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Authors:
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Ruth Dyer, Kansas State University
Beth Montelone, Kansas State University
Mary Rezac, Kansas State University
Terry King, Kansas State University
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Abstract:
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The Kansas State University (K-State) College of Engineering has created a program as part of the K-State ADVANCE Institutional Transformation Project to more effectively recruit talented faculty members. Recruiting to Expand Applicant Pools (REAP) is an initiative that provides competitive awards for search committees and departments to develop novel, proactive recruiting strategies that focus on gender and other diversity issues. Departments might request funding to send the department head or faculty members on recruiting trips to institutions that produce significant numbers of women Ph.D.s in their disciplines or to professional meetings at which there are significant numbers of women engineers in attendance. The K-State Department of Chemical Engineering made use of funds provided by a REAP award to carry out an aggressive faculty recruiting campaign in the 2004-2005 academic year. The outcome of the search process was a much larger applicant pool than for previous searches, and the pool included a number of highly qualified women. Two of these women applicants were hired into tenure-track positions. Similarly, the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department also received funding in 2004-2005 to engage in proactive recruiting for tenure-track positions. The outcome of this search was that positions were offered to two women applicants, with one accepting. This paper will share insights and lessons learned from the efforts to implement these innovative recruiting strategies.
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