Middletown - Public schools have been exempt from the full impact of affirmative action laws by not being required to request that job applicants voluntarily identify their ethnic or racial status as a part of the application process.
On 12/4/08 the board of the Enlarged City School District of Middletown, New York (ECSDM) approved a resolution by majority vote to add the option of voluntary identification of ethnic and racial status to all job applications. The intent of this resolution is to increase the number of employees who identify themselves as minorities and thereby increase the diversity of employees in the district to more closely match the demographics of our students as well as area and state averages.
At this time we only meet the minimum requirement of the law for equal opportunity employment. The resolution establishes a firm commitment to address this issue and to develop a pro-active hiring process that will increase diversity and better fulfill the spirit and letter of New York state laws in this regard.
Based on data on our student population as compared to our employee population a large discrepancy exists that this motion seeks to address and correct. Of the district’s approximate 7000 students 70% are identified as belonging to minority groups. By contrast, for example, of the teaching staff of nearly 500 only about 5% are identified as belonging to minority groups.
The intention of this important motion is to impact diversity employment and not just for tracking. Therefore recommendations that were made to add a separate form for voluntary identification would nullify the goal and prove ineffective. It is essential that we keep with the motion as passed if we are to achieve the goal.
The legal counsel of John Donoghue, Esq. of Donoghue, Thomas, Auslander and Drohan, the board’s attorneys, has reviewed this motion and advised that implementing this addition to application forms is entirely within the NYS laws for affirmative action and equal opportunity employment.
By passing this motion the board commits this district to a higher standard in employment practices. The superintendent and administration are charged with implementing this change immediately. We hope that other school districts will follow our example and raise their commitment to diversity employment with similar action.
For additional information please contact Nicholas Mauro, Ph.D. at the ECSDM Board Office 845-343-8944.
ECSDM is a small city school district which includes Middletown, parts of Wallkill, Goshen and Wawayanda in Orange County, New York approximately 70 miles Northwest of New York City.
It is an area of approximately 18,000 registered voters of an ethnically and racially diverse population.
