A Diversity Candidate in Every Pool

[flowomo]

"If the finalists for a faculty job are all white, it’s a sure thing that the new professor will be white.

"That obvious statement is behind a directive issued by Madeline Wake, provost at Marquette University, to deans and department heads. No proposed hires for full-time faculty jobs will be approved, she said, unless there is at least one “diverse” candidate in the pool. (Diverse, for the purposes of the directive, is not only non-white Americans, but also people from other parts of the world.)

"Currently, just over 10 percent of Marquette faculty members are non-white. The non-white share of the student body is a little higher, hitting 15 percent for this fall’s freshman class....

"If a department truly is unable to find any non-white candidates, Wake said, the university would consider granting exceptions and approving a hire. But she said that departments can expect scrutiny if they seek an exception. “We’re going to ask, Have you just gone to your same old sources or have you really contacted the networks where you can get African-American or Latino doctoral graduates?"

more: http://insidehighered.com/news/2005/10/14/marquette