SEAHO Report - Spring 2020 - 15

FEATURE ARTICLES

Adventure cont.
In the blink of an eye, it seemed that the virus was on a rampage-colleges
and universities of varying sizes across the country began to vacate, social
distancing became a way of life, and it felt like we had all transferred to Zoom
University and Google Hangout College. One night, around 10:00 p.m., our
leadership made the difficult decision to cancel our visit day. This decision
meant that in a series of phone calls, all of the logistics of our search were off.
Each of our candidates were incredible in sharing their understanding of the
situation and appreciation for our decision. I made a promise to each of them
that they were at the forefront of my mind, along with my current students
who were having to vacate campus on short notice.
The rules of the adventure had changed; we could not play by the same rules
we knew. Our charge had not changed. With several anticipated vacancies
in our graduate positions next year, we needed to maintain course. We used
the resources at our disposal to communicate with our candidates: Visit
Oxford resources, virtual tours, New York Times pieces on the University of
Mississippi, and so on. We sent these resources shortly after we had to cancel
the in-person visit. Often in a job search, communication with candidates is
a gray area in our field. I dedicated all of our available time to communicating
with our candidates through frequent e-mails, text messages, and phone calls.
Their candidacy mattered and I wanted to make sure they knew that.
With the financial burden of travel alleviated and candidates having the option
to use video or phone, we were able to host our virtual visit day! Using Google
Hangouts, the committee set forth a robust agenda for these professionalsin-training. We made sure they met with every level of our Residential
Learning team. They were able to see us in our true, authentic selves. With
our department all working from home, they got to see our pets, where we
live, and who we really are. That is ultimately the goal of our visit days-we
want the candidates to see themselves being a part of our department. We
are a people-centered department, and I found so much joy sitting in my
living room, interacting with these candidates. They brought humor, light,
and comradery to a situation they never asked for. We were even able to host
a virtual game night for all of the residential learning staff to spend more
time with the candidates. Typically, we take them bowling as the final part
of the experience, and we did not want to lose that. Above all, we wanted our
process to highlight the true, best part of our department: our staff and our
relationships.
With the current landscape of higher education, we are all adventurers and
explorers. We are looking for new ways to reach the same objective. Our map
may have gotten lost along the way, but I am so proud and thankful for this
committee who worked diligently to make sure our candidates had as seamless
an experience as possible. I am also thankful and humbled by the candidates
we have had the chance to meet. I learned something from each of them and I
am a changed professional by those interactions. I encourage all of us to think
about how we can use this process to improve our "old normal". We need to
make sure we are adapting our searches to the climates around us, that we
are exercising understanding and empathy, and we are using 21st century
technologies to meet our candidates in cyberspace.

SEAHO Report - Spring 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SEAHO Report - Spring 2020