3.9 Sabbatical Requests and Reports

Governing Policies

Section 10.2, Faculty Handbook – Sabbatical Leave Policy

Procedure

Once per year, Academic Affairs will solicit sabbatical requests from Faculty and Department Heads. Sabbatical requests are evaluated by the Board of Trustees on the basis of their merit, supported by the completeness of the required supporting documentation. 

The request should be clearly articulated and submitted as a formal proposal from the faculty member and accompanied by a letter of support from their Department Head. The faculty member’s request should contain the following using this template:

1. Faculty member’s name, department, area(s) of expertise, length of service at Mines (start date), date of last sabbatical (if any), length of sabbatical requested.
2. A clear and complete description of the activities to be pursued should a sabbatical be granted.
3. A discussion of how the sabbatical will be of benefit to: 1) the faculty member, 2) to the department and Mines more generally as appropriate, and 3) Mines students.
4. The hardship imposed on the faculty member’s colleagues or department should the sabbatical be granted, along with a detailed explanation of how the hardship will be ameliorated, and
5. A completed Sabbatical Request Summary, using the template linked here.

Please note that the Board of Trustees has developed this form and mandates that it accompany all sabbatical requests. The form should be filled out completely (i.e., it should not contain one line answers that simply refer to the faculty member’s or Department Head’s memoranda) and it must be kept to one page. 

The letter of support from the Department Head should clarify and add perspective to the requested sabbatical(s). Additionally, if more than one sabbatical is being recommended in the same department, the Department Head’s letter of support should detail the number of requests for sabbaticals currently outstanding in the department, the areas of expertise involved, and how the department will handle multiple faculty absences over upcoming year.  If a faculty member takes a one semester sabbatical, they receive full pay. If they take an academic year sabbatical (August through May) they receive 50% of their pay.  For a calendar year sabbatical (January through December, "a split year sabbatical" with two academic years impacted) they receive 75% of their pay in the first year and 75% in the second year. 

All three documents must be submitted electronically to Academic Affairs by the date published as part of the Academic Affairs calendar.

Sabbatical Reports should include the following:

• A brief summary of the original sabbatical plans
• A summary of sabbatical activities/description of projects and accomplishments
• A summary of benefits and value to the faculty, students, department, and Mines

These reports should not exceed three pages in total.

A brief (150-200 word) abstract of the sabbatical report should be included with the final report. The abstract will be part of the report presented to the Board of Trustees on faculty sabbaticals. Please keep this audience and the word limit in mind. At the Board’s request, faculty may be invited to make a presentation to the Board about their sabbatical.

Last Revision:

October 5, 2022