Chair/Lead:

Members: Mary Barbosa-Jerez, Susan Fiser, Myron Engle, Megan Norman, Jeanie Owens, Libby Barth, Ezra Plemons,  Kali Schwartz, Cathie Skluzacek, Natalie Berg-Wall, Brenda Kragseth

The Problem

The policies and practices for hiring LITS students are inconsistent and these practices may create unintentional barriers for some students. For example, it has been a common practice for student supervisors to ask current student employees to recommend friends for open positions instead of always advertising the positions to the broader student community. In other cases, students who are not native English speakers may be overlooked for some positions because of perceived language barriers. These practices may lead to a homogeneous workforce, place students without existing staff connections at a disadvantage, and create a workforce that does not accurately represent our community.

Goals

The goal is for our student employee workforce to meet or exceed the diversity within the St. Olaf community. To do this we must review our practices to remove bias and barriers so that all students have opportunities to apply and be hired for LITS positions.

Actions Taken

LITS will create department-wide hiring policies and procedures that are consistent between areas. The policies and procedures will include guidance on advertising, interview standards, and will include a review of the application form to remove potential barriers such as unnecessary requirements. 

Accomplishments so Far 

1. IT is formalizing the decades-old practice of proactively hiring students from within the SSS program through the creation of a new hiring practices guide. The guide will explicitly name methods and timelines for job postings to standardize student hiring within IT and expand access and opportunities for diverse student communities.  

2. IT piloted a 5th year intern program for students graduating from the SSS program.  A recent graduate was hired for a one-year position and was given training and experience working in an IT support role in IT.  The program was paused due to lack of interest from the graduates.  The program will be restarted as funds become available and interest resumes.