AGENDA #5a

 

MEMORANDUM

 

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

 

FROM:            W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

 

SUBJECT:       Update on Recruitment and Selection Process for Advisory Boards

 

DATE:             November 25, 2002

 

 

BACKGROUND

 

This report provides an update on the recruitment and selection process for membership on Town advisory boards, commissions, and ad hoc committees.

 

On April 8, 2002, the Council adopted a list of goals for 2002-03, following its planning sessions on January 18 and January 28.  The Council decided to retain certain goals from the previous year and to establish additional goals.

 

One of the goals identified by the Council on April 8 for 2002-03 was:

 

(33)  Improve communications with applicants for advisory boards regarding their interests, notice of nomination, notice of appointments, and related matters.

 

At the time that the Council adopted the above goal, we reported that we would prepare a process description that outlines the steps in communications with applicants from inquiry about the application process through appointment or expiration of applications and seek feedback from the Council in the fall.

 

DISCUSSION

 

The Clerk’s office conducted a review of the recruitment and appointment process, and several areas were identified for improvement:

 

• Notification to citizens of receipt of application
• Closer attention to verification of eligibility to serve
• Improved tracking procedures of applications
• Improved advertisement of vacancies.

 

Following is an explanation of the process now used by the Clerk’s Office.  Improvements to the process put in place over the past year are noted in italics.

Recruitment

 

• When vacancies occur or when new committees are created, advertisements are placed in local newspapers, detailing the charge of the board, commission or committee, and any other pertinent information.
• Vacancies are posted on the Town’s web site at www.townofchapelhill.org.
• Applications for vacancies are available on the Town’s web site, and can be completed and returned to the Clerk’s Office electronically.

 

Although few applications have been received electronically to date, email inquiries regarding vacancies listed on the web site have doubled since the application form and vacancy list were first posted this spring, from an average of two a week before the posting to the current average of four per week.

 

Applications

 

• When applications are received, addresses are reviewed to determine whether the applicant resides in the city limits, the Extraterritorial Jurisdiction and the Joint Planning Area.
• The applications are checked to confirm that all relevant information has been included, such as gender and race.  (Gender information for appointments made each fiscal year is required to be reported to the NC Secretary of State’s office.)
• An acknowledgement of receipt of the application, in the form of a letter from the Town Clerk, is mailed to each applicant.  The letter thanks the applicant for applying, confirms whether or not a vacancy exists on the boards applied for, and if possible, an approximate time when appointments are scheduled to be made.
• Copies of applications are forwarded to the staff liaison for the respective boards, who are responsible for providing copies to the current board members so that a recommendation for appointment may be prepared for the Council’s consideration.

 

Nominations

 

• When recruitment has been completed for vacancies, applicants’ names are included on a resolution placed on the Council’s consent agenda.  This generally occurs one meeting prior to the appointment date.
• Applicants are not notified when nominations are made.  (See Notification of Appointment section below.)

 

Appointments

 

• The Council’s Procedures Manual encourages boards and commissions to review applications for appointments, and provide the Council with a recommendation.
• Appointments are placed on the Council’s agenda, usually when the Clerk has received a recommendation for appointment from a board.
• The Council makes appointments at a regular business meeting, using ballots.

 

Notification of Appointment

 

• Applicants who are appointed to a board or commission receive a letter from the Mayor acknowledging their appointment, and indicating that they will soon be contacted by the staff liaison for that particular board.
• Applicants not appointed receive a letter from the Town Clerk stating that they were not chosen, but that their application will be kept on file for a period not to exceed two years and considered when future vacancies occur.
• Staff liaisons are emailed, usually the day after the appointments are made, notifying them of who was appointed.

 

Additional Information

 

• If additional vacancies occur, applicants who were previously considered but not appointed are contacted to confirm their continued interest in serving on the board for which they applied.
• If an application is received for appointment to a board having no vacancies and has been on file for three months or more, the applicant is contacted to confirm their continued interest when a vacancy occurs.   This is done prior to listing the applicants’ names for potential nomination.

 

SUMMARY

 

The process described above has proven to be more effective than past procedures.  It has provided us with the opportunity to more closely track applications, verify information, communicate with applicants and board liaisons, and fill vacancies at a quicker pace.  The process allows for more effective communication with applicants at various stages of the process, keeping them informed of vacancies and appointment schedules, and confirming their continued interest in particular boards.

 

We will continue to review the recruitment and notice process, and welcome feedback from the Council.