Sabbatical Leave - UMass Amherst Provost's Office

Sabbatical Leave

Provost's Office > Administrative Info: Policies > Sabbatical Leave

Applications for 2002-2003

Application forms for 2002-2003 sabbatical leaves have been sent to the deans' offices for distribution as needed. The application form should be prepared in quadruplicate (one copy each for the Provost, dean, department head, and individual faculty member), and the approval form in triplicate (one copy each for the Provost, dean, and department head).

Applications for sabbatical leave beginning in either semester of the 2002-2003 academic year will be due in department offices November 9, 2001, in dean's offices December 7, 2001, and in the Provost's Office on January 25, 2002; notification of approval will be by March 8, 2002.

Because leave plans are frequently subject to change, faculty members should be informed that post-submission requests to change from half-year (full-pay) sabbaticals to full-year (half-pay) sabbaticals are easier to approve than changes in the opposite direction. Requests to change must be submitted prior to March 29, 2002, and may be disapproved if budget conditions require. Any changes processed will require the submission of a new signed agreement by the faculty member to comply with Trustee policy on the service obligation following sabbatical leave.

The general criteria governing the award of sabbatical leaves are set forth in Section 4.13 of the Academic Personnel Policy (Redbook). This section provides:

In addition to the provisions of University sabbatical leave policy, the general criteria for the award of sabbatical leaves, subject to the availability of funds and a request by the faculty member, are the following:

A record of achievement, service, and contribution during the years of service prior to the leave period that provides reasonable expectation that the objectives of the sabbatical project will be achieved.
A sabbatical leave project which promises to contribute to the development of the faculty member in areas of teaching; of research, creative or scholarly activity; and/or of professional service capability, and hence contribute to the institution as a whole upon the return to the University for at least one year following the academic year in which the sabbatical leave takes place.

Recommendations by department heads and deans for the award of sabbatical leaves should contain statements explaining why they believe these criteria have been met.

Special notice should be made of the requirement that each faculty member awarded a sabbatical leave prepare a report of his or her activities and accomplishments while on leave, and file copies of this report with the department head, academic dean, Provost, and Chancellor. Department heads should insure that all faculty members in their departments who took sabbatical leaves during 2000-01 have prepared these reports, and should submit a summary assessment of their contributions and importance. Deans should forward the departmental assessments to the Provost's Office by January 25, 2002, with an overall evaluation of sabbatical leave accomplishments in their school, college.

Measuring Eligibility for Sabbatical Leaves

Paragraph two of the Sabbatical Leave Policy states that members of the professional staff "who hold the rank of Instructor or above, and who have given the University at least six years of service" are eligible to apply. It has been common practice to measure eligibility for sabbatical leaves by semesters, so that one semester leaves without pay and reductions in time can be subtracted from the individual's period of service in computing the twelve semesters (or six years) of service required to establish eligibility. Counting purely by semesters, however, creates the risk of ignoring that part of the policy (paragraph five) which provides that "Sabbatical Leaves shall not be granted more frequently than one in seven years." Thus, if an individual had taken a fall semester sabbatical leave in the academic year N and were to claim eligibility for the next one semester, full pay sabbatical leave twelve semesters after his or her return, he or she would appear to be eligible again in the spring semester of academic year N+6. This would be contrary to policy as it would provide a sabbatical more frequently than once in seven years.

Therefore, the counting of semesters of service should begin with the first semester of service in the academic year following the latest sabbatical leave in which all or part of the leave was taken. That means it would make no difference to a faculty member's eligibility for the next sabbatical leave whether the preceding leave was a fall semester, spring semester, or a full year leave. Thus, the sabbatical eligibility year of persons who have had a sabbatical leave during any or all of academic year N (e.g. 95-96) and who have had uninterrupted, full time service after returning, would be academic year N+7 (2002-2003).

For a faculty member whose initial appointment begins in academic year N and who has had continuous, full time service, the first sabbatical leave eligibility would be academic year N+6.

Possible Options for Sabbatical Leave

95-96 (Year 1)	4a*	4a	4b**	4b	4c***
96-97 (Year 2)
97-98 (Year 3)
98-99 (Year 4)		#4c		#4c	#4c
99-00 (Year 5)		#4c		#4c	#4c
00-01 (Year 6)
01-02 (Year 7)
02-03 (Year 8)	4a, b, or c	4c	4a, b, or c	4c	4a, b, or c

*4a - A sabbatical leave under paragraph 4a of the sabbatical leave policy which allows leave for two consecutive semesters at half salary.

**4b - A sabbatical under paragraph 4b of the sabbatical leave policy, which allows leave for one semester at full salary.

***4c - A sabbatical under paragraph 4c of the sabbatical leave policy, which allows leave for two non-consecutive semesters at half salary.

#4c: leave is taken either in year four or five.

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