Universities are ramping up targeted hiring to meet CRC equity goals

A balanced, well written article that covers all sides of the issue: the view that academia is too homogeneous, and that targeted hiring* is needed to address this issue, and the competing view that not enough is being done to recruit minorities in academia, and that universities should be more vocal and passionate in their defense of these programs.

It's truly refreshing to read an article unafraid to examine an issue from all viewpoints, even those the author disagrees with, instead of merely advancing one side of the culture war.

*The preferred term for hiring that excludes some groups.

“We need to value different competencies than publishing in high-impact journals,” she said. Community work, teaching, mentoring, activism and administrative work are undervalued. Yet, innovation in academia may lie in these areas. “

These areas are overvalued. No scientific innovation comes from activism and administrative work.

They are replacing measurable performance metrics with the equivalent of “are u already a part of the administrative bloatware? Great, you qualify.”

This is a biproduct of the academia bubble and it will correct. eventually.