Sabbatical leave is a leave of absence to study or conduct research that will have a significant impact on the faculty member’s teaching and/or scholarship. The term of sabbatical may be either one semester during which time the faculty member will receive his or her full salary and benefits from the institution, or a full year at half salary and full benefits. During the sabbatical, the faculty member is expected not to serve on a college or school council or committee.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Annually on the 3rd Monday in September by 5 pm
Eligibility & Conditions for Award
- Tenured faculty at the rank of associate or full professor.
- Faculty member must have completed at least six years of full-time teaching service (with the exception of approved reassigned time) since appointment or since the last sabbatical leave at Berry College.
- Applicants must be at Berry College for a full academic year following the sabbatical or must repay the salary and retirement-benefit payments provided by the college during the leave.
- Recipients must submit to the provost (through their chair and dean) a written report summarizing the activities and accomplishments of the sabbatical. The deadline for this report is: September 30 following a spring-semester or full-year sabbatical and January 31 following a fall-semester sabbatical.
Application Procedures
Eligible faculty member must complete and file with their department chair, school dean, and the Faculty Development Committee (1 copy each) the following:
- an Application for Sabbatical Leave that explains the expected activities, outcomes, and significance of the sabbatical experience,
- a time line for activities and outcomes,
- confirmation of off-campus arrangements (if applicable),
- IRB/IACUC approval (can be filed later, must be approved before beginning of research), and
- a curriculum vitae.
All materials must be submitted to the department chair, school dean, and Faculty Development Committee Campus Box 495006 by the third Monday in September of the academic year prior to the academic year of the requested sabbatical. All applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss their proposal with their chair and dean before submitting the final proposal. Department chairs applying for sabbatical follow the same procedure with the omission of the chair’s recommendation.
Selection Procedures
The department chair and dean will forward recommendations for or against approval directly to the Faculty Development Committee (with copies sent to the applicant), Campus Box 495006, by the last business day in the month of September. The Faculty Development Committee will evaluate each proposal individually based on the following criteria:
1. Quality and significance of the proposed sabbatical project. The applicant should describe the intended project in clear, non-technical prose and explain the importance of the project in his or her field and the relation of this proposal to his or her work.
2. Potential for successful completion of the sabbatical project. The applicant should provide evidence that the project plan is achievable and merits the length of the proposed sabbatical. The plan must be focused and appropriately ambitious. The applicant should discuss any travel required by the proposal and indicate the nature and degree of any on-campus responsibilities (committee work, etc.) during the sabbatical.
3. Potential to benefit the applicant’s program of scholarship in a compelling way and/or potential to benefit the applicant’s teaching in a compelling way. The applicant should clearly indicate the projected outcomes of the plan and provide an account of the benefits of the project to themselves and to the institution.
4. Quality of the applicant’s accomplishments at Berry College. Applicants should provide evidence of having successfully completed projects during their time at Berry. Applicants should also discuss their service to the college including teaching assignments and committee work.
The Faculty Development Committee’s sabbatical recommendations will be forwarded to the Provost by October 30. The Provost will review issues of staffing and timing with the Dean’s Council. By November 15 the Provost will bring a recommendation for approval of sabbaticals to the President who has final approval.
Scheduling of Sabbaticals
Every effort will be made to schedule approved proposals in the year for which the faculty member has applied. If an approved sabbatical must be delayed due to staffing or timing issues, the approved sabbatical will be scheduled at the earliest reasonable time. If an approved sabbatical leave is delayed by the college, the time until the faculty member is next eligible to apply for a sabbatical is measured from the requested semester rather than the semester the leave was taken. If an approved sabbatical leave is delayed by the faculty member, then the time until the faculty member is next eligible to apply for a sabbatical is measured from the semester in which the sabbatical was taken.