S96-8 DIFFERENCE IN PAY LEAVES POLICY; SEE ALSO SABBATICAL LEAVES

Legislative History:

At its meeting of April 8, 1996, the Academic Senate approved the following Policy Recommendation presented by David McNeil for the Professional Standards Committee.

ACTION BY THE UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT:

"Approved as University Policy" Signed Robert L. Caret, 5/30/96.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION

DIFFERENCE IN PAY LEAVES POLICY (1)

I.Purpose:

The purpose of difference in pay leaves is to benefit the University, its students and its programs through the professional development of its faculty as teachers and scholars. Projects which, because of their scope, cannot be undertaken in the course of a faculty member's full-time responsibilities and which propose to benefit the University in at least one of the following ways (not listed in rank order) are eligible for consideration: scholarly, creative, and/or professional activities; activities which enhance a faculty member's pedagogical and/or professional competencies; projects which contribute significantly to the development of a discipline or curricular area.

II. Eligibility:

According to the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Board of Trustees of the California State University and the California Faculty Association, a full-time faculty unit employee shall be eligible for a difference in pay leave "if he/she has served full-time for six (6) years at that campus in the preceding seven (7) year period prior to the leave, and has served full time for three years after the last sabbatical leave or difference in pay leave, and has rendered service to the CSU upon return from a sabbatical leave or difference in pay leave at the rate of one (1) term of service as a faculty unit employee for each term of leave. Credit granted towards the completion of the probationary period for service elsewhere shall also apply towards fulfilling the eligibility requirements for a difference in pay leave. A leave of absence without pay or service in an academic administrative appointment excluded from the bargaining unit shall not constitute a break in service for eligibility requirements."

III.Procedures:

A. Application

The application shall provide: 1) a detailed description of the plan to carry out the project, including, if appropriate, a description of any preparatory work scheduled before the leave or of pertinent completed work; 2) a statement of the project's benefit to the University in one or more of the ways listed above; 3) evidence of the applicant's ability to complete the project; 4) a statement that the final report of a previous San José State University professional leave (sabbatical or difference in pay) has been filed. In addition, the application shall state the amount of leave time requested and what CSU resources, if any, are necessary for the project's implementation. The applicant's curriculum vitae or professional resumé must be attached to the application.

B. Evaluating Applications

Each department shall adopt a professional leaves document which provides for the election of a department committee by the probationary and tenured faculty members of the unit. Provisions must be made to disqualify applicants for sabbatical leaves or DIP leaves from serving on such a committee.

The Faculty Affairs Office shall set the calendar and distribute applications each semester to each eligible faculty unit employee. The calendar shall permit flexibility so that a faculty unit employee who is afforded external funding or other unexpected opportunity to carry out a professional leave project may have a rapid and expedited review of a proposal for a difference in pay leave. Eligible faculty shall follow this calendar and submit applications to the department chair. The chair shall write a statement regarding the impact of the absence of the proposer(s) from his/her department on the curriculum and operation of the department, and explaining any benefits to the department were the application to be approved. The chair's statement shall be provided to the department committee and dean, with a copy to the proposer, who has seven calendar days to respond in writing to the college dean, with a copy to the chair.

In each department a professional leaves committee shall review the proposals for difference in pay leaves submitted by faculty members in their department. The committee shall evaluate individual applications according to the criteria listed in Section IV below. Applications which do not meet the criteria shall receive a recommendation against the granting of the leaves. For each application the professional leaves committee shall provide a written evaluation explaining the strengths and/or weaknesses of the proposal. A copy of the evaluation and recommendation for each application shall be provided to the proposer, who has seven calendar days to respond in writing to the department professional leaves committee.

The dean shall review the applications, chairs' statements, the recommendations of the department professional leaves committee, and any responses from proposers. The dean shall recommend in writing to the President that each application be approved or disapproved, and shall state the reasons for the recommendation. A copy of the recommendation shall be provided to the proposer, who has seven calendar days to respond in writing to the President, with a copy to the department chair and dean.

The President, after considering all prior recommendations and any response from the applicant, shall notify each applicant of the final status of the application. Such notification shall include in writing the reasons for approval, denial, or postponement, and any conditions of the leave. A copy of this notice shall be provided to the applicant's department chair, dean, and department committee.

C. Difference In Pay Leave Report

Within six weeks after returning to service at San José State University, the faculty member shall submit a written report to the department professional leaves committee, and to the President via the Office of Faculty Affairs. In addition, faculty members returning from leave are encouraged to present the results of the difference in pay leave at departmental, college or university forums.

IV.Criteria:

The major criterion for evaluating applications for difference in pay leaves is the benefit to the University in one or more of the following ways, not listed in rank order: through the project's contributions to scholarship, to creative activities and/or professional advances; through the project's contribution to curricular development; through the project's contribution to the improvement of instruction or academically-related areas and/or the instructional or professional skills of the applicant. Additional criteria are the applicant's ability to carry out the proposal, the planning evidenced in the detailed description of the proposal, and the time-lines for the completion of the project.

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1. This edited version of S96-8 has been corrected 9/96 for typographical errors and should replace copies circulated earlier