AP 3-10 Employment Selection Procedure

Arapahoe Community College
Series 3 – College Personnel
AP 3-10 Employment Selection Procedure

Originated: August 1995

Revised: August 2006; July 2016; November 2017; November 2018; February 2020; February 2022

Effective: August 2006; July 2016; January 2018; November 2018; February 2020; February 2022

References: BP 3-10; BP 3-120; SP 3-10a; AP 3-10a; AP 3-10b, State Classified Personnel Board Rules, Chapter 4, ACC Recruitment & Selection Guide

Approved:

Stephanie J. Fujii, Ph.D.
President, Arapahoe Community College

PURPOSE

This Procedure contains pertinent information affecting employees, current through the date of its issuance. To the extent that any provision of this Procedure is inconsistent with State or Federal law, State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education Policies (BPs) or Colorado Community College System Procedures (SPs), the law, BPs and SPs shall supersede and control. BPs and SPs are subject to change throughout the year and are effective immediately upon adoption by the Board or Chancellor, respectively. Employees are expected to be familiar with and adhere to the BPs, SPs as well as College directives, including but not limited to this Procedure.

Nothing in this Procedure is intended to create (nor shall be construed as creating) an express or implied contract or to guarantee employment for any term. The College reserves the right to modify, change, delete or add to this Procedure as it deems appropriate.

SCOPE

This procedure applies to all employees or employment categories of Arapahoe Community College.

DEFINITIONS

Classified Employees

Classified employees are those who fill permanent (full-time or part-time) or temporary positions within the Colorado State Personnel System, as defined by the State of Colorado Department of Personnel Board Rules and Personnel Director's Administrative Procedures. The hiring authority for classified employees is the College President or designee.

These employees are subject to the rules of the State Personnel System. The Board may establish policies and the Chancellor may establish procedures for classified employees, which are not in conflict with Department of Personnel Board Rules and Personnel Director's Administrative Procedures. Temporary classified positions shall not work more than 28 hours in a work week and not more than 9 months in a 12-month period.

Non-Classified Employees

Non-classified employees are those who fill positions which are exempt from the State Personnel System, pursuant to C.R.S. 24-50-135(1). Non-classified positions shall be assigned by the Chancellor or College President, or designee, to one of the following categories:

Faculty

Faculty employees are those whose assignments are comprised of at least one-half of duties as a teacher, which may include but not be limited to, program coordination/development and related activities. Counselors and librarians holding faculty contracts prior to July 1, 1995 may also be treated as faculty. Faculty members shall be assigned status according to one of the following:

1. Regular Faculty
    

   Regular faculty may be full-time or part-time and are contracted on a provisional or non-provisional basis for at least one-half of a full-time equivalent workload. Regular faculty positions are funded entirely by funds appropriated to the Board by the General Assembly and allocated by the Board to a College, and/or funds received from a school district for purposes of providing secondary vocational education (State funds). Faculty members who were hired to fill provisional or non-provisional positions funded by State funds and who are assigned involuntarily or temporarily to a position funded in whole or in part by non-State funds shall retain their status as regular faculty members. Regular faculty members have rights as defined in BP 3-20, Due Process for Faculty.

2. Limited Faculty
   
   Limited faculty may be full-time or part-time and hold contracts that are expressly limited so as to carry no expectancy of continued employment beyond the term of the contract, as determined by the College President. Limited faculty employment in State-funded positions shall not extend beyond three years. Limited faculty employment may be extended beyond three years only if the position is funded from other than State funds. State funds are defined in BP 3-20. Limited faculty are subject to the terms of their contract.

Administrators, Professional and Technical Staff

Administrators, professional and technical staff are those employees whose duties are comprised of more than 50% administrative, supervisory, professional and/or technical duties performed by positions that have been exempted from the State Personnel System. This includes those College and System administrators hired on or after December 8, 1985, except the President. Administrators, professional and technical staff are at-will and subject to the terms of their letters of appointment. These staff shall have status according to one of the following:

1. Regular Staff
    

   Those employees hired full-time or part-time with a regular schedule, including those hired to fill interim appointments.

2. Administrators Hired Prior to December 8, 1985

   Those College employees who held a regular administrator position as defined by their contract and BP 3-23, Due Process for Administrators Hired Prior to Dec. 8, 1985, and who have been continuously employed with the System since that date.

Instructor

Those hired to teach on a temporary as needed basis at an hourly rate within a range established by the Board. Any such appointment shall be for less than one academic year. Successive appointments may be made on an unlimited basis. Instructors are subject to the terms of their appointment and have no benefits except those provided by law. College Presidents shall establish employment standards for instructors, including but not limited to, workload, hiring procedures, performance evaluation, personnel records and other related issues, consistent with system guidelines.

Season Staff

Those employees hired to work during seasonal periods and whose positions are scheduled to end when the seasonal program ends. Seasonal status must be approved through established State regulations.

Temporary Hourly Staff

Those employees hired to work on a temporary basis to fill a temporary need. Temporary appointments shall not exceed nine months, then must be followed by a three or four-month vacancy of the temporary appointment.

Following a four-month vacancy the temporary can return to the same temporary position for another nine months. If a temporary has filled a nine-month temporary position, but plans to return to a substantially different temporary position, there must be a three month break in service. The nine-month limitation shall be inclusive of all temporary appointments and departments.

Temporary staff shall not work more than 28 hours in a workweek, except those working as a PERA retiree which can work up to 110 days or 140 days by approval per calendar year.

Students

Students are those who work within the System while they are enrolled in at least 6 credit hours. Student employees are subject to the rules of the funding source for the position they hold and employment records are subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Student employees are limited to working no more than 20 hours a week when classes are in session. Student employees may work up to 28 hours a week, during academic breaks or breaks between terms at the discretion of the college. Student employees may include:

1. Student Hourly
    

   Student hourly employees must be enrolled and regularly attending classes, taking no more than one term off from classes.

2. Work Study
   
   Work study employees are subject to the terms and conditions of Financial Aid.
   
   FICA regulations provide that an employee whose services are incident to and for the purpose of pursuing a course of study has the status of a student. If an employee is a full-time employee then the employee’s services are not incident to and for the purpose of pursuing a course of study. Student employees are not eligible to contribute to PERA, but will be subjected to TIAA-CREF if not taking a minimum of 6 credits per semester.

Volunteers/Interns

Volunteers are those individuals who volunteer their time without expectation of payment or permanent employment. Volunteers are subject to the terms of their assignment. Per the Fair Labor Standards Act, current non-exempt employees may not waive their right to compensation by volunteering their time. Contact Human Resources for additional information on volunteers and interns.

PROCEDURE

1. Affirmative Action
    

   All announcements and searches shall adhere to the letter and spirit of the Colorado Community College System Affirmative Action Plan.

   Human Resources (HR) or designee monitors all operations of the Employment Selection Procedure. The Equal Employment Opportunity Officer or designee provides an overview of the Affirmative Action Plan goals as it relates to the vacant position. Refer to the Recruitment & Selection Guide for details.

   The President may waive these procedures in order to attain goals and objectives described in the Affirmative Action Plan. Refer to BP 3-120.

2. Recruitment

   1. Employment Categories
       
      1. Administrative and Faculty
          

         The hiring manager works directly with HR during the recruitment process to identify classification, salary, internal equity, job description updates, recruitment plan, and any other information important to the recruitment process. Refer to the Recruitment & Selection Guide for a step-by-step process.

      2. Classified

         The hiring manager works directly with HR for recruitment of classified positions. Refer to State Personnel Board Rules, Chapter 4.

      3. Instructor
          

         The hiring manager works directly with HR for recruitment of part-time Instructor positions. Refer to BP 3-10, AP 3-10a, and AP 3-10b.

      4. Temporary Hourly
         
         All other temporary hourly, student hourly, and work-study recruitments are handled on a case-by-case basis. Contact HR for details.
   2. Job Announcements for Administrative & Faculty Positions
       
      1. It is the philosophy of the College, that whenever possible, all job recruitments are to remain open and competitive to allow for an inclusive and diverse work environment.
      2. When an internal search is conducted, the job posting is announced to  all ACC employees and posted to ACC's career website for a minimum of three (3) business days. 
         1. If seeking an internal search to ACC or CCCS only, the hiring manager requests consideration of the Vice President, who then requests the President's approval in writing.
      3. When an external search is conducted, the job posting is announced to all ACC employees and posted to ACC's career website for a minimum of seven (7) calendar days.
      4. The hiring manager and HR may decide to move to an ‘Open until Filled’ process when an inadequate pool of candidates results in a failed search or other labor scarcity exists.
      5. In the event of reclassification of an existing position where the encumbered is already in position and successfully performing the higher level job duties, the President has the authority to directly appoint the reclassification. The Vice President of the Division makes the recommendation after consultation with Human Resources and Fiscal Services on job classification and compensation, to the President. Note: these appointments occur without backfill of the existing position. If backfill is necessary, the new position is considered open and competitive.
      6. If HR and the hiring manager determine there is an inadequate pool of qualified applicants, the position may be filled by an interim appointment for up to six months and/or the position may be reposted.
3. Selection Process for Administrative & Faculty Positions

   All application materials are screened for the position requirements. HR notifies those who do not meet the position requirements.

   • If six (6) or less candidates meet the position requirements, all candidates are forwarded to hiring manager for interviews. The hiring manager and another member of the department shall interview all forwarded candidates. The hiring manager may choose to move forward with a search committee rather than interviewing all candidates. The search committee shall interview all candidates who meet the position requirements.
   • If seven (7) or more candidates meet the position requirements, the position must go through the search committee process. Refer to ACC Recruitment & Selection Guide for a step-by-step process.
   Any deviation from the documented procedure and / or process must be approved by the President in writing.
    
   1. Composition of Search Committee
      The committee will consist of no less than three (3) and no more than seven (7) voting members. It is strongly recommended that the committee consists of three (3), five (5), or seven (7) voting members.
      1. The search committee must include one of each: classified, administrative, faculty member; AND Inclusive Excellence Council (IEC) member OR any administrative, classified, or faculty who has completed DEI professional development as approved by the Office of Human Resources and Office of Inclusive Excellence. Someone who serves on the search committee may meet two of the above requirements (e.g. a classified employee who serves on the IEC).
         1. Waivers to move forward without a classified, administrative or faculty member, must be approved by the VP and HR Director, in writing.
         2. Waiver to move forward without an IEC member or diversity, inclusion and equity trained administrative, classified or faculty must be approved by the President or designee, in writing.
      2. Make every effort to include a diverse group of individuals, including a various mix of genders, race / ethnicity and any other forms of diversity.
      3. May include the hiring manager as a non-voting member as long as required training is completed prior to serving on the search committee.
      4. May include resource persons available within or external to the College community, including students, board members, community members, etc.
      5. Search committee members should have a working knowledge of the responsibilities for the position and / or interact with the position on a regular basis. Search committee members will also complete required training on implicit and explicit bias prior to serving as a committee member.
   2. Search Committee Process
       
      1. An HR liaison will work with the hiring manager and search committee throughout the search process. The search committee will select a voting member to serve as Chair  or Co-Chair of the committee.
      2. If not serving as a non-voting member, the hiring manager may be involved in the discussion and creation of both the screening criteria to review applicant materials and the interview questions. The screening criteria and interview questions are to be approved by HR in advance.
      3. All search committee members must maintain confidentiality to ensure the integrity of a fair and equitable search process and will sign the Search Committee Confidentiality Form prior to serving on the search committee.
      4. All search committee members will conduct themselves in an ethical manner. During the review and interview process, search committee members will only evaluate the information provided within the application materials and during the interview. Outside knowledge of candidates will not be discussed during this stage of the process. Search committee members will discuss any concerns regarding outside knowledge with HR. Additionally, search committee members will evaluate each candidate against the established criteria and not against one another.
      5. The search committee must submit all search documentation and notes to HR to ensure proper retention guidelines are met.
      6. The hiring manager may have access to all applications that meet the position requirements at the same time as voting search committee members.
      7. The hiring manager may identify a list of candidates they would like selected to interview based on the same screening criteria as voting search committee members. The hiring manager will not complete a screening criteria form for each candidate as the hiring manager is considered a non-voting member of the search committee.
      8. In the event that no applicants are selected to move forward to the hiring manager, in conjunction with HR, the hiring manager may make an interim appointment of up to six months and/or repost the position.
      9. If the hiring manager serves on the search committee:
         1. For positions with no fulltime supervisory duties, the hiring manager may choose to select the candidate to hire without conducting a second interview. The hiring manager may also choose to conduct a second interview with the finalist of their choice, prior to making a hiring decision.
         2. For all other positions, the hiring manager will conduct final interviews with all candidates forwarded by the search committee. The hiring manager may choose to include others in the final interview such as their supervisor.
      10. If search committee member(s) is/are unable to attend any aspect during the committee process, the committee moves forward. The absent member(s) may still participate in discussions and submit any evaluation documents to HR.
   3. Hiring Manager Guidelines
       
      1. The hiring manager prepares a written list of interview questions designed to evaluate the finalists and submits to HR for approval. The hiring manager documents the strengths and limitations of each finalist interviewed.
      2. Once a candidate is identified to fill the position, the hiring manager conducts professional reference checks. At least two professional reference checks must be conducted, with three preferred. Interview and reference check notes are forwarded to HR prior to step 3, for the recruitment and selection file.
      3. The hiring manager contacts HR to work through the offering process. Refer to the Recruitment & Selection Guide, AP 3-45 APT Salary Plan or AP 3-55 Faculty Salary Plan and AP 3-160 - Travel and Relocation Assistance for Finalists and New Hires.
      4. The hiring manager extends a verbal conditional offer of employment to the applicant contingent upon suitable background check results. Refer to ACC Recruitment & Selection Guide for remaining steps and additional information.