Section 1. Purpose

Sabbatical leave is granted to tenured members of the faculty not only as a recognition of service through teaching and scholarly contributions, but especially as an aid and inspiration to further achievements.

Sabbatical leave is intended to provide teachers with opportunities for scholarly development and contacts which shall contribute to their professional effectiveness and to the value of their later service to Wellesley College. It is not intended that such leave shall be used for teaching elsewhere or primarily for the purpose of recreation and recuperation.

Normally the opportunity for taking a sabbatical leave for one semester occurs after six semesters of service at the College, and for one year after twelve semesters of service. Such opportunity for taking sabbatical leave at regular intervals is not absolutely guaranteed by the College and will be granted only when the condition of the department involved and of the College in general is such that the member's absence will not seriously impair the interests of the College.

Faculty members may also apply for unpaid leaves for professional purposes. (See below, Article XV, Section 1.) They are requested to plan sabbatical and unpaid leaves in such a way as ordinarily to ensure their presence on campus for two years before a leave, so that there may be continuity in teaching and in meeting other departmental responsibilities.

Section 2. Eligibility for the Initial Sabbatical Leave

At the time the sabbatical takes effect, faculty members must be on tenure. Faculty may apply in the sixth or later year of service above the rank of Instructor at Wellesley College, or in the third year after an early leave, whichever is later. Faculty members who have taken an early leave for a full year are eligible for a semester of sabbatical leave after six more semesters of teaching; faculty members who have not applied for early leave, or who have taken only one semester of early leave, may apply for a year of sabbatical leave. Faculty members must agree to return to Wellesley for at least two years.

Section 3. Form of Grant

Sabbatical leave shall ordinarily involve absence for either a semester or a year at half salary for that period . Faculty members are expected to seek research awards from other sources to supplement their income while on leave. Faculty members who have strenuously sought support for leave projects from outside sources may also apply to the Committee on Faculty Appointments for an addition to the half salary normally granted. This addition will be an amount which will ensure that total income available for the period of the sabbatical leave from the College and from salary supplements included in any research awards received from outside sources will be equal to the income which that individual would ordinarily have received for the same period at the College.

Grants for regular part time faculty will be prorated according to salary.

These provisions are subject to modification in the event that any member of the faculty on sabbatical leave receives compensation for service in another institution or organization.

Section 4. Application and Report

A. A faculty member shall normally indicate an intention to apply for a leave by March 1 of the second academic year preceding the proposed leave, whether that proposed leave be for one semester or a full year, or for half or full salary. For example, intention to apply for a leave for 2005-06 would normally have been given by March 1, 2004. Such notification shall indicate (1) a tentative intention to apply for a semester or a year, (2) the general area in which research will be undertaken. Notification shall be given to: (1) the Chair of the department, (2) the Committee on Faculty Appointments, (3) the Office of Sponsored Research.

B. A member of the faculty who intends to seek support from outside sources (see above, Section 3) shall file a draft of a proposal for grant support with the Office of Sponsored Research thirty days before the due date of the first grant application.

C. It is understood that departments do not approve or disapprove applications for leaves, but the Chair of a Department shall indicate to the Committee on Faculty Appointments whether the Department envisions any difficulties in teaching the curriculum of the department if leave is granted.

D. A final application for sabbatical leave shall normally be submitted to the Committee on Faculty Appointments by October 1 of the year preceding the proposed leave.

E. All faculty members granted a sabbatical leave are expected to report fully to the Committee on Faculty Appointments by the end of their first month of teaching following the leave.

Section 5. Administrative Officers

Administrative Officers of the College should have the advantages of occasional leaves of absence. The President and the Board of Trustees will consider each application on its merits and grant leave if the circumstances will not adversely affect the smooth operation of the College.

An Administrative Officer of the College will be eligible to apply for a leave of absence for a period of up to six months after four years of service. A leave for one year may be sought after six years of service.

Administrative staff members who serve as deputy to an Administrative Officer of the College will be eligible to apply for a leave of absence for a period of three months after four years of service.

Administrative sabbatical leave is intended to provide officers and eligible staff with opportunities for development and contacts which shall contribute to their professional effectiveness and to the value of their later service to Wellesley College. It is not intended that such leave shall be used for the purpose of recreation and recuperation. All officers and staff members granted a sabbatical leave are expected to report fully to the President by the end of their first month of returning from the leave.

Ordinarily an individual granted leave will be expected to return to the College for at least one calendar year after the leave. The program will not affect the individual's normal annual vacation.

Leave of absence will automatically carry a stipend of half salary. Administrative Officers seeking leave are encouraged to apply for research or study grants from other sources to supplement their income while on leave. If this support is sought but not received, the College will increase the individual's stipend to an amount which will equal his/ her normal salary at the institution for that year.

Librarians in Classifications L V and L IV will, as in the past, be eligible for sabbatical leave under the same conditions as members of the faculty.