As highlighted in President Richmond’s recent Convocation address, advancing HSU’s vision in the area of diversity is among our top institutional priorities. Just last week, we released the HSU Campus Diversity Plan 2013+, which outlines current initiatives, future goals, and strategies for institutionalizing campus diversity, equity, and inclusivity.

As one of the core components of this effort, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the Department of Human Resources – with input from campus leadership and other stakeholders across campus – have developed an Action Plan for Workplace Diversity at HSU. Modeled after the Action Plan for Faculty Diversity at HSU, first introduced in 2009, the Action Plan for Workplace Diversity outlines steps towards achieving our goals of diversity and equity among staff and administrators.

As is already the case for faculty searches, the foundation for our work in this area will be a new workshop for all hiring authorities and search committee members who are involved with staff/administrator searches. Entitled “Avoiding Unconscious Bias in the Hiring Process,” this 2-hour workshop will be required for all hiring authorities as of November 1, 2013, and required for all search committee members as of January 1, 2014. The University Executive Committee will launch this new initiative by participating in this workshop in October.

If you are a hiring authority, or if you are a staff member interested in sitting on a hiring committee in the future, I encourage you to mark your calendars, visit the HSU Training Site, and register for one of the following workshops as soon as possible.

• Workshops for Hiring Authorities
• Tuesday, October 15, 9-11am
• Friday, November 1, 1-3pm

• Workshops for All Staff
• Tuesday, November 12, 9-11am
• Friday, November 15, 1-3pm

Beginning in January, workshops for all staff will be offered monthly, and searches will be delayed until all hiring authorities and committee members complete the training. If you are interested in arranging a special training for your work unit, or if you have other questions about this training, please contact Lanaya Gaberel at lanaya.gaberel@humboldt.edu or x5154.

To learn more about other elements of the Action Plan for Workplace Diversity at HSU, please visit humboldt.edu/diversity

Thank you for your engagement with this important work.

Joyce Lopes Vice President for Administrative Affairs