Guide Sheet #7

The County Extension Director works with the Regional Director and OSU Extension Human Resources in the process of recruiting and interviewing Educator candidates for vacancies.

Program Review
A program review is conducted when an Educator vacancy occurs. The process will vary from region to region. Work with your Regional Director related to the appropriate process.

Financial Support
Determine that ongoing support from the County Commissioners or other sources is committed to support the position. The county account is not charged the Educator cost share while the position is vacant.

County Extension Advisory Committee Involvement
Work with your Regional Director to involve the County Extension Advisory Committee and Educators identifying how the vacancy will be filled based on program review results.

Development of Position Announcement
Draft job opportunity announcements have been developed for each program Educator position. The Regional Director meets with the County Extension Director, Educators, and County Extension Advisory Committee to develop the position announcement. The County Extension Director takes the initiative in scheduling the meeting to develop the position announcement. The approved position announcement is forwarded to OSU Extension Human Resources for announcement and search.

Advertising and Recruitment
In addition to the OSU search process, local advertising and recruitment is often helpful in enriching the candidate pool. Direct potential candidates to the OSU Extension Human Resources Careers web page for complete instructions on the application process and complete position descriptions.

Screening
County Extension Directors will receive instructions from OSU Extension Human Resources Office on how to review applications and an application review sheet is provided for input by which candidates will be selected and invited to a preliminary screening interview. The preliminary screening interview is conducted in Columbus by a team consisting of an Assistant Director, a Specialist and the Leader, Human Resources. OSU Extension HR checks references on candidates.

County Interview
The County Extension Director and Regional Director coordinate the interview process with the OSU Extension Human Resources. A group of candidates will be brought to the county to interview with a small group consisting of the County Extension Director, Educator(s), and County Extension Advisory Committee representatives (listed below). Develop some interview questions and encourage interview committee member to do the same based on the job requirements and qualifications.

County interview committee composition:

• 1 county commissioner or representative
• 1 or 2 advisory committee member(s)
• 1 County Extension Director
• 1 or 2 Educator(s) from the county
• 1 Educator from nearby or cluster county, and/or a specialist
• Regional Director
• All county staff may sit in on interviews, but not participate in decision-making.

Be sure to review the “Questioning Applicants for Employment” form for additional information related to legal issues to be aware of in asking questions.

The day of the interview you may want to have other staff available to give each candidate a tour of the office, offer a tour of the county or in other ways “recruit” and help the candidate become better acquainted with your county program. Copies of applications and references for the candidates identified for a county interview are sent a few days in advance to the county to be shared with the county interview committee. The County Extension Director takes leadership in seeing that the materials are shared and for arranging the location, room set-up, etc. for the interviews. The Regional Director usually facilitates the interview process and meets with the committee for approximately 30 minutes before the interview to explain the process. All interviews take place on the same day. Affirmative Action guidelines are followed. Following the interviews, the county interview committee identifies candidates as acceptable, acceptable with reservations and not acceptable and makes a recommendation. Confidentiality is critical during this process. At the close of the county interview process, all interview materials including copies of applications and references must be collected and returned to OSU Extension Human Resources.

Job Offer
OSU Extension Human Resources and the Regional Director make a job offer to the identified candidate and negotiates salary and other details of employment. Once a position is filled, the County Extension Director and Regional Director will set a starting date and other aspects of the employment process. The County Extension Director notifies members of the county interview committee about the results of the interview process.

Time Line
Expect the search, screening and interview process to take approximately three months. Arrange your schedule to provide ample time for orientation of the new Educator to go through the “Learning the Ropes” program during their first two weeks on the job. You may also be asked to assist in locating housing and responding to questions from the new Educator.

Written by: Dr. Barbara Ludwig
Reviewed by: Dr. Nikki Conklin, Dr. Gail Gunderson, Dr. Garee Earnest, Bill Owen, Lou Fourman and Linda Kutilek
Revised by: Dr. Bill R. Haynes, October, 2003
2005 Revisions by: Toni Bahnsen
2009 Revisions by: Elizabeth Merkowitz (HR Intern), Dr. Garee W. Earnest