BOG Hands Over ASG Job Hunt

The search was removed from the responsibility of student leaders because of a change in the employee classification of the assistant. The position, titled Administrative Secretary II by state classification, should be filled by early 2003.

The administrator now will be classified as an employee who must follow the guidelines of the State Employee Act. Before a change in the system hiring code, the administrator fell into a category that was exempted from the regulations.

ASG President Jonathan Ducote said assistance in the hiring process from UNC-system officials will make it easier to ensure the right person is selected.

"I wish the (UNC-system) Office of the President would have taken over the process the first time around," he said. "This takes administrative work off of myself and my staff, allowing us to focus on issues that are important to students instead of working on paperwork."

The UNC-system Board of Governors has expressed concern over the influence an administrator might have on the ASG's actions, saying the process of running the association is meant to be a learning experience for students. "We're not trying to create a high-paid salary bureaucracy," said BOG member Addison Bell. "We want the association to run itself."

The board was not trying to undermine students when assigning the hiring ASG's administrative assistant to the president's staff, said BOG member Jim Phillips. "The Office of the President is simply going to make sure the ASG is dotting their i's and crossing their t's."

Ducote said having system administrators lead the search does not diminish the learning aspect of the hiring process.

"There is nothing bad coming out of the transfer," he said. "ASG will still make the final decision. We'll wind up with just as strong of a person, and I feel like the margin of error on our part will decrease."

Ducote added that ASG members hope to find someone who holds appropriate qualifications, specifically a bachelor's degree, to be a successful assistant. He said the position will be invaluable because it will provide continuity within each successive ASG administration.

"Thus far, we've received a wide range of applicants, from former vice chancellors of community colleges to former Broadway performers," he said. "We need someone to add continuity, someone who will be able to remember names and faces, so that we don't always have to be starting from square one with each new president."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.