Equitable Hiring
Recruitment in academic librarianship can be challenging for both job seekers and potential employers, particularly considering the lack of training for search committees, unspoken norms for candidates, and inconsistencies across institutions. We present a visualization of the recruitment process from beginning to end and identify areas where best practices can be applied to attract excellent and diverse applicants, conduct fair and equitable evaluations, and hire well-qualified staff. We also emphasize the importance of thoughtful, purposeful, and collaborative onboarding to retain successful candidates. Attendees will identify challenges to changing workplace culture, discuss obstacles to the consistent application of equitable practices, and perform search committee processes that promote more equitable searches. We strive to create a framework to guide search committees through the process of recruiting, selecting, and retaining outstanding candidates for positions, while drawing particular attention to issues of equity and inclusion. We hope our presentation will validate some of the frustrations experienced by job seekers and allow them to recognize when roadblocks are a result of systemic issues rather than deficiencies in application materials. By examining the challenges and aspirations from both sides of the table, we aim to bridge the gap and promote a fair and inclusive hiring process.
Speakers
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Carolina HernandezStudent Success Librarian, University of HoustonShe/Her/Hers
Carolina Hernandez is a Student Success Librarian and Rooks Early Career Librarian Fellow at the University of Houston, where she works with co-curricular programs to integrate information literacy beyond the classroom. Her research interests currently include assessing hiring practices in academic librarianship for inequity in order to make the process more inclusive. -
Erica R. LopezTeaching & Learning Librarian, University of Houston LibrariesShe/Hers
Erica R. Lopez is a Teaching & Learning Librarian at the University of Houston Libraries. Prior to an organizational restructure, Erica served as the Chemical and Biological Sciences Liaison Librarian. Erica has published and presented on inequitable practices in academic librarian hiring as well as the childcare-conference conundrum in academic librarianship. -
Joanna Gadsby
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Kathryn SullivanHead of Reference & Instruction, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyShe/Her
Kathryn Sullivan works as Head of Reference & Instruction at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). In this role, she oversees research support services, library instruction, and the subject librarian program. She holds an MLS from the iSchool at the University of Maryland, College Park.