General Information
The college embraces the value of a leave of absence to maintain academic excellence. In addition to university policies on leaves, Taubman College’s policies are outlined below – both sets apply. No leave, including a sabbatical, is an entitlement.
Taubman College recognizes four types of leaves and each one has specific eligibility requirements and obligations. A brief overview of each type of leave is below:
- Sabbatical Leave
Tenured faculty with 12 semesters of active teaching may request a sabbatical leave to focus on their research and creative practice activity. The purpose of a sabbatical is to provide teaching and administrative release to pursue a new or ongoing research project, and faculty should consider the impact of the proposed sabbatical on their research agenda when submitting a request. This leave may be on or off campus and may be taken over one term at full salary or two terms at half salary – both include benefits coverage. A faculty member on sabbatical leave cannot render service for compensation in the university or another institution or enterprise. There is a university obligation to return to teach for one full year following the sabbatical and there must be two years of active duty before taking another type of leave. Faculty do not begin accruing time for a new sabbatical until they have taken the one they are eligible for. Semester(s) on sabbatical leave are not included in the count toward the next sabbatical. - Duty Off-Campus Leave
In Taubman College, duty off-campus leaves are used for nurturance leaves (see Appendix 1), leaves granted after administrative duty has concluded (chair or associate dean), as well as assignments in teaching or conducting research elsewhere (at UM or beyond) at the request of our programs or the college. These are paid leaves for one term at full salary, include benefits coverage, and carry an obligation to return to teach for one full year following the leave. There must be two years of active duty before taking another leave. Some, but not all, of these leaves count toward sabbatical equity (see Sabbatical Eligibility below). - Scholarly Activity Leave
Faculty who have received a prestigious fellowship (such as UM Humanities Institute Fellowships or the Rome Prize) may request a scholarly activity leave. Note: Faculty with administrative appointments in the college (faculty director, program chair, associate deans, etc.) should discuss applying for these types of leave with their program chair and dean before applying. The dean, in consultation with the chair, may elect to grant the faculty member a “topping-off” award to bridge the gap between the fellowship stipend and the faculty member’s full time rate. These leaves are limited to one year, include benefits coverage, and entail a teaching obligation of one full year following the leave. There must be two years of active duty before taking another leave. These leaves do not count towards sabbatical equity. - Leave Without Salary
Faculty may request a leave without salary for military service, government or public service, for appointments as a visiting instructor or a visiting researcher, etc. The term may not exceed one year and will not be granted to faculty who hold an appointment for permanent employment from another institution. The faculty member does not receive salary and there is no benefits coverage. There must be two years of active duty before taking another leave. These leaves do not count towards sabbatical equity.
Prior to taking a leave, all requests must first meet the following criteria:
Two years of active duty are required before a faculty member is eligible for a leave (paid or unpaid).
- Timing of the leave must be approved by the chair(s)/director(s) of all the program(s) where the faculty member holds budgeted appointments and takes into consideration the teaching and administrative needs of the program(s).
- Requests must be submitted to the college for approval by the deadlines noted below.
- Requests must be approved by the Executive Committee prior to taking the leave.
- Occasionally leaves without salary are granted for more than one year. In these instances, final approval by the Regents must be obtained before the leave may be taken.
In some cases, by mutual agreement the faculty member and administration can adjust the provisions of a leave to accommodate shared goals. More detailed information about each type of leave is below:
Sabbatical Leave
Deadline for sabbatical requests is October 1.
Eligibility:
- Only tenured faculty members with an active research program and 12 terms of active teaching (called equity) since their last sabbatical or date of hire may apply for a sabbatical.
- Two years of active duty from a previous leave are required before a faculty member is eligible for this leave.
- A sabbatical is not an entitlement. Both the program, Executive Committee, and dean must approve the sabbatical and its timing.
- Faculty may not teach or render service for compensation at UM, at another institution, or in an enterprise while on sabbatical. This does not preclude acceptance of a research fellowship or appointment as a visiting researcher.
- Equity is counted for each term the faculty member has an active assignment with pay. Equity is also accrued for terms spent on medical leave, modified duties, reduced appointment, and some duty off-campus leaves (i.e., nurturance leaves or assignments in teaching or conducting research elsewhere at the request of our programs or college).
- Faculty do not begin accruing time for a new sabbatical until they have taken the one they are eligible for. If faculty are asked to postpone their sabbatical for teaching or service needs in the program, college, or university, they may request preservation of their additional equity for a future sabbatical by submitting a request to the dean. A confirmation email will be sent when the request has been approved by the Dean’s Office and Academic HR.
- Programs hiring faculty with equity at their prior institution, must include relevant language provided by HR in the offer letter. This will serve as the documentation for the Dean’s Office to obtain approval from Academic HR for UM recognition of the equity.
Obligations:
- Submit a sabbatical report to Taubman College HR within 90 days following the sabbatical.
- Return to the university to teach for one full year following the sabbatical or repay all salary and benefits received while on leave.
- Two years of active duty must elapse before taking another type of leave.
Procedures:
- Submit a signed UM Request for Sabbatical Leave (Form J)
- Include a current CV
- If taking the sabbatical over two terms at half salary, the faculty member should contact the Benefits Office at 734.615.2000 to discuss the implication of half pay on retirement contributions.
For more information:
- SPG 201.30-2
- Regents’ Bylaws 5.14
- Faculty Handbook, Chapter 16 “Leaves Related to Professional Development”
Duty Off-Campus Leave
Deadline is no less than 3 months prior to the beginning of the term of the leave
Eligibility:
- Only tenure-track or tenured faculty members may take a duty off-campus leave.
- Two years of active duty are required before a faculty member is eligible for this leave.
- Teaching releases do not release the faculty member from research and service obligations, and therefore do not qualify as a duty off-campus leave.
- A faculty member whose “duties require activity at a site away from campus for a period of one month or more” should request a duty off-campus leave.
- Nurturance leave, administrative leave at the end of appointment for a chair or associate dean, or assignments in teaching or conducting research elsewhere at the request of the program or college are all taken as duty off-campus leaves.
- New faculty who have a combination of sabbatical equity from a prior institution and from UM must take a duty off-campus leave in lieu of their first sabbatical leave.
- Sabbatical equity is accrued for the following types of duty off-campus leaves: nurturance leave or assignments in teaching or conducting research elsewhere at the request of our programs or college. Equity is not accrued for any other type of duty off-campus leave.
Obligations:
- Return to teach for one full year following the duty off-campus leave or repay all salary and benefits received while on leave.
- Two years of active duty must elapse before taking another leave. Some duty off-campus leaves (e.g. assignments in teaching or conducting research elsewhere at the request of our programs or college) may be exempt from this requirement. Consult your program chair and HR.
Procedures:
- Submit a signed Leave Request.
- Include documentation in support of the leave request.
For more information:
Scholarly Activity Leave
Eligibility:
- Only tenure-track or tenured faculty members may take a scholarly activity leave.
- Two years of active duty are required before a faculty member is eligible for this leave.
- The stipend granted with the prestigious fellowship must equal at least 25% of the faculty member’s full time rate.
- No sabbatical equity is accrued while on scholarly activity leave.
Obligations:
- Return to teach for one full year following the scholarly activity leave or repay all salary and benefits received while on leave.
- Two years of active duty must elapse before taking another leave.
Topping-Off Award:
- If the stipend attached to an award falls short of a faculty member’s full time rate, the dean may choose to provide a topping-off award to the faculty member.
- Faculty may receive a topping-off award only once every five years.
- Not all fellowship awards will merit topping-off support. Such support must be recommended by the chair and be approved by the dean.
Procedures:
- Submit a signed Leave Request.
- Include a copy of the award letter identifying stipend amount.
- Benefits coverage continues regardless of effort.
- University retirement contributions are only made on salary paid by UM. If the faculty member is receiving less than full salary, then they should contact the Benefits Office at 734.615.2000 to discuss the implication of reduced pay on retirement contributions.
For more information:
Leave Without Salary
Eligibility:
- Tenure-track, tenured, and practice-track faculty members
- Two years of active duty are required before a faculty member is eligible for this leave.
Obligations:
- Return to teach for one full year following the leave without salary.
- Two years of active duty must elapse before taking another leave.
Procedures:
- Submit a signed Leave Request.
- Because there is no salary paid, there are no benefits coverage or retirement contributions for faculty on leaves without salary. A leave without salary for fall or winter term results in a 6 month period without pay or benefits (July 1 – December 31) or (January 1 – June 30). Faculty members should contact the Benefits Office directly at 734.615.2000 for guidance on what benefit options are available to him/her.
- No sabbatical equity is accrued while on leave without salary.
For more information:
Summary Table
| Type of Leave | Eligibility | Sabbatical Equity Accrued | Benefits Coverage | Retirement Contributions | Service obligation** |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sabbatical | Tenured faculty with 12 active terms and an active research program | No | Yes | Yes* | No |
| Duty Off Campus (Nurturance leave, assigned teaching/research off campus, administrative service) | Tenure-track/ tenured faculty | Yes, except for administrative service | Yes | Yes | Typically no |
| Scholarly Activity | Tenure-track/ tenure faculty with a prestigious external award (i.e. Rome Prize) or an internal fellowship (i.e. Institute for the Humanities) | No | Yes | Yes* | Typically no |
| Leave Without Salary | Tenure-track, tenured or practice track faculty | No | No | No* | No |
| *University retirement contributions are only paid on salary received from UM; faculty receiving less than full salary should contact the Benefits Office at 734.615.2000 to discuss the implication of reduced pay on retirement contributions. | |||||
| ** These are standard pathways, but can be customized. Sometimes by mutual agreement, faculty on leaves may conduct service. | |||||
Appendix 1: Nurturance Leaves for Junior Faculty
Nurturance leaves are offered to tenure-track faculty members to allow time to focus on their dossiers for their upcoming tenure review. Usually these leaves are taken in the 5th year following the interim year review in year four. While on nurturance leave, the faculty member is released from all teaching and service obligations so that they may focus on research and creative practice and to address recommendations that came out of the interim review. If the interim review finds deficiencies in the faculty member’s teaching record then the nurturance leave can be used in part to work with CRLT or others to improve teaching.
The nurturance leave is taken administratively as a duty off-campus leave for one semester at full pay. A leave request form is required (even if the faculty member chooses to work on campus. Faculty members continue to accrue sabbatical equity during this period.
Procedure:
- Submit a signed Leave Request for duty off-campus.