established a
60/40 Graduate Assistantship program for Kentucky African American graduate students. The program is
above and beyond graduate assistantship programs funded by other graduate assistantship programs.
The College of Education has also implemented the African-American Administrator Recruitment Program
(AAARP). This program has been established to recruit licensed African-American Kentucky teachers to
be licensed school administrators. Licensure areas of need include PK-12 guidance counselors, supervisors
of instruction, directors of pupil personnel and superintendents. Those who are chosen to participate in
AAARP must have proven themselves to be exemplary teachers and must hold promise as prospective
school administrators or guidance counselors. A secondary goal of AAARP is to develop a network of
minority educators throughout the Murray State University service area using workshop programs. This
network is to facilitate information dissemination to minority students and their parents regarding
postsecondary education opportunities with an emphasis in teacher education.
In order to increase access to College of Education programs, the College has expanded offerings in a 2 + 2
effort with the Kentucky Technical and Community Colleges in Henderson, Hopkinsville, Madisonville
and Paducah. Offerings in these diverse communities were initiated in a good faith effort to attract more
minorities to programs within the College of Education.