Equal Employment Opportunity
The Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) COE works to promote a respectful, accessible and inclusive environment to all students, staff, and community within the CT State Community College, Charter Oak State College and CSCU System.
What we do
The Equal Employment Opportunity COE works to promote a respectful, accessible and inclusive environment to all students, staff, and community within the CT State Community College, Charter Oak State College and CSCU System.
Ensure Equal Opportunity and Access for Students, Staff, and the Community
- Monitor college/campus compliance with relevant CSCU policies and all state and federal EEO/AA/Civil Rights laws including, but not limited to, Title VII, Title IX, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- Provide direction and guidance on search compliance and diversity recruitment efforts
- Provide career counseling for employees seeking career mobility
- Develop Affirmative Action plans and programs in accordance with the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) AA Regulations
- Provide reasonable accommodations for employees or job applicants in accordance with the ADA
- Conduct and coordinate state mandated training (Diversity, Sexual Harassment, Title IX and ADA)
Investigate Discriminatory Conduct
- Investigate allegations of discrimination and sexual harassment and make recommendations for resolution in collaboration with the Labor Relations COE
- Facilitate informal resolution/mediation of complaints
Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Policy & Strategy Development
- Participate in developing and enforcing workplace policies and procedures to ensure compliance with laws and regulations regarding all protected classes
- Work to establish a Diversity & Inclusion Committee that represents staff from all 12 CC, Charter Oak State College and CSCU System
- Work with all of the Centers of Excellence in efforts to promote diversity, inclusion and equity
Who we are
Cameron Liston
Chief Compliance Officer
cameron.liston@ct.edu
Policies
Affirmative Action Plans
Per Connecticut General Statutes Sec. 46a-68. (Formerly Sec. 4-61s). State affirmative action plans: Filing; monitoring; reports; equal employment opportunity officers; review and investigation of discrimination complaints; regulations.
About the Plans
(a) Each state agency, department, board and commission with twenty-five, or more, full-time employees shall develop and implement, in cooperation with the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, an affirmative action plan that commits the agency, department, board or commission to a program of affirmative action in all aspects of personnel and administration. Such plan shall be developed pursuant to regulations adopted by the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities in accordance with chapter 54 to ensure that affirmative action is undertaken as required by state and federal law to provide equal employment opportunities and to comply with all responsibilities under the provisions of sections 4-61u to 4-61w, inclusive, sections 46a-54 to 46a-64, inclusive, section 46a-64c and sections 46a-70 to 46a-78, inclusive. The executive head of each such agency, department, board or commission shall be directly responsible for the development, filing and implementation of such affirmative action plan. The Metropolitan District of Hartford County shall be deemed to be a state agency for purposes of this section and sections 4a-60, 4a-60a and 4a-60g.
According to the Affirmative Action Regulations: (https://portal.ct.gov/CHRO/Legal/Legal/Regulations/Affirmative-Action)
"Affirmative action" means positive action, undertaken with conviction and effort to overcome the present effects of past practices, policies or barriers to equal employment opportunity and to achieve the full and fair participation of women, blacks and Hispanics and any other protected group found to be underutilized in the workforce or affected by policies or practices having an adverse impact.
"Affirmative action plan" or "plan" means a detailed, result-oriented set of procedures, prepared and approved in accordance with section 46a-68 of the Connecticut General Statutes and sections 46a-68-75 to 46a-68-114, inclusive, of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, which blueprints a strategy to combat discrimination and achieve affirmative action.
Additionally, as part of the AA regulations, each agency, department, board, and commission must demonstration good faith efforts to achieve their goals. (Section 46a-68-92 – Good Faith Effort - https://eregulations.ct.gov/eRegsPortal/Browse/RCSA/Title_46aSubtitle_46a-68Section_46a-68-92/)
"Good faith effort" means the initiatives delineated in section 46a-68-92 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies including that degree of care and diligence which a reasonable person would exercise in the performance of legal duties and obligations. At a minimum, it includes all those efforts reasonably necessary to achieve full compliance with the law. Further, it includes additional or substituted efforts when initial endeavors will not meet statutory or regulatory requirements. Finally, it includes documentary evidence of all action undertaken to achieve compliance, especially where requirements have not or will not be achieved within the reporting period established pursuant to section 46a-68-92 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.