Faculty Vacancies and Position Announcements
- The Division Chair notifies the Dean of Faculty of any impending vacancy as soon as it becomes evident. After discussion with the Dean of Faculty, the Division Chair, in collaboration with a department, oversees the writing of a position request and position announcement. The request and announcement are reviewed by the Division Council in light of other requests from all divisions. A Division Chair will need to plan for sufficient time for this review to occur. The deadline for new and returning/replacement position proposals is February 1 for the next academic year. The position announcement serves as the basis for advertising the vacancy. All full-time vacancies are advertised.
- Natasha J. Baker, an employment attorney, suggests that departments think about the following before a position announcement is drafted:
- "Consider the short-term and long-term needs for the position.
- Will the position change over time?
- Consider diversity goals.
- Think about the qualifications of the ideal candidate.
- State all requirements for the position, even the 'minor' ones."
She also suggests considering the expectations of the institution. So, the announcement might include:
The ideal candidate will contribute constructively to the Berea College community and will demonstrate a commitment to carrying out the mission of Berea College.
Natasha J. Baker, "Managing the Hiring Process," Workshop for Department and Division Chairs, June 7, 2017.
- Current boilerplate, always subject to change, is included here:
Founded in 1855, Berea College is nationally recognized as the first coeducational and interracial college in the South. Berea has a longstanding commitment to interracial education and is one of the most racially diverse private liberal arts colleges in the United States. With an emphasis on service to Appalachia and beyond, Berea enrolls more than 1,500 students from 46 states and U.S. territories and more than 70 countries. Berea College admits students who are unable to afford tuition and provides all of them with a no-tuition promise, valued at more than $204,000. Berea’s students excel in the College’s supportive yet demanding academic environment, and most are the first in their families to attend college. As one of only nine federally recognized Work Colleges, all Berea students are expected to work 10-12 hours weekly in various positions across campus. Berea College is listed #20 in overall ranking in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal/College Pulse college rankings, 2023. The Washington Monthly ranks Berea College #2 Best Liberal Arts College and #1 in Social Mobility, 2023. Money Magazine ranks Berea #20 Best Overall College and #10 for Best in the South, 2023. Berea College is also the only institution in Kentucky to receive the 5-Star Rating from Money Magazine, 2023.
Located where the Bluegrass Region meets the Cumberland Mountains, the town of Berea (pop. 16,000) lies forty miles south of Lexington and is approximately two hours from Cincinnati, Louisville, and Knoxville. More information about Berea College is available at www.berea.edu.
Berea College, in light of its mission in the tradition of impartial love and social equality, welcomes all people of the earth to learn and work here.
- Write announcements that balance required and desired qualifications, so that the position attracts a wide range of qualified candidates. Announcements are approved by the Dean of Faculty before being released.
- Include information about electronic submission of materials required for application. For example:
Applicants should submit a cover letter, CV, graduate and undergraduate academic transcripts, statement of teaching philosophy, description of research interests, and three letters of recommendation to: https://tinyurl.com/yxeqqlom. Review of applications will begin on November 1, and continue until the position is filled. Note that you will be asked to provide the email contact for three references after completing step one of the application process online.
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The NEOED software system is used for faculty application tracking and archival storage for all faculty searches. Upon the Dean of Faculty's approval of the position request, the search committee chair must work with the Office of Academic Affairs representative (currently Shannon Montross) to request the position be posted in NEOED, to learn how to approve the listing in NEOED when it is built, to learn how to access the applications once the posting is launched, and to learn how to manually request the recommendation letters.
- All search documents will be available in NEOED. Some search committee chairs may decide to copy the applicant’s files into Box for easier access or for the ability to download large visual or audio files. The permanent record of the search files will remain in the NEOED system.
- Other Protocol
(Academic Affairs Office Step): When the position description is approved by the Dean of Faculty, the Office of Academic Affairs staff support for faculty recruitment (currently Shannon Montross) will work with a search committee chair to create the posting in NEOED and get the unique URL for the position. The work of staff support includes granting all search committee members access to the posting on NEOED and sharing training information with all parties. The Office of Academic Affairs staff support will obtain from the search chair a list of advertising venues for the search (which includes additional diversity sites, websites, professional organizations, listservs, and professional journals), and then purchase these ads.
(Search Chair Step): The search chair or administrative assistant may opt to set up a Berea Box folder for management of the candidate files, but the permanent record of all search applications will be housed in the NEOED system. Training videos and personal assistance from the Office of Academic Affairs will be available to all parties who need access to the search materials.