What Does It Mean to Act Affirmatively in Hiring Processes?
Karen L. Miller, J. Douglas Toma · 2023
In a democratic society, higher education can only remain credible if proportions of those enrolled and employed align to a reasonable extent with the demographic composition of the broader community. This chapter explores what is possible as administrators attempt to increase diversity in admissions under the 2003 decision in Grutter v. Bollinger as well as in employment, an issue the US Supreme Court has not addressed directly. It connects enhancing diversity and strategic advantage, applying three perspectives: creating value in organizations for those connected with them; external positioning, as for enhanced prestige; and internal resources alignment. Values influence administrators of institutions to want to reflect the overall US society in whom they admit or hire. The chapter shows that administrators of universities and colleges are most effective in enhancing values such as learning when they develop strategies particular to them, as opposed to the generic ones they tend to default to in the interest of achieving or maintaining legitimacy.