Midd Recruiting

Author: Mike Olinick

Middlebury's current recruiting protocol is inconsistent with our nondiscrimination policy. Our recruiting protocol aids and abets discrimination against our students. It must be changed.

We attempt to implement this policy in all aspects of campus life. We don't permit student organizations to discriminate in membership, programs or activities. We consider such discrimination "antithetical to the mission of the College and not appropriate as a model for society at large."

Employment recruiting involves the use of Career Services personnel and facilities. We welcome employers who follow our nondiscrimination policy. It is the College's intent not to permit recruiting by those unwilling to sign a nondiscrimination statement.

We have, however, created an exemption from this practice for fear of losing federal funds if we deny access to military recruiters. The military's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy clearly conflicts with our nondiscrimination pledges. However, the Solomon Amendment allows the government to withhold federal funds from campuses that deny access to military recruiters.

Our specific protocol states that employers who are unable to sign the nondiscrimination agreement may recruit on campus if they are willing to hold a public meeting to explain their policy. No one is comfortable with this protocol because of its logical consequences. We would be forced to permit the Ku Klux Klan or the American Nazi party to recruit if they were willing to explain their restrictive membership practices. The current protocol sends the message that it's okay to discriminate. In fact, we'll help you do it. All you have to do is state publicly that you are biased. That's not a message anyone here really wants to send.

We seemed until quite recently stuck with the current protocol because of the Solomon Amendment. Recently, two federal courts have found the Solomon Amendment to be in conflict with the Constitution's First Amendment protections of free speech and declared it unconstitutional. It's not clear when the Supreme Court will consider this question, when a decision would be announced, or what that decision might be.

In the meantime, many colleges are debating how to proceed. Two weeks ago, our faculty approved - by a more than two-to-one majority - a resolution asking our administration to require employers to sign a nondiscrimination agreement certifying that their recruiting, hiring and employment practices are consistent with the Middlebury College Nondiscrimination Statement. Employers who are unable to sign the agreement would not be permitted to use campus services or facilities to recruit.

This resolution voiced the Faculty's concern that our present protocol is not consistent with our promise to bar discrimination on campus. We have pledged to prospective students, faculty and staff that Middlebury will not tolerate discrimination "in admission or access to its educational or extracurricular programs, activities, or facilities" I hope the Community Council will endorse the Faculty's resolution and that the Administration will quickly implement it.

Those who endorse a strict enforcement of our nondiscrimination policy have no desire to prevent debate on the 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' practice. Indeed, they would welcome a forum where arguments can be put forward and challenged. But recruiting is not an open forum. It is not an opportunity for the exchange of conflicting ideas. It is not designed to enhance free speech. Recruiting is action to screen and hire future workers.

Middlebury has a lofty set of principles aimed at prohibiting discrimination. It's not always easy to behave in a manner consistent with our principles. There's almost always a price that must be paid to be true to one's ideals. Banning on-campus recruiting by employers who won't sign a nondiscrimination agreement may make it slightly more difficult for some employers to hire some Middlebury students and for some students to get jobs with these organizations. That's a small price to pay to insure that we do not actively participate in helping those who would deny access to our students solely on the basis of characteristics such as race, religion, or sexual orientation.

It is a hollow gesture to espouse a nondiscriminatory posture while actively assisting employers to continue discriminatory practices. That's what our current protocol has forced us to do when we let the Marines recruit on campus. We should not be forced to do it again. It's time to change our protocol. It's time that our recruiting guidelines truly implement our nondiscrimination policy.