UI faculty looking for other ways to pay for leaves

IOWA CITY - University of Iowa faculty leaders are brainstorming other ways - in addition to state funding - to pay for faculty development leaves.

The faculty held a workshop recently on the topic, and a report with recommendations likely will go to faculty leaders in the coming weeks for discussion, UI Faculty Senate President Ed Dove said Tuesday during a Faculty Council meeting.

The discussion is not in response to state budget cuts that have reduced the number of leaves, called professional development awards, in recent years or the threat by Republican leaders this session to cut state funding for such faculty sabbaticals, Dove said. Rather, faculty wanted to find alternative ways to fund the leaves in addition to state funding, said Dove, a professor of biomedical engineering.

“The state has a responsibility to fund them,” Dove said. “We're looking to supplement that in some way, either through external funding or cost-neutral mechanisms.”

A cost-neutral example, Dove said, would be having a faculty member do only teaching one semester, and then have a lighter teaching load with more time for research the next semester.

Much of the discussion at the workshop focused on research time for faculty in the liberal arts and humanities, but the recommendations that will go to faculty leaders will impact all faculty who seek a research leave, Dove said.

If a bill that was approved last week by the Iowa House is approved by the Senate and the governor, state funding for faculty development leaves would be cut through fiscal 2012. UI officials and the state Board of Regents already have approved 58 UI professional development awards for fiscal 2012. If state funding is cut, a new funding source for those must be found, since the commitment is already made, Dove said.

Also at the Faculty Council meeting, faculty leaders heard about possible changes to the admissions requirements for student-athletes transferring to a Division I school from a community college. The changes are under discussion by a committee of the NCAA.

Faculty leaders will hear more about the possible recommendations at the Feb. 8 Faculty Senate meeting, where UI Athletics Director Gary Barta is expected to speak.