Administrator Hiring Resolution – As amended and approved 10/02/07

Whereas;
Auburn University has suffered significant losses of administrators across the past 5 years, and many vacated positions have been filled through interim or termed appointments or by limited searches where no national search was conducted or no search at all was conducted to fill administrative positions. 

And Whereas;
Sitting interim administrators have frequently become permanent appointments by removal of the interim title.

And whereas;
Such failures to conduct reasonable search processes for administrators can seriously weaken the perception of the administration by University constituencies as well as lead to inappropriate administrative performance.

Be it resolved,
That the University Senate endorses the adoption of the following guidelines and procedures for hiring administrators at or above the level of Department Head/Chair:

1. Open administrative positions shall be filled by conducting an open, position-appropriate search utilizing a search committee with administrative, faculty, and staff composition as appropriate for the position under consideration. 
2. Internal candidates from Auburn University are encouraged to apply for open positions, but must interview on a competitive basis with all external candidates.
3. A candidate search shall be completed within 12 months of its initiation. If necessary, an interim or termed appointment can be made to temporarily fill the position while the search is conducted. 
4. No individual shall serve in an interim or termed position for a period of more than 12 months.  It is preferable that sitting interims resign prior to seeking the permanent position, especially if they have served more than 12 months in the interim position.
5. Interim or termed appointments should also involve a local search process, and a search committee to review applicants and make a rapid recommendation as appropriate.
6. Deviation from the above guidelines by the appropriate authority shall be made with notification of and input from the affected faculty and/or search committee.  Such deviations may include but are not limited to the election of a department chair (as opposed to the hiring of a department head).  Where appropriate, Senate leadership should also be informed of such deviations.