Flexible Work Arrangements for Faculty
Classifications of Faculty Appointments
- Full-time vs. Part-time
- Instructional vs. Research
- Tenured/Tenure-Track vs. Non-Tenure-Track
- Regular vs. Contractual
- Nine-month vs. Twelve-month
Alternative Arrangements:
Overview
Approval of alternative work arrangements for faculty is contingent upon:
- The extent to which such an arrangement is feasible within the faculty member’s department;
- The degree to which it supports the larger needs of the institution;
- And, is subject to any additional restrictions imposed by the USM Board of Regents and/or terms of employment by the State of Maryland.
Appointment Conversion
A tenured faculty member may resign from their tenured appointment and convert to a non-tenure-track appointment.
Partial Leave of Absence
A faculty member’s level of effort may be reduced to below 100% for a number of reasons:
- To accommodate a family situation
- To accommodate a health situation
- To allow time for a scholarly project
- To work part-time in another setting
- To create a transition into retirement
Phased Retirement
A faculty member may request a phased reduction in effort over an agreed upon period of time in order to ease into retirement without the loss of benefits.
- Reduce workload over a period of 1-3 years.
- By staying above 50% effort, health benefits continue.
- ORP and State Retirement Plan is pro-rated.
- Leave and tuition remission also is pro-rated.
Redistribution of Duties
A tenured faculty member may request a redistribution of duties at 100% effort for a defined period prior to separation from the university. The individual receives his or her regular salary and retains all faculty rights during this period.
Redistribution of Duties
What is it?
UMBC Policy on Faculty Responsibilities: Diversity of Expectations
- Recognizes that “the level of engagement among faculty members in scholarship, service, and teaching varies throughout their careers.”
- Based on a range of factors and expectations, “faculty need not be engaged in all areas of their responsibilities at the same levels of intensity.”
- And that, “it is the responsibility of the Department Chairs, in consultation with the academic administration, to ensure that all members of the department are fully active and that faculty responsibilities are allocated equitably, if not always similarly.”
-UMBC Faculty Handbook, Section 13.2.1.3
What happens?
Workload modifications in anticipation of retirement may include:
- Redistribution of duties to substitute teaching assignments with other departmental or academic service;
- Redistribution of duties to substitute teaching assignments and academic service with research activities;
- Special administrative projects for the department or institution in lieu of regular faculty responsibilities;
- Other options identified by the department or institution.
How to request it?
- A faculty member must voluntarily request a redistribution of duties for a defined period of time ending in retirement.
- A faculty member submits the request with a proposed plan to the Chair.
- After review by the Chair, the request and plan are forwarded with the Chair’s recommendation to the Dean.
- The Dean reviews and recommends to the Provost, who has the authority to approve or disapprove the request based on the needs of the department, the institution, and the USM.
Transitional Terminal Leave
A tenured faculty member may request a period of leave prior to separation from the university. The individual retains all of the rights of a faculty member, but has only those duties and responsibilities negotiated for the leave period.
What is it?
Transitional terminal leave is defined as a period with up to full pay which terminates on the effective date of a faculty member’s separation from employment at UMBC.
Transitional terminal leave may be granted with full pay for up to 12 months or with half pay for up to 24 months for twelve-month faculty. For nine-month faculty, leave may be granted with full pay for one academic year or with half pay for up to two full academic years.
At UMBC, transitional terminal leave is used primarily for transition to retirement but is not a retirement incentive plan; it is granted in recognition of extraordinary service to the institution.
-See BOR Policy II-2.10 (Amended, June 27, 2024)
What happens?
A faculty member, while on transitional terminal leave, shall:
- Receive his or her regular salary;
- Remain a UMBC employee and be subject to all BOR policies;
- Perform agreed upon duties at a level of at least 25% of the faculty member’s full-time commitment over the prior 36 months. The faculty member retains all rights to all benefits normally associated with full-time employment (or, where applicable, half-time) at UMBC, with the exception of annual leave;
- If the faculty member is not fulfilling duties at the 25% threshold, they may still receive compensation, but is not eligible for benefits, and must end employment within 2.5 months of the calendar year in which the leave was granted.
How to request it?
- A faculty member must voluntarily request transitional terminal leave.
- A faculty member submits the request to their Chair.
- After review by the Chair, the request is forwarded with the Chair’s recommendation through the usual administrative channels to the President.
- The President has the authority to approve or disapprove the request based on the needs of the department, the institution, and the USM.
- Upon approval, the Provost and the faculty member shall sign a letter of agreement specifying the conditions of the leave.
- If terminal leave is used in conjunction with retirement from UMBC, the faculty member shall agree, in writing, to a knowing and voluntary waiver under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act.
USM Retirement Incentives
The Board of Regents has approved a series of retirement incentive options that can be used by USM institutions at their discretion when the retirement of an employee is beneficial to the business and/or academic objectives of the institution.
- Post-Severance Contributions to employee’s supplemental 403(b) plan.
- “Window” Programs with voluntary severance payments to a defined group of employees for a specific period of time.
- At this time, UMBC is only offering the Phased Retirement option which allows employees to reduce duties over time.
- Hybrid Retirement Agreements which combines one of these options with transitional terminal leave or notice termination.
Faculty Benefits
- Health Benefits
- Retirement Benefits
- State Retirement System
- State Pension System
- Optional Retirement Program
- Annual Leave
- Sick Leave
Final Summary
As faculty members progress through their careers, flexible work arrangements can support the faculty member’s personal and professional goals and also serve the University’s broader interests. Options are available to faculty members should they desire to pursue flexible work arrangements. For example, the University offers faculty members the options of requesting leave without pay or partial leave with partial pay.
The option of partial leave with partial pay allows eligible faculty members to request reduced duties with an associated decrease in salary. The most common form of this option is a one-half time leave, or reduction in appointment, in which the faculty member assumes duties that represents one-half time of the normal workload with a corresponding decrease in salary and some benefits.
The accrual of retirement benefits is based on the level of full-time equivalent effort and salary, and can be determined in consultation with Human Resources prior to any change in status.
An eligible faculty member may also request terminal leave as part of a phased retirement agreement in which, after a fixed number of years of one-half time leave, the faculty member retires from regular employment.
Other flexible arrangements are possible.