INTRODUCTION
Sabbatical criteria and eligibility are outlined in Article XIII, Title E of the Policies of the Board of Trustees; Article 23.6 of the UUP Agreement; and Chapter 210.07 of the College Handbook. According to these policies, the objective of a sabbatical leave “is to increase an employee’s value to the University and thereby improve and enrich its program.”
Eligibility
Academic employees with continuing appointment who have completed at least six consecutive years of service are eligible for sabbatical leave. Employees who have previously had a sabbatical leave must have completed at least six consecutive years of service from the date of return. Vacation leave and sick leave with salary are included in the computation of consecutive years of service, but other leaves of absence are not to be included. Please refer to Article XIII, Title E, Section 3 of the Policies of the Board of Trustees.
Criteria
All applications (both full year and half year) will be judged on the following criteria:
- The value of the proposed leave to the faculty member, the department, school, and/or college
- The ability of the department to satisfy its teaching and service responsibilities in the faculty member’s absence
- While sabbaticals will be judged primarily on their intellectual merit, special consideration will be given to first-time applicants.
Time Period, Salary, and Benefits
The President’s Cabinet will determine the number of half-year sabbaticals that can be supported (and at what salary rate) based on budgetary considerations. Sabbatical leaves may be granted for:
- A period of one year at rates not to exceed one-half basic annual salary or
- A period of one-half year at rates not to exceed full basic annual salary
Employees who remain in at least half-time pay status continue health, dental and vision coverage without interruption.
Full retirement system service credit or contributions will apply to full-pay sabbaticals. Partial retirement system service credit or contributions will apply for less than full-pay sabbaticals in a ratio equivalent to the percentage of pay. Leave accruals are not used or earned during the period of sabbatical leave.
Process
(for specific dates, please refer to the Personnel Action Calendar)
- Faculty applications to the department chair are due in the first week of October.
- Chairs submit their recommendations to the respective dean in the third week of October.
- If there are multiple applications from a department, the chairs will prioritize them.If the chair is applying for a sabbatical leave, only the other applications will be prioritized.
- By the second week of November, deans will submit their recommendations to the Provost.
- If the number of recommendations exceeds the number of sabbaticals that can be supported, the three deans will meet with the Provost to arrive at consensus on a rank ordering of the applications.
- The Provost submits recommendations to the President in the first week of December.