FACULTY OBLIGATIONS AND ABSENCE REPORTING POLICY

A. Faculty are expected to give priority to meeting their scheduled classes.

B. Faculty are expected to fulfill their non-teaching obligations--such as committees, office hours, and academic advising--and are considered absent when obligations are not met, except when meeting classes.

C. Faculty members who are unable to meet their obligations because of:

1. Illness: will report a full day (7.5 hrs.) of sick leave if all obligations are missed, or 1/2 day (3.75 hrs.) of sick leave if only a portion of the day's obligations are missed.

i. Personal Sick leave can only be used for the employee's own sickness.

ii. Family Illness: Four accumulated sick leave days per year may be used for illness in the immediate family and, if not used in one year, will accrue to a maximum of 8 days. Immediate family will be children, parent (natural, step or in-law), spouse, brother, sister, grandparent, grandchild, great grandparent, daughter- in-law, son-in-law, stepbrother, and stepsister.

2. Personal: Three days (22.5 hrs.) of paid leave, per fiscal year, are available for personal urgent business. Faculty will complete an absence report and take leave for 1/2 day if a portion of obligations is missed, or a full day if all obligations are missed.

3. Vacation: (12 month faculty eligible) can also be used.

D. Payment during leave will only be available to the extent of benefit hours available on the date of the absence. Leave granted during any period where no paid leave is available will be considered as leave without pay and must be reported as such to the Payroll office through an Exception Report.

E. Occasionally, faculty members may need to miss a class or other obligation because of other professional responsibilities--for example, a conference, or an important meeting. In such cases, arrangements shall be approved by the division dean for faculty members not to be considered absent.

F. Leave can only be used for its designated purpose, and finally, it is the responsibility of the faculty member to report all absences. Supervisors are responsible for filing exception reports.

During times when classes are not in session, but contract is in effect:

A. Faculty are expected to attend all required scheduled meetings of the College, its campuses, divisions, departments, councils or committees to which he or she belongs, and to fulfill other professional obligations as needed.

B. A faculty member who misses such an obligation for personal reasons shall take leave for at least a half-day.