Employee Handbook

Employee Handbook 34 August 2023 CHAPTER III ~ FACULTY LEAVE AND SUPPORT SERVICES 1. Leave Faculty members must receive approval from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and submit an absence report prior to leaving campus when such absence involves missing a class or being gone for a significant period of time. Faculty who are absent for professional reasons also must comply with DCB travel policies and submit travel forms regardless of the source of funding. 1 .1 Developmental Leave (Sabbatical) a. Developmental leave for retraining and/or professional development is permitted for university system employees providing: • Institutional resources are available. • Workload is absorbed within the existing faculty resource allocations. • A written proposal describing the planned use of the leave and its anticipated benefits to the institution, to the State, and to the employee is approved. The proposal should also include the detail of the source of funds for the total stipend. • The employee signs an agreement to return to the system upon completion of the leave for a period of time at least equal to the leave time or refund the stipend payment. • To assist in retrenchment efforts, developmental leave may be granted without a signed agreement to return. The employee must execute a resignation effective at the termination of the developmental leave. b . Developmental (sabbatical) leave may not exceed 12 months and the base stipend may not exceed the salary scheduled for the leave period. 2. Faculty Absences from Scheduled Classes 2.1 When a faculty member knows in advance of an absence : The faculty member must complete the Faculty Absence Report and submit it to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at least three days prior to the scheduled absence. Faculty members may not simply cancel classes during their absence. Instead, the faculty needs to provide students with a meaningful educational experience for each class period they are absent. Such experiences would include, but are not limited to the following: • A guest speaker, internal or external to the college. • A relevant video and, if applicable, an accompanying worksheet. • A recorded lecture.