Faculty Teaching, Research, and Leaves of Absence
Professional Development Leave Policy for Non-ladder Faculty
A limited number of special, competitive one-semester Professional Development Leaves will be made available each year to members of the non-ladder faculty who present compelling proposals for projects they wish to undertake while on leave from teaching. During the semester of leave they will receive full salary and benefits and be relieved of all teaching and administrative responsibilities.
To be eligible for a leave, individuals must have served as full-time teachers in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Yale for at least three years and hold multi-year appointments that extend through the year following the proposed leave. A faculty member awarded such a leave must return to Yale for a year of full-time teaching following the year in which the leave occurs. At least six years of full-time teaching at Yale must be completed before an individual who has been awarded a leave becomes eligible for another.
Applicants who are eligible and wish to apply for a leave should submit a written proposal describing the project and how it will advance the applicant’s teaching and professional development and serve the teaching program of the applicant’s department or program. 1 Proposals should include a well-developed methodology and, if applicable, research plan, including a calendar for the intended semester of leave. All leave applications must be endorsed by the applicant’s department or program.
1) Lecturers, Senior Lecturers, and Assistant, Associate, and full Professors Adjunct: Applications that are supported by a department or program are conveyed to the Provost’s Office by the chair. Departmental and program recommendations are reviewed by the Steering Committee of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, which judges them on the basis of quality and feasibility and on the likelihood that the completed project would enhance the teaching program of the department or program and advance the professional development of the individual.
2) Lectors, Senior Lectors, and Senior Lectors II: Applications that are supported by a department or program are conveyed to the Provost’s Office by the chair. Departmental and program recommendations are reviewed first by the Language Study Committee, which judges them on the basis of quality and feasibility and on the likelihood that the completed project would enhance the language teaching program of the department or program and advance the professional development of the individual. Proposals endorsed by the Language Study Committee are reviewed by the Steering Committee of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, which judges them on the same criteria.
A non-ladder faculty member returning from a Professional Development Leave will be expected to provide a brief written report to the Office of the Provost describing his or her accomplishments during the leave, and how the work completed during the leave has affected his or her teaching program at Yale.
This opportunity for Professional Development Leaves is intended to signal the high value Yale places on the contributions of the non-ladder faculty in the teaching of our students and the effectiveness of our academic departments and programs.
28-Sep-12
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Frequently Asked Questions
As a way to clarify the purposes and rationale of this leave opportunity we include a list of frequently-asked questions.
Q. I work full time at Yale, but my responsibilities include my position as the Associate Director of the Center for Basic Research. Am I eligible to apply for a Professional Development Leave?
A. No. Although you are a member of the non-ladder faculty, your appointment is a dual faculty/M&P appointment, and these leaves are available only to individuals who teach full-time.
Q. I work full-time at Yale, but my responsibilities include my role as coordinator of the language program in my department. Am I eligible to apply for a leave?
A. Yes. Coordination of a language program and direction of a course or group of courses are considered part of the responsibilities of a full-time teacher.
Q. I have worked at Yale for five years, half-time in the first three and full-time in the last two. Am I eligible for a Professional Development Leave?
A. No. You are not eligible until you have taught full time for one more year.
Q. I have taught at Yale for five years on a succession of one-year appointments. Beginning this year I was appointed to a three-year position. Am I eligible to apply for a leave that would occur next year?
A. Yes, you meet both criteria: three years of full-time teaching and a multi-year appointment that extends a year beyond your proposed leave.
Q. I am a full-time teacher of introductory expository writing. I would like to take a Professional Development Leave in order to write a book on T.S. Eliot. Would that project qualify?
A. No. That project is not directly related to your teaching responsibilities.
Q. I am a full-time teacher of fiction in the creative writing program. I am also a poet. I would like to take a Professional Development Leave in order to establish myself as a published writer of poetry so that I might add the teaching of poetry to my offerings. Would that qualify for a special leave of absence?
A. Yes, if your department fully endorses your plan and would expect you to teach poetry when your return.
Q. I have an excellent idea for a project but have not had time to conduct any preliminary research as to its feasibility, or craft a methodology plan. Will that affect my application?
A. Yes. An important basis for judging leave proposals is their feasibility, which must be evidenced by a well-developed methodology and/or research plan, including a calendar for the intended semester of leave.
