Faculty Handbook

Faculty Development Programs

• The John M. Glenn Grant-in-Aid Program
• The Glenn Grant Publication Fund
• The Faculty Leave Program
• The Robert E. Lee Research Program
• Professional Meeting Reimbursement Program 

A. The John M. Glenn Grant-in-Aid Program

     1. The Program. Under the John M. Glenn Faculty Grant-in-Aid Program, established by the Board of Trustees, a sum will be available each year for undergraduate faculty research grants. Members of the undergraduate faculty will be notified annually of the application deadline.

     The program serves primarily to enlarge opportunities for undergraduate faculty scholarship and research, but also for improving pedagogy; both activities contribute to vitalizing and advancing instruction at Washington and Lee. While professional self-development is a normal and expected part of an academic career, Glenn Grants furnish additional incentive and support.

     All full-time members of the undergraduate faculty may apply. Administrative officers are normally excluded unless they teach three-quarters of a full schedule.

     Funds allocated for a specific grant, and not wholly used by September 30, may not be carried over to other research but must be returned to the Glenn Grant Fund.

     Grants will be awarded to any approved project leading to a scholarly or artistic product, textbook, or paper on pedagogy. Those receiving grants will also be eligible for additional funding to cover the costs of equipment, research assistant(s), and travel and living expenses for work outside Rockbridge County.

     Undergraduate faculty engaging in activities to improve their pedagogy or expertise in a field, such as attending domestic and foreign workshops and seminars or visiting significant cultural sites, are not eligible for Glenn Grants but are eligible for reimbursement of equipment, assistant(s), and expenses.

     Grants may not cover any of the following: improvement or increase of departmental laboratories, libraries, or other physical resources; preparation of lectures or other materials ordinarily used in the classroom; attending professional meetings; or University administrative expenses of any sort.

     2. Applications. Applications should be addressed to the Advisory Committee and submitted to the Provost by the announced deadline.

     A project should be a complete, workable unit in itself, or an intelligible, well-defined portion of a research program. It should be important, pertinent, and promising for the improvement of one’s scholarship and teaching. The proposal should be clear and appropriate as to purpose, time, place, procedure, rate of work, and other matters essential to the project.

     Detailed instructions for a Glenn Grant application will be provided in the notice sent to all undergraduate faculty every fall term. Since there are usually a large number of proposals received, and since not all proposals can be funded, it is important to follow the guidelines closely in submitting a clearly thought out and well-written proposal.

     3. Reports. Every Glenn Grant recipient must submit, no later than October 15, a statement of the project’s achievements and an accounting of expenditures. The report may vary in length according to the nature of the project but in general should be in summary narrative form, one to two pages in length. It should note the amount received and expended, the period of work, the location of the project, and the extent to which the original plan of operation was followed. The report should clearly indicate what the faculty member believes has been accomplished in relation to what was proposed. If the project is not completed, a statement of progress should be included that is definite enough to enable the Advisory Committee to judge the extent and quality of the work done. These reports may be distributed to the undergraduate faculty in booklet or electronic form at a later date.

     This fund assists undergraduate faculty members in meeting the cost of publishing a scholarly book, usually by paying all or part of the moneys required by a university press to undertake such a publication. It may also be used to assist in covering page costs for the publication of articles in research journals. The fund is administered by the Advisory Committee, to which application for support should be made. If a Publication Fund grant results in the publication of a book, any royalties up to the amount of the grant must be returned to the Glenn Grant Fund.

     The University provides Faculty two types of leave for professional development: paid leave and unpaid leave. Paid and unpaid leaves provide opportunities for professional self-development through research, deeper exploration of a special area of interest, or teaching on a visiting basis at another college or university. (For a description of personal leave and other leaves not associated with professional development see http://provost.wlu.edu/handbook/benefits.htm.)

     Paid Leave. Tenured and tenure-track Faculty (see below for more information regarding Pre-Tenure Leave) members are eligible for this program, and normally the person must have served the University for at least four years prior to the leave period. Subject to the needs of the University and of the department, a tenured Faculty member may request paid leave every fifth year. Only in exceptional circumstances will a Faculty member be given paid leave until four years after the academic year in which the last paid leave was granted.

     There are two paid leave options:

     a. Partial -year leave: A tenured member of the undergraduate faculty may request leave at full pay for one 12-week term or two 6-week terms. (Two spring terms count as one leave.) This option is available only if no replacement is necessary, which might be accomplished by teaching additional work in other terms; by other members of the department taking the undergraduate faculty member’s work for the period of the leave on a reciprocal basis; and/or by other adjustments in the departmental courses. In the same way a tenured member of the law faculty may request leave for one semester at full pay.

     b. Full- year leave: Any tenured Faculty member may request leave for a full year, receiving from the University up to half salary. Under this option additional Faculty support, if needed, is provided to the Faculty member’s department. If the Faculty member also receives a grant or other compensation during the period of leave, the University will pay only that amount, up to half the annual salary, which would make the total compensation for the year equivalent to the full annual salary.

     It is required unless otherwise determined by the Provost, that any Faculty member taking advantage of the paid leave program will return to serve the University for a minimum of two years after completing the leave.

     Unpaid Leave. Both tenured and untenured Faculty members are eligible for leave without pay. Request for unpaid leave may be made at any time (there is no four-year waiting period from the last leave), but must be justified in terms of professional self-development balanced against the need for continuity in the University’s teaching program. (Paid leaves following unpaid leaves are likewise not subject to the four-year waiting period.)

     General Program Guidelines. A Faculty member seeking a leave should apply through the appropriate department head and academic dean (College, Williams School, or Law School). Application is made to the Advisory Committee, and the leave request plus all supporting materials should be submitted to the Office of the Provost. The application should indicate in detail the nature of the project or visiting teaching assignment the Faculty member plans to carry out. The head of the Faculty member’s department or dean should indicate in writing approval of the adjustments required by the leave. Upon consideration by the Advisory Committee, all recommendations will be forwarded to the President and the Board of Trustees.

     a. Deadlines: For a paid or unpaid leave beginning in the next spring term of the same academic year or in any term of the next academic year, the deadline is December 1. If the application is to teach in the next academic year as a visitor at another college or university, the application should be submitted as early as possible, but no later than February 1.

     b. Criteria: Leaves are not automatically granted. In determining whether and when any Faculty member may go on leave regardless of the source of support, the Advisory Committee will consider the needs of the University and of the departments concerned, as well as the individual’s proposed project or visiting teaching assignment. In a small department, normally no more than one faculty member may be on leave during any twelve-week term.

     c. Expenses: When a research project involves significant expenses not covered by any other source, the University will consider full or partial reimbursement, whether the leave is paid or unpaid.

     d. Reports: A paid or unpaid leave recipient should submit to the Advisory Committee within two months of the completion of the leave a statement of achievements during the leave. The report may vary in length according to the nature of the program followed, but in general it should be in summary, narrative form, one or two typewritten pages in length. The report should clearly describe what was accomplished in relation to what was proposed, and should be complete enough to enable the Advisory Committee to form an opinion of the extent and quality of the work done. Any publication resulting from the leave should be submitted when it is published.

     Benefits Continuation. During an approved leave under this program, the University will continue to pay its share of the premiums for health, life, and disability insurance coverage if the employee elects to continue such coverage, and the employee would continue to pay his or her share of the premiums. During paid leaves the University will also continue TIAA/CREF retirement annuity and FICA contributions.

Pre-Tenure Leave Program (Undergraduate): The University has developed an optional leave program to allow a junior faculty member to take release time in order to focus more fully on pedagogical and/or scholarly development. Visit the Pre-Tenure Leave site for more information.

D. The Robert E. Lee Research Program

     The R. E. Lee Research Program provides opportunities for undergraduate students, under undergraduate faculty guidance, to engage in summer research projects. It aims to encourage the development of research techniques within a particular discipline, to promote the active acquisition of knowledge, and to stimulate student interest in inquiry. It is also intended to aid undergraduate faculty in their research activities by providing student help, but the projects must be meaningful in their own right as well as educationally valuable for the student. Projects consisting primarily of routine tasks such as typing, data processing, bottle washing, or simple translation will not normally be funded under this program.

     All applications are to be made to the Dean of the College; deadlines will be announced in the fall term. Careful attention to the guidelines is crucial in writing a proposal, since there is no time for revision. Decisions will be made by the Advisory Committee, judged according to the following criteria: educational value to the student researcher; significance of the work proposed; clarity and organization of proposal; feasibility of the project; seriousness of motivation of the participants; and academic qualifications of participants.

     The grants are highly competitive and funds may not be adequate to fund all proposals, or to fund them at their requested level, even if all criteria are met.

     Summer projects may include up to ten weeks of work, in no case continuing beyond the beginning of Fall term classes. An uncompleted project may not be held over beyond its terminal date; amounts unexpended at that time revert to the general R. E. Lee Fund. The Advisory Committee annually determines an amount to provide R. E. Lee Scholars with a stipend and living allowance.

     Students must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.000 in order to be considered for a project. Graduating seniors are not eligible, and no student may receive more than one R. E. Lee award during the same summer. Students receiving summer grants will be known as Robert E. Lee Scholars.

     Subject to budgetary limits, reimbursements for professional meeting expenses will be granted under the following conditions:

     1. Eligible are tenured and tenure-track Faculty members, and Faculty members on temporary appointments at the discretion of the appropriate department head and dean.  Year-long, full-time temporary faculty are eligible to request funds up to $1100.00 for travel to professional meetings.

     2. Each eligible Faculty member will be reimbursed to a maximum of $1100.00 (plus administrative registration fee) for one professional meeting per academic year.  Reimbursements at these rates will be made for a second meeting when an eligible Faculty member presents a refereed or invited paper; organizes and presides at a special session of a program; holds a major office in a professional association or society and is required to attend its annual meeting; or gives an artistic performance or exhibition.  The Office of the Dean of the College requires advanced notice for faculty travel.  To this end, faculty are asked to complete and submit this form.

    3.  Faculty members are expected to manage costs as effectively as possible.  The University travel website contains useful information.  When attending a meeting within a 250-mile radius of Lexington, faculty are expected to travel by automobile and will be reimbursed at the rate of $0.325 per mile.

     4. Reimbursements for additional or special meetings will be made at the discretion of the appropriate dean (College, Williams School, or School of Law).

*The Dean's Office manages travel reimbursement for the College faculty. You must submit a travel expense voucher and all receipts to the Office of the Dean of the College for reimbursement.  To download a travel expense voucher, go to this Business Office site: http://businessoffice.wlu.edu/Forms.htm .  The Associate Dean must sign the reimbursement form, which will then be taken to the Business Office for you.  The Business Office expects to receive documentation within one week of completion of travel.

Revised May 2003
Updated September 2, 2005