Name that Section - Frequently Used Education Code and Title 5 Sections for Community College Districts

Name that Section: Frequently Used Education Code and Title 5 Sections for Community College Districts

C. T

IVERSITY

OMMITMENT

OST

-P

ROPOSITION

209

1. T

TATUTORY

ESPONSE TO

ROPOSITION

209

Despite the invalidation of traditional district affirmative action programs by Proposition 209,

promoting diversity in the workplace remains a legal obligation for community colleges. As

noted above, the California legislature has long held that community colleges must strive to

employ a highly diverse staff, and Title 5 regulations continue to require Equal Employment

Opportunity (“EEO”) Plans and hiring and recruiting procedures designed to increase diversity.

2. T

EGULATORY

ESPONSE TO

ROPOSITION

209

Sweeping revisions to Title 5 regulations controlling hiring were adopted to bring the regulations

into alignment with Proposition 209. However, they still required districts to implement

strategies to prevent and correct adverse impacts against what were called “minorities” or

“historically underrepresented groups” in the pre-Proposition 209 era, and were re-labeled

“monitored groups” in the post-Proposition 209 regulations. Subsequently, starting in

approximately 2010, a group of community college leaders and Liebert Cassidy Whitmore

initiated a dialogue with the State Chancellor’s Office regarding our concerns that the regulations

were both outdated and in potential conflict with Proposition 209. This led to a collaborative

effort between HR professionals in the field and the State Chancellor’s office to revise and

modernize the Title 5 EEO plan and hiring regulations. With the participation of Liebert Cassidy

Whitmore, the Chancellor’s newly-formed Title 5 Task Force rewrote the regulations, which

were unanimously approved by the Board of Governors and ultimately approved by the

Department of Finance in September of 2013. The “new face” of permissive and mandated

hiring strategies aimed at achieving diversity are contained primarily in two regulatory schemes:



The provisions that require the development of an EEO Plan; and



The provisions that require specific recruitment and hiring practices.

a. EEO Plan Regulations

While a primary function of the EEO Plan is to establish processes for monitoring hiring, district

recruitment and hiring procedures are not a required component of the EEO Plan itself. Section

53003 provides the minimum legal requirements for a district’s Equal Employment Opportunity

Plan. Specifically:

The governing board of each community college district shall

develop and adopt a district-wide written equal employment

opportunity plan to implement its equal employment opportunity

program. Such plans and revisions shall be submitted to the

Chancellor's Office. The Chancellor’s Office retains the

authority to review district plans on a case-by-case basis.

Each district shall review its EEO Plan. Such plans shall be

reviewed at least once every three years and, if necessary,