EAST PROVIDENCE — While the School Committee has rejected the idea of giving guaranteed interviews to job applicants from the city, the district is already giving a slight edge to Townie job seekers.

Yet they have to make it to the interview on their own merits. They must also be nearly equal in credentials to another candidate for the partiality to come into play.

Human Resources director Lonnie Barham spelled out the district’s hiring practice for employees under the rank of principals, such as teachers, in a proposed policy the School Committee is presently reviewing. He gave the board the draft at Monday night’s meeting.

The department’s hiring procedure was questioned and criticized two weeks ago when member Stephen DeCastro and former principal Arthur Elmasian said some residents weren’t t interviewed for recent vacancies. They said city taxpayers and former East Providence High School graduates should at least be given an interview, and Elmasian was outraged that his former students weren’t.

“I was the principal for 18 years and we would tell them, ‘Remember your alma mater and have Townie Pride,’ ” Elmasian said two weeks ago. “I’m proud of the kids who graduate from EP High. There’s no Townie Pride [anymore], its townie demise now. Any resident should get an interview and then you can play any games afterward.”

The committee didn’t change the hiring procedure despite the requests.

Barham — who was absent from that meeting two weeks ago — said the best is recommended each time, however the present practice does allow for those who are minorities, city residents or former local graduates to get the nod over others if they have nearly the same credentials.

The director reviews every application with its supporting documents first. He said he whittles down who should move on to the next round based on the applicants’ experience, education, college grades, test scores, letter of reference and “any other criterion relevant to the position.”

Barham picks at least four candidates for every opening to proceed to the next step, which is an interview. For example, 16 special-education applicants will at least move on if there are 4 special-education vacancies. He then puts a screening committee together that includes a teacher, principal, PTA member, parent, central office administrator, affirmative action committee representative, a union representative, himself and others, if necessary.

The committee asks the same questions to every applicant and then each member scores the candidate. He or she is also not allowed to discuss individuals until all the interviews have occurred. The scores are tallied for a quality of interview ranking.

The panel first considers the ranking and primary criteria, which Barham said is the grades, experience, test scores and letters of reference. Ties can be broken with secondary criteria — minority status, local resident and former graduate.

The group then makes a list of top candidates for the superintendent to consider. The superintendent typically selects a person from the list to recommend to the School Committee and the committee votes to accept or reject the superintendent’s recommendation. If no one is chosen, the position may be re-advertised.

“This at least gives [them] a leg up over equals,” Barham said. “… But sometimes the resident doesn’t get an interview.”

Not satisfied, DeCastro again tried to convince the committee to change the procedure. His motion Monday night to have Barham draft a policy that guarantees interviews for 20 or so East Providence applicants failed, however, because another committee member did not second the motion. Although it didn’t help, DeCastro and chairwoman Mildred Morris — who can’t second because she is the chair — also said the city’s Police and Fire departments give applicants extra points for living in East Providence.

“If the city can do it for fire and police, I think the School Department can do it for their teachers,” DeCastro said. After acknowledging that hiring is difficult, DeCastro said test scores on SATs and other exams shouldn’t be the “end all” to being selected.

“My position is we should focus on excellence rather than residence,” member Anthony Carcieri said. He also said the children should come first and nothing else should creep in to sway the district from getting the best teachers for the students.

The committee will discuss Barham’s proposed policy at its next meeting.

apina@projo.com