Howard Community College's diversity program is designed to ensure equality of opportunity in employment and education as well as to develop and maintain educational programs and services for all diverse populations of the community.  The college maintains a standing cross-functional diversity committee.  The committee’s responsibilities are:

  1. To promote and advocate diversity within the college;
  2. To review and update the diversity plan, diversity committee core work, and college policies as appropriate;
  3. To recommend reasonable and realistic goals for areas of the college where disparity exists in the workforce, academic affairs, and/or student services, when applicable;
  4. To monitor all selection committees to ensure diverse representation in accordance with college procedure 63.02.03 - Selection of Faculty and Staff;
  5. To plan and implement diversity training/assessment for all faculty and staff (the college will provide a budget for this purpose;
  6. To plan and/or sponsor diversity programming for the college community;
  7. To review annually the college employee and student survey data pertaining to the diversity climate; and
  8. To prepare an annual report on its operations, accomplishments, and recommendations to the college president and make it available to the college community.

Diversity committee members will be appointed by the college president.  Of those appointed, the president will select the chairperson.  Diversity committee members will serve for a period of two years.  Student representatives will serve one-year terms. The chairperson will recommend members for reappointment prior to the last meeting of the fiscal year. If any member misses more than fifty percent of the diversity committee meetings held in a fiscal year, that member’s term is automatically ended and a new member shall be appointed. Replacements will fill the unexpired term of the original member.  At the end of each academic year, the chairperson will recruit new members to fill potential vacancies.  Any member of the college community wishing to serve on this committee should send a written request to the diversity chairperson.  Membership will include at least the following:

  1. Two faculty members;
  2. Two support staff employees;
  3. One administrative employee;
  4. Two professional/technical employees;
  5. One student;
  6. Two at-large employees;
  7. Director of human resources representative (ex officio);
  8. The coordinator of the institution's compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (ex-officio);
  9. Director of student life (ex officio); and
  10. Other members as needed to carry out the duties of the committee.

The college’s diversity plan and related academic and administrative and personnel policies are publicly available via the college website.  In addition, regular communications will be sent to college employees via e-mail, president’s update, employee orientations and training programs, constituency group meetings, and posted in various areas around the college campus. Additionally the equal opportunity clause shall be incorporated in all purchase orders, leases, contracts, etc., covered by Executive Order 11246, as amended, when applicable, and all implementing regulations. 

Other college policies and procedures to reference:

63.01          Nondiscrimination
63.01A        Equal Employment Opportunity
63.01B        Equal Educational Opportunity
63.01C        Affirmative Action
63.01D        Sexual Harassment
61.10          Diversity
63.02.01     Recruitment of Faculty and Staff
63.01.01     Discrimination Complaint Procedure

Policy Manual Review/Revision:  4/21/06
President's Office Review:  5/01/09