Jeanette Brooks Priebe (born July 4, 1937) was the Tennessee-born Director of the
Louisville Civil Service Board in
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
when she instituted the first
affirmative action hiring program for
the Louisville metro area public service personnel. During the 1970s, Priebe directed the integration of the
Louisville Metro Police Department
The Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) began operations on January 6, 2003, as part of the creation of the consolidated city-county government in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It was formed by the merger of the Jefferson County Pol ...
and the
Louisville Division of Fire.
Priebe led her department in devising a new method of hiring new applicants. Instead of receiving only the top candidates, the hiring department would be able to review all applicants, assuring then that all were considered – including African Americans and women. The new organizational process included a specific job classification system that took a year of intense analysis to complete. Four years before, these descriptions were vague, and a class action suit had been filed on behalf of the one African-American employee. The county government's Personnel Department became "more centralized and, more importantly, more professional." There were also new procedures for applicant screening and recruiting. Priebe once said, "Unless you're allowed to find the most qualified people, it's a literal misuse of tax money."
["Judge McConnell's Appointee Does Bang-Up Job With Jefferson County Personnel." ''The Portland Anchor'' (Louisville) 26 February 1981: 23. Print.]
After working as the Director of the Civil Service Board, Priebe worked for then-Judge
Mitch McConnell as Jefferson County Personnel and Executive Council Agency Member-At-Large for th
International Personnel Management Association
Jeanette Brooks Priebe was born in Bolivar, Tennessee and attended
Union University
Union University is a private Baptist Christian university in Jackson, Tennessee, with additional campuses in Germantown and Hendersonville. The university is affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention (Southern Baptist Convention). It is ...
in
Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States census.
Jackson ...
before enrolling in
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
in
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...
. She was the first woman to serve as the Director of the Civil Service Board in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
.
See also
*
Workplace discrimination
Employment discrimination is a form of illegal discrimination in the workplace based on legally protected characteristics. In the U.S., federal anti-discrimination law prohibits discrimination by employers against employees based on age, race, ...
*
Employment discrimination law in the United States
Employment discrimination law in the United States derives from the common law, and is codified in numerous state, federal, and local laws. These laws prohibit discrimination based on certain characteristics or "protected categories." The United ...
*
Affirmative Action
References
Other resources
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964Kentucky Revised Statutes 344.040 "Discrimination by employers"
* "Kurtz, Priebe Win in IPMA Election,
IPMA News November 1980.
* Shafer, Sheldon. "Fiscal Court accepts nomination of Mrs. Priebe as personnel chief." ''The Courier Journal'' (Louisville), 17 March 1978. Print.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Priebe, Jeanette Brooks
1937 births
Living people
People from Louisville, Kentucky
American civil rights activists
American civil servants
Union University alumni
Northwestern University alumni