HR-43: MODIFIED TEACHING DUTIES FOR FACULTY MEMBERS WITH A NEW CHILD 

Purpose

To allow a faculty member time to recover fully from the effects of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions and/or to care for and bond with a new child in the first year following the birth or adoption of the child.

Scope

All tenure-track faculty

Authority

Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost

Policy

Tenured and tenure-track faculty members may request a period of modified teaching duties, without a reduction in salary, during the first year following the birth or adoption of the child. Faculty members on modified teaching duties status will not be required to teach classes, but will be expected to fulfill their other professional responsibilities. The department/unit shall be responsible for arranging for coverage of the faculty member’s direct teaching responsibilities for the period of modified teaching duties status. The maximum period for modified teaching duties status is one semester.

Unless extraordinary circumstances exist, the department/unit head shall grant a request for modified teaching duties. Before the department/unit head may deny a request for modified teaching duties, the department/unit head must submit and receive approval to deny the request from successive higher levels of administration up to and including the Provost’s Office.

A grant of modified teaching duties is in addition to, and does not impact, any medical or other leave to which a faculty member may be entitled.

Processes/Procedures/Guidelines

A faculty member who wishes to request modified teaching duties status should submit a written request to the department/unit head as early as possible prior to the semester for which the request is made to allow time to identify alternate instructors to teach the affected courses. In cases in which both parents/caregivers from the same academic unit request periods of modified teaching duties, the department will normally grant approvals for successive semesters within the first year of the birth or adoption to facilitate coverage of teaching duties.

The department/unit shall inform faculty members who submit a request for modified teaching duties of the tenure rollback policy and shall provide a copy of Provost Communications No. 16, Policy on Interruptions of the Probationary Period.

Following approval of the request, the department/unit head will forward the request to the dean of the college. After approval by the dean, the college will send copies of the approval to the faculty member, the department/unit head, and Academic Human Resources. As noted above, any decision to deny requests for modified teaching duties must be approved by the Provost’s Office.

For information regarding the Family and Medical Leave Act policy, see Campus Administrative Manual, Family and Medical Leave.

For information regarding parental leave, which grants eligible employees up to two weeks of paid leave following the birth of a child or upon the initial placement or legal adoption of a child under age 18, see Campus Administrative Manual, Parental Leave and consult with unit, college or academic human resources.

Contact

For questions concerning this policy, contact the Office of Academic Human Resources, (217) 333-6747, [ahr@illinois.edu](mailto:ahr@illinois.edu?subject=Family and Medical Leave Act).