The Reason We Are Here…
                      • SOU’s Mission Statement
                                 • Southern Oregon University is a regionally-engaged learning community 
                                     committed to being the educational provider of choice for learners throughout 
                                     their lives.
                                 •   We inspire curiosity and creativity, compel critical thinking, foster discovery, and cultivate bold ideas and actions.
                                 •   We achieve student success, professional preparation, and civic engagement through service excellence, evolving technologies, and innovative curriculum.
                                 •   We foster access, equity, inclusion and diversity in thought and practice.
                                 •   We prepare our learners to be responsible, engaged citizens in our democracy.
                                 •   We promote economic vitality, sustainability, cultural enrichment, and social well-being in our region, the state, the nation, and the world.
                      • SOU’s Commitment to Diversity
                                 • “Southern Oregon University is a welcoming community committed to inclusive 
                                     excellence and the celebration of diversity. Without diversity, our educational 
                                     process is diminished. Working together in support of our commitment to 
                                     diversity, we strengthen and enrich our role as learners, educators and members 
                                     of a tightly connected global community. We encourage those who share in our 
                                     commitment to diversity, to join our community and we expect all our employees 
                                     to demonstrate an ability and desire to create an inclusive campus community.”
    Getting the legal stuff out of the way…
    Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity
     • “SOU is an equal access Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to achieving a diverse and 
      inclusive workforce.”
     • Affirmative Action:  Actively engaging to ensure equal opportunity in our employment processes by making 
      positive and continuous efforts to minimize the present effects of past discrimination and unintentional present-
      day biases.
     • Equal Employment Opportunity is the law:  Applicants and employees have the right to fair and non-discriminatory 
      treatment and are protected under Federal Law from discrimination on the following bases:
        –Race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, marital status, genetic information, veterans status
        –A common misconception: Applicants are selected on the basis of race, gender, religion, national origin, or 
         other identity characteristics.  Selection is based upon being the most qualified to perform the position. 
        –Avoid having conversations (including small talk) or asking questions that could unintentionally solicit 
         information about one’s protected status.
     • Oregon Equal Pay Act 2017: Restricts employers from obtaining pay history of applicants
                                           “If I can’t measure it, I can’t pay for it.”
      Oregon Veterans’ Preference 
     • As a public employer, the Oregon Veteran’s Preference in Public Employment Law requires SOU 
      to give preference to eligible Veterans.
     • "Veteran" is defined as a person who served on active duty with the Armed Forces of the United 
      States for a period of more than 180 consecutive days and was discharged or released therefrom 
      with other than a dishonorable discharge; or a person who served on active duty with the Armed 
      Forces of the United States for 180 days or less and was discharged or released therefrom with 
      other than a dishonorable discharge because of a service-connected disability. (ORS 408.225(1))
     • In order to be considered for veterans’ preference during the interview and appointment process, 
      proof of eligibility (DD-214 or DD-215) must be submitted to HR by the priority consideration date.
     • What does this look like……….??
     1 preference step for qualifying veterans
     2 preference steps for qualifying disabled veteran
      (Does not apply to reference checks which can be used as a “tie-breaker”)
                         
   Veterans’ Preference Cont…..
    Recognizing Bias
   https://member.hercjobs.org/recruitment/selection/search-committee-training-toolkit 
     • Unconscious bias refers to a bias that we are unaware of, and which happens outside of our 
      control.  It is a bias that happens automatically and is triggered by our brain making quick 
      judgements and assessment of people and situations that are influenced by our background, 
      cultural environment and personal experiences.
      
       • Status quo bias - tendency to like things to remain the same.
       • Negativity bias - tendency to pay more attention to negative experiences.
       • Similar to me bias - tendency to rate higher those people who look, act, or have a 
        background most like the interviewer. 
       • First impression bias - making the hiring decision within the first few minutes of the 
        interview, instead of evaluating all the information from the full interview. 
       • Structural bias - institutional patterns and practices that confer advantage to some and 
        disadvantage to others based on identity.
     When we accept that we have unconscious biases and commit to addressing them through self-
     awareness, committee discussions, and structural enhancements to the process, we reduce the 
     chances that someone will be harmed by bias in the search process.  Unconscious biases, even on 
     the part of open-minded, well-intentioned decision-makers, unfairly disadvantages qualified 
     applicants.