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EMA director urges job-description changes to widen applicant pool for vacant position
Summary
The county’s Emergency Management Agency reported only three applications for a vacant position and the committee agreed to relax strict degree/experience requirements (add 'or' between degree and experience) so the department can interview candidates and assess practical experience.
LaSalle County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) director reported the committee had received only three applicants for a replacement position and asked the committee to modify the job description to broaden the applicant pool.
The EMA director said one applicant had a degree but no field experience, while the other two lacked degrees and had limited or no emergency‑management experience. Committee members discussed replacing a strict "bachelor's degree and five years" requirement with language such as "bachelor's degree and three years' experience or five years' experience with an associate degree" or a commensurate‑experience clause. Several members favored adding an "or" so candidates with relevant field experience could be interviewed.
"I just wanna get the bodies in front of him so he can interview," a committee member said, urging the change so the director can evaluate candidates’ practical knowledge in interviews. The committee agreed to have three members meet after the session to coordinate wording and to ask the chair to convey the change to Human Resources so applicants can be interviewed.
No formal vote was recorded; the committee directed the chair and a small group of members to meet and finalize the revised language and to proceed with interviews once the description is adjusted.
