The Clackamas print., November 29, 2017, Page 2, Image 2

CCC faculty lacks diversity
BY W ILLIAM FERRIS
THE CLACKAMAS PRINT
Erickson d id n ’t feel that all the blame rested with the I think the problem with diversity is,” she said.
D iversity and rep resen tatio n have alw ays been hotly
No matter how much people felt the school heeded to do,
debated issues in America especially in recent months. The school for hiring. She felt that many people o f different
however,
most agreed that CCC did try its best to encourage
effort to be more inclusive and undo the prejudice and bias races may not apply due to existing racial pressure.
-
diversity
in its community. Actions like the welcoming
o f the past has been a central focus in education and work
signs
in
the
library, the eager smiles and helpful attitudes
over the last few years. However, while the diversity o f
o
f
students
and
staff,who work in the school arid help no
the student body has been expanding recently, it can seem
m
atter
w
hat
your
background is; and. even events like
as though the diversity of staff has been lagging behind.
the
annual
InternafionaiW
eek are all things the college
The m ost recent records on em ployees at Clackam as
does
to
put
a
foot
tow
ard
inclusiveness.
Com m unity C ollege show th at o f the 1,013 fu ll-tim e
There has even been a new diversity task force made at
staff members 878 o f them are white. No other ethnicity
CCC
to help inform future decisions and staff like Dean of
currently even reaches the triple digits aniong employees,
Human
Resources Patricia Anderson Wieck are committed
with the second highest being H ispanic/Latind members
to
the
ideals
of welcomingall people and not discriminating
at <58.
on
campus.
Hiring o f new full-time employees also follows this trend
The college has struggled lately with hate crimes on campus
with 82 hires from 2012 to 2016 being white; and only
and
other issues involving race over the last few months, but
four being H ispanic/Latino and two being blaek/A frican
they
do struggle against the rest o f the country ’s political
American.
and
social
struggle when they try to make change.
This trend may seem shocking but there are variables to
So
even
when
CCC puts in effort to be more diverse, the
consider about the numbers, the first o f which is that this
process
to
do
so
does take time and progress won’t occur
data only accounts for full-time staff and does not include
overnight.
But
it’s
always important to look at what is being
part-tim e or any other type ofem ployee.
done
and
not
just
what
is being said.
I t’s also important to consider that m ost hires are picked
In
that
regards
it’s
yet
to
be seen if enough is being done to
from resum es sent in by the applicants. The college
help
change
the
imbalance
in staff andopportunities here,on
“I ca n ’t blame em ployers for not being diverse when
advertises to areas based on what position they want filled
campus,
or
if
CCC
is
standing
still instead of moving forward.
people
have
this
stigma
about
them
selves,
so
th
at’s
where
and then assembles a group to interview and choose from
the candidates. But the pool the college can hire from will
depend on who applies for a job most o f the time.
N u m b e r o f n e w h ire s p e r y e a r a t C C C
The other biggest factor to consider is the diversity o f
30 - -
Oregon itself. Census data taken from 2016 show that
Key:
O regon’s population is approxim ately 87.4 percent white,
B African American
■ Hispanic
with 12.8 percent being Hispanic or Latino and about 2.1
H
Native American 0| Pacific Islander
percent being black or A frican American.
IO È
m White
m Asian
Keeping these variables in mind when considering staff
com position is important, but it’s also necessary to ask
what actions are being taken to help encourage diversity
regardless; Especially when those differences in race can
help better represent the student body.
When asked their opinions on the data, students shared
the sentim ent that it was surprising. One studepf Justin
M cDaniels, felt that more could be done for students. ■
¿“E sp ecially in the w ake o f th e p o litica l clim ate and
statistics com ing out about hate crimes, I thinie it’s really
im portant to have the situations be intentional and really
[be] consistent about m aking these kinds o f spaces for
people who are m inorities,” he said.
Other students like Steven Laired share the hope that people
selected for positions were chosen for their qualifications;
and anyone reviewed w asn’t discrim inated upon by their
background or race.
2016
On the other side o f the argument students like Jessica
“Especially in the wake of the political
climate and statistics coming out
about hate crimes, I think it’s really
important to have the situations be
intentional and really [be] consistent
about making these kinds of spaces for
people who are minorities.”
- Justin McDaniels
graph ic by Mera ri Ca Ideron Ruiz
ON THE COVER:
November 29, 2017
A photo of the sunset from Mt. Hood in January taken by Luis Correa and designed by Sam Weston.
rint.ne
I
■
E ditors-in -C hief Autum n Berend chiefed@clackam as.edu; M anaging Editor Merari Calderon Ruiz chiefed@clackam as.edu; Copy
Editor Nicholas Allison copyed@clackam as.edu; N e w s Editor fan Van Orden newsed@clackam as.edu; A rts & Culture Editor Luis
Correa aced@clackam as.edu; Sports Editor Doug Fry Assistant Jacob Thom pson sportsed@clackam as;edu; Photo Editor Sam
W eston photoed@clackam as.edu; M ultim edia E ditor Alexis W agar webeditor@ clackam as.edu; Ad Manager Victoria Tinker ad-
m gr@clackam as.edu; Staff Jared Preble, W illiam Farris, Liam Anderson, Ali MiJIer, Jeanette W right, McKenna Streed, Kristi Date
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