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Ohio Administrative Code (Last Updated: January 12, 2021) |
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3337 Ohio University Policy Manual |
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Chapter3337-3. Faculty Governance |
3337-3-09. Professional leave, research grants, and awards
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(A) Faculty improvement program
(1) The purpose of the faculty improvement program is to enhance the professional skills of the faculty member through further education, study, research, or creative work. It is the spirit of the program to permit the faculty member maximum flexibility in planning, in his way, his professional development. Both faculty and students as well as the public will benefit from such improvement in professional competence.
(2) At the end of each seven-year teaching period at Ohio university, each tenured faculty member having status shall be eligible for professional leave. Department chairmen accrue time towards eligibility in the same way as other faculty members. All academic service to Ohio university will count toward eligibility regardless of the rank, campus, or overseas program at which it was performed. Every faculty member who has taken professional leave shall complete another seven years of service at Ohio university before he shall become eligible for another grant of professional leave.
(3) Leaves of absence supported by other programs, such as baker awards, research grants, fellowships, etc., and leaves for the purpose of employment by another school or company will not be considered as substitutes for professional leave. However, the period spent on such special leaves of absence will not count as part of the accrual period for professional leave.
(4) Professional leave may consist of one quarter at full pay, two quarters at three-fourths pay, or three quarters at two-thirds pay. These rates are to be applied to the pay the faculty member normally would receive during the quarter(s) in which he is to be on leave.
(5) Professional leave may be granted for a maximum of three quarters. Faculty on nine-month contracts will be granted leave only during the quarters covered by a contract. Professional leave may not be taken during the summer or other off quarter, though such quarters do count toward eligibility for professional leave. Faculty members on twelve-month contracts will be granted leave at any time during the twelve-month period of the contract, with the combined summer sessions concidered be one quarter.
(6) A faculty member on professional leave will not hold a paid position unless that position can be shown to assist him professionally. Should he hold such a paid position during the period of the leave, however, the sum of the professional leave salary and additional funds in the form of grants, stipends, gifts, or pay shall not exceed the salary the faculty member would have received for that year without leave, excluding such funds as are applied to the special expenses of the leave for equipment, books, professional travel, services, higher cost of living elsewhere, etc. Should the sum exceed that amount, the university's contribution to his professional leave salary may be reduced accordingly.
(7) A faculty member who does not wish to apply for professional leave the year he becomes eligible or who is denied leave for any reason, will not lose his eligibility and may apply in the following years. If a faculty member is denied leave for the convenience of the department, in spite of the fact that his proposal merits approval, every effort will be made to ensure that this denial is not continued another year.
(8) Upon completion of professional leave, a faculty member starts accruing time toward eligibility for the award of his next professional leave as of the date of his resumption of normal academic duties. He does not begin to accrue time toward another leave while the leave for which he is already eligible is delayed either voluntarily or through denial of leave.
(9) Professional leave shall be considered as part of university service. No faculty member shall, by virtue of being on professional leave, suffer a reduction or termination of his regular employee retirement or insurance benefits or of any other benefit or privilege he receives as a faculty member at Ohio university. Whenever such a benefit would be reduced because of a reduction in the faculty member's salary during the period of professional leave, the faculty member shall be given a chance to have the benefit increased to its normal level. Ohio university will continue to pay its portion of pension and insurance policies.
(10) Faculty members will be expected to teach at Ohio university for at least three quarters after completion of their professional leave.
(11) Application for professional leave is to be made in writing to the department chairman ordinarily no later than the first day of the winter quarter preceding the summer and/or academic year in which-the leave is to be taken. The decision by the president on his application is to be made known to the faculty member in writing no later than March 1, though this decision is subject to trustee approval at their next meeting. The application must include a well-considered plan, presented with a reasonable degree, of specificity, showing how the leave will contribute to the professional effectiveness of the applicant and the best interest of the university, e.g., teaching efficacy, research, and creativity.
(12) The department will evaluate the faculty members' applications and the chairman will send all the applications and his recommendations to the appropriate dean. The dean will review all applications in his college and send them and his recommendations to the provost, who will review them and make recommendations to the president for final approval or disapproval, subject to confirmation by the board of trustees. If the evaluation process results in a decision not to approve the application, the faculty member will be given, no later than March first, written notification of the action and all reasons for the action. The written statement will be made by the person in the review process who first recommends disapproval of the application.
(13) If a faculty member believes that his leave proposal has been denied unjustly, he will have the right to appeal the decision to his chairman, to the dean, to the provost, and then to an appeal board which shall be the professional relations committee of the faculty senate. This committee will normally interview the faculty member, his chairman, and his dean, and then make recommendations to the provost for final action. The grounds for the appeal may be allegations of, (a) inadequate consideration, (b) denial of due process, or (c) personal bias or discrimination.
(14) A report on the completed professional leave activities shall be submitted in writing through the same channels as the request for leave within three months following the return of the faculty member to his teaching duties at Ohio university. The department will evaluate the report. Evaluation of this report will- play a significant role in the granting of future professional leaves
(15) No professional leave may be granted that requires a corresponding addition to the permanent faculty of Ohio university. Departments and regional campuses are expected to arrange for professional leaves on a "break even" or "no cost" basis; in some cases a "no cost" program may be desirable on a college wide basis. Duties of persons on professional leave normally will be assumed by the remaining faculty. If a faculty member is on leave with less than full salary, the remaining part of his budgeted salary may be used toward replacement of his services. The department chairman will describe how the proposed loss of teaching services will be compensated for, without impairment of the quality of the department's work. Faculty members of small instructional units and other singularly specialized faculty shall have equal opportunity for leave with all other faculty.
(16) Regional campus faculty members shall submit request for professional leave to the division coordinator. The division coordinator may forward the faculty member's application to the appropriate department at the Athens campus or to the most closely related department if no corresponding department exists. He shall take such action at the faculty member's request. The Athens department shall give advice on the merit of the faculty member's proposal and return it to the division coordinator, who shall take this advice into consideration in making his recommendations to the regional campus dean. The regional campus dean shall review all applications at his campus. He will send applications and his recommendations to the provost, who will review them and make recommendations to the president for final approval or disapproval, subject to confirmation by the board of trustees. If the evaluation process results in a decision not to approve the application, the faculty member will be given written notification, no later than March first. The written statement will be made by the person in the review process who first recommends disapproval of the application. The appeal procedure shall be through the division coordinator, the regional campus dean, the provost, and then to the professional relations committee of the faculty senate.
(17) When more applications are received than a department can recommend for implementation for the coming year, it is suggested that decisions on which faculty members shall be recommended for leave be based on; the merit of the proposal and the longevity of service to Ohio university since the last professional leave or since the beginning of employment at Ohio university if the faculty member has had no previous leave. Precedence over the above guidelines may be given in the following exceptional circumstances: a previously approved proposal which could not be implemented for the sake of departmental convenience or because of the discontinuation of a previous sabbatical leave program should be given the highest priority if resubmitted: special programmatic needs of a department, and special opportunities available to a faculty member at a particular time.
(B) The John C. Baker fund. The John C. Baker fund, endowed as an "incentive to quality" in the name of former Ohio university president Dr. John C. Baker, is the gift of university alumni Mr. and Mrs. Edwin L. Kennedy. The "Baker fund" provides
(1) distinguished professorship awards, initiated in 1959 for faculty members who have made significant contributions in their fields,
(2) the Edwin and Ruth Kennedy lecture series, and
(3) grants supporting faculty research projects upon which a substantial beginning has already been made and for which there is a definite need in terms of the university's programs.
(C) The distinguished professor award. Selections for the distinguished professor award are made by the president and committee composed of four faculty members named by the faculty senate. Although the award is not necessarily made annually, the committee will meet annually to More than one award may be made per year. consider candidates.
(1) Recipients of the distinguished professor award will be chosen on the basis of outstanding artistic, literary historical, or scientific achievement, or other worthy accomplishments attaining wide recognition. Funds for the leave and honorarium are donated to Ohio university by Mr. and Mrs. Edwin L. Kennedy.
(2) No set amount will be established for the honorarium, and a recipient may receive a cash stipend or a leave of absence of one quarter with full pay or both. In addition, every distinguished professor has the right each year to appoint one undergraduate to a one-year full-tuition scholarship.
(3) To be considered for the award, a faculty member must have tenure and a minimum of five years' service at the university. In addition, only projects already completed will be considered in the committee's examination of distinguished achievements. If a leave of absence is granted, the time when the leave is effective must be approved by the department chairman, the appropriate dean and the vice president and dean of faculties.
(4) Faculty members are invited to submit the names of candidates for the award to the president's office.
(D) Leaves of absence and reduction of teaching load for support of research.
(1) The university supports a program of leaves of absence, including professional leaves, either full-time or part-time, for research and productive scholarship.
(2) Chairmen of departments and deans of colleges may recommend to the vice president and dean of faculties reduction of teaching loads and/or leaves of absence for faculty members who have a research or writing project under way which requires a concentration of time and effort for its completion. Summer appointments for conducting research may be provided.
(E) Ohio university research committee.
(1) The Ohio university research committee provides support for research or creative effort in any field of study. The committee provides such support in response to formal proposals which are invited periodically during the academic year. Funds can be awarded for any bona fide research expenditure, including salary for the principle investigator, stipends or wages for graduate and undergraduate students, equipment, supplies, and travel.
(2) A restricted number of discretionary awards of up to one hundred dollars can be provided by the chairman of. the committee at any time without going through the formal, periodic review process.
(3) Guidelines for proposal preparation may be obtained from the chairman of the committee or from the research institute.
(F) Emeritus status.
(1) Except in very unusual circumstances, emeritus status is conferred only upon retiring or retired members of the faculty. Emeritus status is confered upon a faculty member if, in the judgment of his department or regional campus, and with the concurrence of appropriate administrative officers, some special recognition has been earned. This judgment should be based on any or all of the following factors:
(a) length of service;
(b) quality of teaching;
(c) quality of research;
(d) contribution to the university in administrative and committee work; and
(e) services to society beyond the university. Except in unusual circumstances, emeritus status shall be conferred only on someone who has taught at Ohio university ten or more years.
(2) An emeritus faculty member is granted parking and library privileges as if he were an active faculty member, and may be offered the use of other facilities such as office and laboratory space when they are available.
(G) University professor.
(1) To acknowledge outstanding undergraduate teaching, students of Ohio university participate in the naming of from one to ten university professors each year. University professors are group I faculty who have demonstrated superior teaching ability and who have insight into the educational process. Students suggest to the university professor selection committee the names of faculty members who they feel should serve. The committee screens the suggestions and nominates from the suggested faculty members those who best exemplify the concept of the university professorship.. The vice president and dean of faculties appoints the university professors from among those nominated by the committee. Each professor is given freedom to teach courses of his or her choosing and is awarded a one thousand dollar honorarium during the academic year of the appointment. At the present time this program is operational only on the Athens campus.
(2) Procedures used by the university professor selection committee are outlined in the undergraduate catalogue and the university college bulletin. For additional information contact the office of the dean of the university college.
(H) Research institute fellows.
Those, faculty work have demonstrated outstanding research accomplishments at Ohio university are recognized through designation as research institute fellows. Nominations are submitted by faculty and academic deans and final selections are made by a committee under the chairmanship of the director of research. Each fellow receives a research fund that may be used to support any research activity other than personal salary.