University of New England

The dean will forward the sabbatical leave request by October 15 to the chairperson of the University Faculty Assembly, who will immediately forward it to the chairperson of the Research Committee (RC). The dean will append a statement describing the general quality of the candidate's job-related performance, whether the candidate has satisfied all obligations associated with any previous sabbatical leave, and any other observations or recommendations that might assist the RC in judging the merits of the proposal.

Late or incomplete requests will be returned to the Assembly chair by the RC without review and may not be resubmitted until the following year. The RC will use the following criteria to determine whether a sabbatical leave should be granted: years of service since the last sabbatical leave, tenure status, the quality of the sabbatical leave proposal itself, and potential benefits of the sabbatical leave to the individual faculty member and to the University. All evidence that the sabbatical leave will increase individual effectiveness or produce academically or socially useful results will be considered in evaluating applications, including a personal interview, if the RC determines one to be necessary.

The RC will transmit its recommendation regarding a faculty member's sabbatical leave request to the appropriate dean, through the Assembly chair, by October 30. The dean will forward the RC report, with his or her final recommendations, to the candidate and the vice-president for academic affairs (VPAA) by November 15. The VPAA will immediately forward the RC report, the dean's final recommendations, and the VPAA's own recommendations to the president. The president will make the final determination regarding sabbatical leave requests and will inform candidates, department chairpersons, deans, and the VPAA of these decisions by December 15. If a sabbatical leave request is denied, a faculty member may not appeal the decision, except with evidence of a process violation or inequitable treatment, but may re-apply the following year.