Funded by the Mellon Foundation and the college, the Academic Enterprise Leaves are one-semester leaves designed to enable established faculty members to pursue new directions for their research, which may also enrich future teaching. Similar to Study Leaves, the intent of this program is to support faculty either by extending a one-semester sabbatical leave to a full year or by providing an additional paid leave for one semester (2 courses) at the midpoint between regular sabbatical leaves. Faculty taking such leaves will normally be expected to continue with advising and modest service activities, but proposals which require long-term absences and therefore cannot entail advising or service work will be considered. Requests for a complete severance from college service will require convincing substantiation. A written report on the leave should be presented to the Dean of the College by February 1 (for fall semester leaves) or July 1 (for spring semester leaves).

Eligibility

Faculty members who hold full-time, regular positions at the Associate Professor and Professor ranks are eligible. Leaves will be granted to faculty either during their regular sabbatical year or near the midpoint of a sabbatical cycle. The one-semester leaves taken between sabbatical years will replace the two-course semester. Normally, these midpoint leaves will not be tenable within the two years after completing a sabbatical year or within two years of eligibility for the next sabbatical leave. However, it is possible to apply for a leave that would extend the length of the paid sabbatical leave from one to two semesters. Normally, only one Academic Enterprise or Study Leave will be granted to a faculty member in any one seven-year period. The table below summarizes the schedule for eligibility:

If you have questions about your own schedule of eligibility for Academic Enterprise Leaves, please contact the Dean's Office before submitting an application.

Priorities and Application Process for Academic Enterprise Leaves

Funds are committed to support three rounds of these leaves to be taken between Fall 2009 and Spring 2012. Since this program is initiated in 2008, it is likely these procedures will be revised at the end of the first round of awards.

Awards will be based on the academic strength of the proposal with priority given to proposals that are creative, challenging, and will enable the faculty member to acquire substantial new training or experience that will be built upon in clear and demonstrable ways to strengthen their scholarship and perhaps add a new dimension to their teaching.

Proposals should include the following elements:

• Summary of the goals of the proposed leave (not to exceed one single-spaced page): This summary describes the basic ideas, problems, works, or questions to be addressed. It should also give an overview of the planned activities for the project.

Please note that the summary is written for an audience that is likely not to be expert in the applicant's field. This section must be free of abstruse technical language.

• Context Statement (not to exceed two single-spaced pages): This statement reviews the relationship of the proposed new direction of work to the applicant's overall program of scholarship which may include scholarship related to teaching. It places the proposal in the context of past scholarly accomplishments and describes how this work contributes to the applicant's long-range goals as a teacher and scholar.



• Curriculum Vitae: Attach updated curriculum vitae (not to exceed five pages).



• Project Description: This narrative (three to five single-spaced pages) should carefully consider the questions listed below. To enable reviewers to assess the quality, significance, and feasibility of the proposal, a simple statement of need or intent does not constitute evidence that the project merits support. The following questions are intended as a guide rather than a prescriptive form.

What are the specific goals of the proposed leave and how will the activities proposed address those goals? What are the basic ideas, problems, works, or questions that will be explored? How will the proposed activity strengthen the applicant's scholarly program? Describe the likely impact on development as a teacher.

What is the proposed schedule or plan for the project, including a description of any part that has already been completed.

What is distinct about the proposed study? What contribution is the proposed study likely to make to the field of study, or to teaching and learning generally?

What are the likely outcomes resulting from the project?

If the proposed study requires specific equipment, access to certain archives or collections, or a period of residency or research at another institution, please describe any arrangements that have been made to gain access to these resources.

• Appendix:

Departmental and Institutional Planning (one-half single-spaced page, first Friday in October): Prepared in consultation with the applicant's department chair-and, if appropriate, concentration chair-this section of the proposal briefly outlines which courses ordinarily taught by the applicant would be absent from the curriculum during the study leave period, and evaluates the necessity of replacing them. This section also briefly describes any College activities and faculty service (e.g., advising, committee work) that the applicant will engage in during the semester of leave. While neither the level of campus activity nor the necessity of replacements will be used as criteria for judging the merit of individual proposals, the Dean and President may have to consider such factors before approving a recommendation by the Committee on Faculty Scholarship. For example, if it is costly to replace a particular faculty member, this factor could result in fewer resources to award for other study leaves. In each case, the Dean and President need to ensure that granting these leaves will not compromise the quality or functioning of the academic program.

Budget (only if applicable): The intent of the academic enterprise leave is simply to provide salary during a non-teaching semester to support a new scholarly project. However, if additional funds are needed in order to undertake the project, this need may be described and explained in this section. Any grant support for the project (external or internal, awarded or pending) may also be described here.

Deadline

For the year 2008, proposals for academic enterprise leaves that would take place in 2009-10 are due on the third Friday of September to give eligible faculty members more time to consider the relevance of this program to their priorities. In subsequent years, proposals will be due on the third Friday of August to synchronize with the deadline for Study Leaves.

July, 2008