Diversity Hiring Efforts
LFA is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse faculty and staff. An ad hoc committee devoted to increasing the diversity of LFA’s faculty and staff has been at work since 2010. Its members include the Associate Head of School, the Dean of Pluralism and Multicultural Affairs, the Dean of Faculty, and the Director of Human Resources.
The 2014 LFA Strategic Plan called for the school to “achieve a profile of faculty and staff that more closely reflects the composition of the student body." The 2014 ISACS Accreditation report recommended that the school "continue its strong efforts to increase the diversity of the administration, faculty, and staff." LFA’s 2018 Strategic Plan calls upon the school to "enhance efforts to recruit, mentor, and retain faculty, staff, and trustees who advance the LFA mission and mirror the demographic diversity of the student body."
Why diversity?
LFA believes that diversity enhances the educational experience of all members of our community. We benefit from the input of people who offer a range of perspectives informed by different lived experiences and backgrounds.We learn how to flourish in a community whose diversity is comparable to that of the larger world. Greater diversity in our faculty and staff increases opportunities for meaningful connections and interactions between adults and students.
Progress and Initiatives
The committee recognized early on that it must address both hiring and retention.The committee meets every two weeks and also hosts an annual “summit” that brings together faculty, staff, trustees and alumni to review progress and provide feedback and guidance.
A number of initiatives are pursued to increase the diversity of the people we hire:
- support professional development experiences for faculty and staff that enhance our commitment to and understanding of diversity.
- attend job fairs that focus on candidates of color.
- seek to cultivate ongoing relationships with prospective candidates even when we do not have an appropriate opening for them.
- explore various visa programs that will allow us to hire international candidates.
- work to make LFA’s commitment to diversity well known among independent schools.
The committee also attends to the retention of faculty and staff members. We seek to provide support to all faculty and staff members but recognize that some employees may feel more isolated than others and will therefore need greater support. We encourage and support gatherings of faculty and staff of color to talk about their LFA experience. Each year we send eight to ten members of the faculty to the NAIS People of Color Conference. We seek to ensure that all members of faculty and staff feel included and valued.
Please see additional statistical information below.
