Job Description

Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) is a highly regarded educational institution located in Gardner, Massachusetts and accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). Established in 1963, MWCC serves the educational needs of the communities of North Central Massachusetts with innovative undergraduate education, early college programs, workforce development, personal enrichment, and community service. With a strong emphasis on academic excellence, MWCC provides a supportive environment for individuals to pursue their educational goals, enhance professional skills, and seek personal growth. As a beacon of opportunity, Mount Wachusett Community College empowers individuals from all walks of life, fostering their development and transformation.

We hope you will consider applying for one of our open positions, and discover all that Mount    Wachusett Community College and the North Central Massachusetts region have to offer.

http://mwcc.edu/about-mwcc/

Mount Wachusett Community College embraces diversity, equity, and inclusion as core values and makes it our mission to proactively focus on improving racial equity in our college community. We value equity-minded individuals with commitment to serve student learners from a broad range of cultural heritages, socioeconomic backgrounds, genders, abilities, and orientations. Therefore, we strongly encourage applicants who share our commitment and who understand the benefits of culturally relevant practices needed in an educational environment.

Job Description:

General Statement of Duties:

The Affirmative Action Specialist is responsible for coordinating recruitment and retention efforts to attract and support diverse talent in compliance with the College's Policy on Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity and Diversity (PAA). The Affirmative Action Specialist provides a wide range of Affirmative Action and HR generalist activities including but not limited to job description and job posting reviews, ensuring consistency in interview processes, and engaging with hiring managers on recruitment efforts. Working closely with the College's Chief Diversity Executive, the Affirmative Action Specialist plays a pivotal role in advancing Mount Wachusett Community College's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) by focusing on attracting, engaging, and retaining a diverse talent pool while ensuring equitable hiring practices across all levels of the College. The incumbent is expected to be an analytical problem-solver who provides recommendations for process improvements as well as creative ways to attract talent. This role requires a deep understanding of recruitment best practices, DEI principles and effective communication and collaboration skills to drive meaningful change within the College.  Responsibilities include strategizing and implementing Affirmative Action initiatives that prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

Responsibilities:

• Responsible for the developing and implementing the full Affirmative Action plan in compliance with and addressing the expectations of the PAA, including aspects of sourcing, recruiting, screening and hiring of qualified, diverse and talented staff;
• Actively manages recruitment and retention initiatives to create and sustain a racially diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce and culture, utilizing workforce metrics to monitor and improve recruitment and retention processes, with a focus on increasing racial diversity and addressing any identified disparities;
• Ensures all stages of the hiring process are aligned with the College's commitment to Affirmative Action as expressed in the PAA, equity and inclusion.
• Provides guidance and support to College departments and search committees on recruitment-related matters, including interview techniques, talent assessment tools and candidate selection to ensure alignment with institutional objectives, hiring standards, and state and federal law. Partners with hiring managers to understand their specific needs and craft inclusive job descriptions that appeal to a broad range of talent.
• Serves as a resource to College managers and supervisors on hiring needs and ensures timely communication between HR and management team;
• Serve as an ex-officio member of the College's Affirmative Action Committee and facilitate the Committee addressing assigned responsibilities including those described in the PAA.
• Provides subject matter expertise to hiring managers and senior leaders on integrating inclusive hiring practices into our Affirmative Action operations;
• Collaborates with HR team to develop recruiting materials, training, and tools for managers and supervisors;
• Proactively searches for and engages qualified talent for open and hard to fill positions, specifically focusing on diversifying the College's workforce;
• Collaborates with the Chief Diversity Executive and Director of HR & Compliance to provide strategic support, process improvement, execution of recruitment, and robust Affirmative Action strategies, including development, implementation and maintenance of a data informed Affirmative Action Plan;
• Work closely with the Chief Diversity Executive to incorporate best practices for equity in hiring, including strategies to remove biases from the recruitment process;
• Uses Interview Exchange system to review job requisitions for full-time and part-time employees; provides backup assistance with posting jobs on the platform
• Audits and provides edits to the Interview Exchange electronic forms related to hiring process and personnel actions;
• Develops, maintains and uses workforce metrics to drive performance improvement in the recruitment and retention processes; 
• Creates a positive candidate experience by providing the highest level of customer service and delivery of HR services throughout the employee life cycle.

Requirements:

Minimum Qualifications:

• Three (3) years full-time professional experience in HR recruitment, employee Affirmative Action and human resources which must include experience with developing, implementing and maintaining Affirmative Action programming;
• Demonstrated experience in integrating affirmative action practices into recruitment processes and developing equity-focused hiring strategies.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of effective strategies and recruiting best practices designed to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace;
• Ability to maintain strict confidentiality of sensitive information;
• Ability to resolve conflicts objectively and with a focus on long-term implications;
• Demonstrated ability to use job boards, electronic recruitment websites, and other social media recruitment platforms;
• Effective listening, relationship building and collaboration skills;
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills;
• Excellent customer service abilities demonstrated by interpersonal and communication skills that include the ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing, to establish positive public relations for the department, and to maintain a professional demeanor with employees, students and the public at all times;
• Work effectively with all levels in an organization;
• Proactive with the ability to work both independently and as part of a team to prioritize work in a fast-paced environment;
• Ability to travel freely between campus locations if necessary.

Desired  Qualifications:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in human resources management;
• Prior higher education and/or public sector experience;
• Comprehensive knowledge of HR practices or HR certifications;
• Experience working with integrated software systems such as Ellucian BANNER or Peoplesoft and/or HRCMS is highly desirable;
• Bilingual skills.

Equivalency Statement
Applicants who do not meet the qualifications as stated above are encouraged to put in writing precisely how their background and experience have prepared them with the equivalent combination of education, training and experience required for the responsibilities of this position.

Additional Information:

Salary: $35,000.00-$42,000.00 with actual salary commensurate with academic background and experience.

Employee Status: Pro Rated  
Benefits: Yes
Hours per Week: 20  This position is Hybrid eligible.
Number of Weeks: 52

Employees of Mount Wachusett Community College are considered employees of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and receive benefits which include:

• High quality and affordable health insurance through the Commonwealth's Group Insurance
• Commission (GIC)
• Reasonable Dental and Vision Plans
• Flexible Spending Account and Dependent Care Assistance programs
• Low cost basic and optional life insurance
• Retirement Savings: State Employees' Pension or Optional Retirement Program (ORP) and Deferred Compensation 457(b) plan or 403(b).
• 12 paid holidays per year and competitive Sick, Vacation and Personal PTO
• Tuition Benefit for employees and dependents at state colleges and universities
• Short-Term Disability and Extended Illness program participation options
• Professional Development and Continuing Education opportunities
• Qualified Employer for Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Program
• Cell Phone Bill Discounts with Verizon and T-Mobile Cell Phone Carriers
• Access to the Commonwealth's Mass4You, employee assistance program

Mount Wachusett Community College is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy or related conditions, gender identity, sex characteristics, sex stereotypes or sexual orientation in its programs and activities as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and other applicable statutes and college policies. The College prohibits Sex-Based Harassment. Inquiries or complaints concerning discrimination, harassment, or retaliation shall be referred to the College's Affirmative Action Officer and/or Title IX Coordinator, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission or the United States Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.  

Application Instructions:

Candidates for employment should be aware that although the COVID 19 Vaccination Requirement Policy is no longer in effect, all Community College students, faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to be up to date with vaccination against COVID-19. For additional information related to the status of the COVID19 Vaccination Requirement Policy, please visit: https://mwcc.edu/covid/

The following documents are required:
1. Resume
2. Cover Letter

Anticipated Effective Date:  January 2025

Priority will be given to applications received prior to January 13, 2025.

Applications will continue to be accepted until the position is filled.

Candidates may be subject to employment screening to include both a Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) request and a Sexual Offender Registry Information (SORI).

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