SABBATICAL LEAVE POLICY
 

1. Sabbatical leave is an assignment to an activity other than the professional employee's regular assignment that has as its overall purpose the enhancement of the employee's professional effectiveness and value to the college. The specific purpose of sabbatical leave shall be the pursuit of study, research, professional writing, curriculum development, approved travel or other activity recommended by the President and approved by the Chancellor.
   
   
2. Sabbatical leave shall not be regarded as a right to which the employee is entitled. The number of sabbatical leaves granted each year by the Board is subject to the availability of sufficient budgetary funds and to the review criteria. The criteria for review shall be 1) the quality of the proposal, 2) the relationship of the proposal to the advancement of goals of the learning college, and 3) the impact on the employee's department and its programming. In the review and evaluation of sabbatical applications, priority shall be given to proposals, which enhance the quality of instruction, programs, and services of the college and credentials and/or scholarship of the proposer. In all cases, the merits of a proposal shall be established prior to its cost implications.
   
   
3. A professional employee shall be eligible for sabbatical leave after the employee has served seven (7) full consecutive years at The Community College of Baltimore County. Approved college leaves without pay will not constitute a break in service nor will they be accredited towards the requisite seven full consecutive years. In addition, the term of the sabbatical leave will not be accredited towards the seven full consecutive years required for subsequent sabbatical leaves. The academic year immediately following the sabbatical leave will count as the first year to be credited toward the time of service required for subsequent sabbatical leave.
   
   
4. To be considered, an eligible employee must submit a written application to the appropriate dean by November 1 of the academic year preceding the academic year for which the request is being made. The application should state the details of the plan for the intended use of the sabbatical leave. The dean must make a recommendation to the President by December 1.
   
   
5. A professional employee may apply for a full year sabbatical leave on the basis of one-half of the employee's full contractual salary or for a one-half year sabbatical leave on the basis of the employee's full contractual salary or for a full-year sabbatical on the basis of three-quarters of the employee's full contractual salary for both the year during which the individual is on sabbatical and the year when the individual returns to duty.
   
   
6. Professional employees on sabbatical leave are eligible for all benefits, which accrue during the period of leave. Sick leave, and vacation benefits where applicable, will be accrued at the full-time rate. Vacation accruals earned during the sabbatical must be utilized during the sabbatical period and may not be carried forward after return from sabbatical.
   
   
7. Remuneration beyond sabbatical salary may be received by a professional employee during the period of sabbatical leave if such remuneration is an approved part of the project or with endorsement by the President and special permission of the Chancellor. In the event that an employee on sabbatical leave receives additional salary, the combined amount of the monies and the sabbatical leave salary shall normally not exceed the employee's full contractual salary. Stipends or grants for travel, tuition, or other unique costs will not be counted as additional salary.
   
   
8. Any professional employee to whom sabbatical leave is granted shall be required, as a condition of granting the leave, to return to the service of the college for at least one year following the expiration of the leave. If the individual does not return to service for one year after sabbatical assignment, or does not fulfill the pre-approved objectives of his/her sabbatical, the employee will be required to refund the salary granted for sabbatical leave. Exceptions to this policy can only be made by the Chancellor, with the approval of the Board of Trustees.
   
   
9. The Board of Trustees has established a reciprocal agreement with the Board of Education of Baltimore County allowing those employees returning from sabbatical leave to complete their one-year commitment either with the Board of Education or with the Board of Trustees of The Community College of Baltimore County.