5.5 Personnel appointment and evaluation

The institution publishes and implements policies regarding the appointment, employment, and regular evaluation of non-faculty personnel.

Judgment

x Compliance o Non-Compliance o Partial Compliance

Narrative

UL Lafayette is committed to employing the best-qualified candidates while engaging in recruitment and selection practices that comply with all applicable employment laws. It is the policy of the University to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees. Authorization from Human Resources is required to initiate any action for an open position, including recruitment expenditures, advertising, interviewing, and offers of employment.

Personnel Appointment

UL Lafayette and the UL System BOS define and publish policies and procedures regarding the appointment, employment, and evaluation of University personnel. The policies underlying the University’s governance structure are found on the University and BOS policy websites, and further articulated through the Faculty and Staff Handbooks.

BOS rules governing the appointment of University personnel are delineated in Chapter III, Section II of the BOS Bylaws. Bylaws Chapter III, Section II.A covers the Chief Executive; Chapter III, Section II.B covers Vice Presidents (Academic, Non-Academic), Deans, and Athletic Directors; and Chapter III, Sections II.D-E cover other administrators.

University employees are designated as either Unclassified or Classified. Classified positions are governed by the policies and procedures of the State Civil Service. Unclassified positions are constitutionally exempt from State Civil Service rules and are governed by the policies and procedures of the University and the BOS. All faculty, faculty administrator, and University administrator positions are unclassified. Staff positions are either classified or unclassified.

The BOS conducts searches for the Chief Executive of the University, and its Bylaws specify the policies and procedures for such searches.

The University’s Human Resources Department publicizes hiring procedures for all employee types on its internal and external webpages. The University has established specific hiring procedures for full-time permanent faculty, administrator, and staff vacancies, and temporary full-time, adjunct, and part-time vacancies. Non-temporary positions are filled competitively, whereas temporary jobs are not.

The appointment procedure for faculty and administrative positions begins when a supervisor submits a request to fill a non-temporary vacancy through the University’s online recruitment system, Cornerstone On Demand. Directives on required language are provided through Cornerstone. The Human Resources office reviews these requests before routing them through an electronic approval queue for administrative and budgetary approvals. The Provost is the final approver for academic faculty positions; the President is final approver for all other vacancies. All approved requests are posted on the University Career, Higher Ed Jobs, and industry-specific recruitment sites. Additionally, background screening, interview scheduling, and formal job offers are automated through Cornerstone.

The University complies with state and federal laws, the principles of equal employment opportunity and affirmative action, and University policies and procedures when conducting faculty, administrator, and staff searches. Excluding temporary and interim appointments, the University utilizes open competitive searches for administrator positions. Peer administrators, faculty, staff, students, and community members are included on search committees as appropriate. Where suitable, the University also utilizes outside search firms to identify and attract qualified candidates.

Once a final candidate is selected, the hiring recommendation is submitted and approved via the Personnel Action Form. Hiring recommendations are reviewed and approved through the department’s signatory approval chain, Human Resources, Finance, and the President. Once approved, the responsible Academic Dean makes job offers for faculty positions. Human Resources makes all other formal job offers.

Annual Performance Evaluation

Chapter III, Section IV.D of the BOS Bylaws outlines the process for the evaluation of the University President. (See standard 4.2.c) Specifically:

The performance of the institution presidents shall be individually evaluated on a regular basis according to a process approved by the Board. The evaluations are intended to (1) fulfill Board responsibility for making certain that each institution is well managed, (2) help the presidents improve their performance, (3) make certain that sound institutional goals are being pursued, and (4) identify opportunities for improving the management and planning functions of the University of Louisiana System and its constituent universities.

In support of these expectations, UL Lafayette’s strategic plan is foundational to the annual evaluation of executive and senior leadership employees. In the annual evaluation process, each member of the University's executive team—in consultation with the University President—advances the University's strategic plan by establishing annual goals linked to strategic priorities. These goals then serve as the basis for senior administrators’ and departments’ goals.

The University regularly assesses the effectiveness of administrators and staff through annual performance evaluations based on performance, relative to the competency model for each position, and the attainment of agreed-upon goals. The performance evaluation is administered through the talent management platform, Cornerstone On Demand, using separate competency models for the executive and administrators and supervisors and unclassified staff.

Within individual evaluations, employees are rated as expert, advanced, proficient, developing, does not demonstrate, or not evaluated. Table 5.5 — 1 presents sample evaluations at each level of reporting within each of the vice presidential areas of the University.

Table 5.5 — 1: Vice Presidential Areas – Levels of Evaluation

Area	Name	Position	Evaluation
Office of the President	David Danahar	Senior Advisor to the President	Evaluation
Office of the President	Taneicea Mallery	Director, Equity, Diversity, and Community Engagement	Evaluation
Athletics	James Harris	Executive Director of Athletics	Evaluation
	Jessica Leger	Deputy Director of Athletics	Evaluation
	Bryan Maggard	Director of Athletics	Evaluation
	Nicholas Yantko	Deputy Director of Athletics	Evaluation
Enrollment Management	DeWayne Bowie	Vice President for Enrollment Management	Evaluation
Enrollment Management	Cynthia Shows-Perez	Executive Director of Financial Aid	Evaluation
Academic Affairs	Jaimie Hebert	Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs	Evaluation
	Azmy Ackleh	Dean of the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences	Evaluation
	John Bret Becton	Dean of the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration	Evaluation
	Gordon Brooks	Dean of the College of the Arts	Evaluation
	Bobbie DeCuir	Dean of University College	Evaluation
	Mary Farmer-Kaiser	Dean of the Graduate School	Evaluation
	LouAnne Greenwald	Director of the Hilliard Art Museum	Evaluation
	Jordan Kellman	Dean of the College of Liberal Arts	Evaluation
	Fabrice Leroy	Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs – Academic Programs	Evaluation
	Robert McKinney	Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs – Faculty Affairs	Evaluation
	Nathan Roberts	Dean of the College of Education	Evaluation
	Mark Zappi (FA18)	Dean of the College of Engineering	Evaluation
Administration and Finance	Megan Breaux	Interim Director of the Office of Administration and Finance	Evaluation
	Debra Calais	Assistant Vice President of Finance	Evaluation
	William Crist	Director of Facility Management	Evaluation
	Eugene Fields	Chief Information Officer	Evaluation
	Marie Frank	Director of the Office of Purchasing	Evaluation
	Shannon Gary	Interim Director of Finance Administration and Compliance	Evaluation
	Lisa Landry	Director of Administrative Services	Evaluation
	Tommy Pears	Director of Auxiliary Operations	Evaluation
	Paul Thomas	Chief Human Resources Officer	Evaluation
Advancement	Aimee Abshire	Director of Web Communications	Evaluation
	John Blohm	Vice President for Advancement	Evaluation
	Lisa Capone	Executive Director of Development	Evaluation
	Jennifer LeMeunier	Executive Director of Alumni Affairs	Evaluation
	Lauren Shiver	Associate Vice President of Advancement Operations	Evaluation
Student Affairs	Patricia Cottonham	Vice President for Student Affairs	Evaluation
Student Affairs	Margarita Perez	Dean of Students	Evaluation
Research	Ramesh Kolluru	Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Economic Development	Evaluation
Research	Francois Villinger	Director of the New Iberia Research Center	Evaluation

Prior to the implementation of Cornerstone in 2017, unclassified staff were evaluated on criteria developed for their positions by their supervisors. Examples from 2015 and 2016 include:

· 2015 Sample Unclassified Staff Evaluations

· 2016 Sample Unclassified Staff Evaluations

Classified staff are evaluated through the State Civil Service Performance Evaluation System, with ratings of Excellent, Successful, or Needs Improvement, and specific benchmarks and work expectations individually set for each employee. Supporting documentation is required for a rating of Excellent.

· 2016 Sample Classified Planning

· 2017 Sample Classified Planning

· 2016 Sample Classified Evaluation

· 2017 Sample Classified Evaluation

The University’s performance management process includes three major components: goal planning, evaluation, and development planning. During goal planning, employees and supervisors collaboratively develop individual and departmental goals, which are then aligned with the University’s mission and strategic plan. The progress toward and achievement of these goals is then assessed during the evaluation portion of the review in which supervisory employees self-evaluate, and they are assessed on their prior year goal attainment and competency performance. They then, in collaboration with their supervisors, develop professional development goals and plans. Non-supervisory staff are encouraged but not required to complete the self-evaluation. All performance evaluations are subject to second-level supervisory approval.