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Sabbatical Leave

Procedures and Timeline, 2005

The sabbatical leave is an opportunity to broaden or deepen academic interests, to explore new areas, or to examine the instructional methods of another institution. It is viewed as a privilege and is granted to faculty members whose past performance, sabbatical plan, and future promise combines to indicate that the leave will result in strengthening the value of the recipient to their profession and to the University.

Planning for the sabbatical should begin at least a year prior to the leave itself. The plan should be coordinated with the member's Departmental Chair who must give special attention to advising and teaching replacements and, where appropriate, to assure coverage of contract and grant obligations. Sabbatical leaves are primarily granted on the basis of merit of the sabbatical application. An assurance of the adequacy of advising and teaching replacements is a secondary consideration. In certain cases, the plan should be coordinated to assure early implementation of new skills and resources upon the faculty member's return to campus.

Applications for sabbatical leaves should be processed according to the following schedule:

Thursday, September 1, 2005
Completed and signed applications on proper forms accompanied by all appropriate supporting documents forwarded to department chair. All sabbatical leave requests should include the following:
  • a Sabbatical Leave Request form http://www.provost.colostate.edu/print/7sabform.html with the department chair's signature;
  • a detailed sabbatical plan;
  • a copy of the applicant's current curriculum vitaé;
  • rationale for the choice of host institution(s);
  • copies of correspondence or letters of invitation from host institutions; in the case of multiple institutions, an invitation from each host must be included and a statement outlining the approximate division of time between the host institutions;
  • a letter from the department chair commenting on the potential benefits of the sabbatical leave;
  • a signed Sabbatical Leave Memorandum of Understanding http://www.provost.colostate.edu/print/7sabmou.html.
Thursday, September 8, 2005
Department chairs forward leave request to dean's office, along with any adjustments, that are appropriate. A memo indicating necessary teaching and advising replacements should accompany the application.
Friday, September 9, 2005
Materials will be forwarded from the dean's office to the College Sabbatical Leave Committee. The committee seeks as much information about the candidate as possible, including possible informal interviews with the candidates, their department chair, or both. Early communication between the Committee and applicants is encouraged in unusual circumstances.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Committee recommendations on the merits of requests are returned to the dean's office. Any discrepancies between the Committee recommendations and the Dean's recommendations may be discussed at a joint meeting of the Dean and the Committee. The final decision rests with the Dean.
Monday, October 3, 2005
Dean's recommendations are forwarded to Provost/Academic Vice President and to department chairs.

NOTES:
  • It is a requirement that upon completion of sabbatical leave, as noted in section F.3.4.4 of the Academic Faculty and Administrative Professional Manual, "the faculty member shall submit a final sabbatical report to the department head who will forward it to the dean and the Provost/Academic Vice President for review and submission to the State Board of Agriculture. The report shall include a summary of the faculty member's activities while on sabbatical and the benefits derived by the faculty member from the sabbatical activity. Final sabbatical reports must be submitted to the office of the institution's chief academic officer within three months of the completion of the leave." Reports should be submitted to the dean's office electronically.

  • It is an expectation of the College that faculty members returning from sabbatical leave serve a four-year appointment on the College Sabbatical Leave Committee, if requested.

  • Once approved, any sabbatical leave changes must be requested in writing to the dean who will forward it to the Provost's Office for submission to the State Board of Agriculture for approval. http://www.provost.colostate.edu/index.asp?url=faculty_affairs