Professional Leaves of Absence (PLOAs)

Important Dates 

• Sept 15 - Proposals are due in the Department
• Oct 15 - Chair recommendations are due to the Dean's Office
• Nov 15 - Dean recommendations are due to the Provost's Office
• December - Provost/President recommendations to the Board of Trustees
• January - Board of Trustees decision 

Within ninety (90) days of returning to University duties, a faculty member shall submit a written report of activities during the period of professional leave. The report should be submitted to the Department Chairperson, who shall comment upon the report in writing. The report and comments shall be forwarded simultaneously to the Dean and the Provost.

Eligibility 

Full-time tenured faculty members shall be eligible for a professional leave after completing seven (7) complete academic years of teaching service at CSU following such a leave. Full-time lecturers and professors of practice shall be eligible for a professional leave after completing nine (9) complete academic years of teaching service a CSU following such a leave. The eligibility is subject to the conditions below: 

A. The faculty member must have rank of associate (associate professor, associate clinical professor, associate lecturer, associate professor of practice) or higher effective as of the date of the beginning of the professional leave. 

B. Leaves of absence from faculty assignments without pay do not count toward eligibility for professional leave. On the other hand, such leaves of absence will not be considered to have substituted for faculty professional leave with pay as defined here.

C. The second and subsequent instances when a faculty member accepts a Fulbright Scholarship or similar award do not count toward eligibility for the next professional leave. 

D. Professional leaves are contingent upon staffing, resources, and scheduling requirements. Colleges must offer assurance that requested professional leaves can be accommodated at no additional cost. 

E. To assure that the University shares in the benefits of the professional leave, faculty members taking professional leave agree to return to Cleveland State University for at least two (2) semesters (excluding summer) after completing their professional leave or to refund the compensation paid by the University during the leave, unless this obligation is specifically waived or deferred by the University.

Period of Leave and Workload 

The period of professional leave for the faculty member who has completed at least seven (7) full years of academic service may consist of one of the following: 

A. One semester: 100% of 9-month salary. 

B. Two semesters: 66.67% of 9-month salary. 

Summer term will not normally be considered as available for a professional leave. The teaching workload assignment for a faculty member on one semester’s leave shall be one-half of the target teaching workload assignment for the academic year in which the professional leave is taken.

Please refer to the Collective Bargaining Agreements or Faculty Personnel Policies for the full policy and procedures.