I. B. Statement of Equal Opportunity
The Department of Technical and Adult Education and its constituent Technical Colleges do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, national or ethnic origin, gender, religion, disability, age, political affiliation or belief, disabled veteran, veteran of the Vietnam Era, or citizenship status (except in those special circumstances permitted or mandated by law). This nondiscrimination policy encompasses the operation of all educational programs and activities including admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletic and other Department and Technical College-administered programs, including any Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) Title I- financed programs. It also encompasses the employment of personnel and contracting for goods and services. The Department and Technical Colleges shall promote the realization of equal opportunity through a positive continuing program of specific practices designed to ensure the full realization of equal opportunity.
The Department and each Technical College shall maintain and publish a grievance procedure for addressing discrimination concerns. (See Complaint Resolution Policy) These procedures shall, at a minimum, meet the federal requirements for compliance with Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
All job announcements published by the Department and each Technical College shall reflect at a minimum that it is an equal opportunity employer or "EOE."
Inquiries concerning the administration of this nondiscrimination policy should be addressed to any of the following offices
1) At the Central Office, inquiries should be addressed to the Director of Human Resources or other person designated by the Commissioner.
2) At a Technical College, inquiries should be addressed to the Equity Coordinator or other person designated by the President.
This policy of nondiscrimination is consistent with Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246, the Equal Pay Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans With Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Acts of 1973, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 402 of the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, and O.C.G.A. § 45-19-21 and other related state statutes.
Recruitment of Underrepresented Employees
The Commissioner and the Technical College Presidents and all others responsible for recruiting and hiring shall take affirmative action to recruit and hire qualified individuals who are members of federally designated minority groups and/or women and who are underrepresented in the workforce of the relevant hiring unit. The Commissioner and the Technical College Presidents and all others responsible for recruiting and hiring shall notify organizations providing employment assistance to racial minority groups, women, and/or persons with disabilities of employment vacancies and shall otherwise notify those organizations of the Department's Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action policies. Personnel vacancies shall be filled by selecting the best qualified applicant on the basis of merit, whether the applicant is an existing employee or from outside the department.
The Commissioner and the Technical College Presidents and all others responsible for recruiting and hiring shall encourage employees, to refer candidates who are members of underrepresented groups for existing and future job openings.
Training and Promotion
The Commissioner, the Technical College Presidents and all others responsible for recruiting and hiring shall take affirmative action to provide training opportunities for federally-recognized minority groups and women.
Policy Dissemination
To ensure that all citizens of the state as well as all members of the Department and the Technical Colleges communities are aware of our equal opportunity and affirmative action policy, the following communication efforts shall be made:
1) All employment applications used by the Board shall contain a notice informing prospective employees that the Department, including its constituent Technical Colleges, is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
2) Notices shall be posted in public places at the Department's Central Office and in the Technical College buildings, informing applicants for employment and employees that the Department is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and advising applicants and employees of their rights to notify an appropriate local, state, or federal agency if they believe they have been the victims of discrimination.
3) When utilizing media for recruitment purposes, help-wanted advertisements and other notices shall always advise that the Department, including its constituent Technical Colleges, is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and shall contain no indication, either explicit or implied, of a preference for one class of persons over another except when there is a bona fide occupational requirement that the position be held by a member of a particular gender or class of persons.
4) All applications for program enrollment shall contain a notice informing prospective students that the Board, including its constituent Technical Colleges, is an equal opportunity employer.
References
Procedure: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
Adopted: July 7, 1988
Approved
Revised: February 3, 1994, January 17, 2001, June 1, 2006, February 1, 2007
Code: 03-01-01; Code: 05-05-01