Faculty Development
IX. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
A. Faculty Performance Evaluation and Pay Merit System
Faculty are required to complete the evaluation process as described in the Faculty Evaluation and Performance Compensation System Handbook. Failure to do so will result in no increase in compensation. Exceptions may include sabbatical, family or medical leave, or phased retirement at the discretion of the Provost.
In order to encourage continued study and scholarship, the College makes available the following opportunities for the support of professional development.
1. Faculty development grants are provided to faculty in support of their professional development.
2. Grant criteria are available on the Professional Council Website.
The Chief Academic Officer provides each faculty member with an annual allotment to reimburse travel and meeting expenses. An expense report with appropriate justification may be submitted to the Controller’s Office without prior approval. Unused portions of a faculty member’s allotment shall be re-allocated to the general faculty development funding. In all events an expense report must be submitted to the Chief Academic Officer’s office.
1. Sabbatical leaves are available to the full-time faculty for study and research or approved travel that is shown to be of advantage to both the College and the faculty member. Faculty members are eligible for a sabbatical leave after a minimum of six years of full-time teaching, and become eligible for successive sabbaticals upon the completion of at least six additional years of teaching. Sabbaticals provide full salary for one half year or a half salary for a full year of leave. Sabbaticals are recommended to the Academic Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees by the Chief Academic Officer, following approval by the Faculty Professional Council and the President. The Board of Trustees has final approval for all sabbaticals.
2. Applicants must hold the rank of Assistant Professor or higher. Application is made to the President no later than November first for the year preceding the leave and is reviewed by the Professional Council. It must include a statement of the purpose, scope, and design of the project or program the faculty member intends to undertake. Additionally, the application must include an identification of the way in which the faculty member’s teaching schedule shall be covered during the leave. Following the leave, the faculty member must submit a full and complete report to the Chief Academic Officer and the Professional Council and present their sabbatical activities at an on-campus forum.
3. Sabbatical leaves are not an automatic consequence of years of service, but are granted to faculty members to pursue specific programs that are judged to be of benefit to the faculty member and the College. The number of such grants in any given year shall be a function of the nature of the proposals, the ability to cover the class schedule, and the benefit to the College and the faculty members.
4. Time spent on sabbatical leave shall be counted toward years of service.
5. As a condition of receiving sabbatical leave, a faculty member is expected to return to the Albright faculty and serve no less than one academic year following the leave.
6. Activities that interfere with the achievement of sabbatical goals are discouraged.
E. Professional Development Leaves
1. Faculty may apply for a professional development leave that will contribute to the enhancement of the faculty member’s professional growth in teaching, scholarship, creative achievement, and/or professional service. Such leaves require a letter of support from the department chair, the Professional Council, and approval from the Chief Academic Officer.