Administrative Separation and/or Return to a Faculty Position

1. Purpose

• 1.1 All voluntary and involuntary separations from Senior Academic and Administrative Officer positions, as defined by UNC Policy 300.1.1, are governed by the following terms.
• 1.2 Individuals appointed on or after May 2, 2010 are subject to the terms and conditions of Section 2 below.
• 1.3. Individuals appointed prior to May 2, 2010 will be governed by the terms and conditions of Section 3 below.

2. Administrative Separation and/or Return to a Faculty Position (appointed on or after May 2, 2010)

• 2.1. Administrative Separation and Return to a Tenured Faculty Position (UNC Policy Manual 300.1.6 [R], 5/02/10)
  • 2.1.1. Return to a Tenured Faculty Position: An administrator who holds a concurrent tenured faculty appointment may return to that appointment with all the rights and responsibilities of faculty in the home academic department unless a proceeding is initiated to discharge or demote the tenured faculty member.
  • 2.1.2. Removal of Administrative Stipend: If there has been an administrative stipend associated with the related administrative duties during the appointment, that stipend shall be removed upon the termination of administrative duties and before any salary adjustments are made (i.e., from a 12-month appointment to a 9-month appointment).
  • 2.1.3. Salary: The salary shall be adjusted from a 12-month administrative salary to a 9-month or 12-month faculty salary that is commensurate with the salaries of comparable faculty members in the department and prevailing market conditions.
  • 2.1.4. Scholarly Leave (Preparation for Return to Faculty Position): At the Chancellor’s discretion, the Chancellor may provide for up to a one semester Scholarly Leave for any tenured faculty member who has served in one or more consecutive Senior Academic and Administrative Officer (SAAO) or Exempt Professional Staff (EPS) positions subject to UNC Policy 300.1.1 for at least five years in order to provide an opportunity for the faculty member to prepare for teaching and research responsibilities. Prior to the beginning of the Scholarly Leave, the administrator shall submit a written work plan for the leave period to include expected outcomes. The plan should reflect activities reasonably calculated to prepare the faculty member to resume teaching and research responsibilities at ECU. The plan will be reviewed by the Unit Administrator and reviewed and approved by the Chancellor. The plan will be incorporated into the faculty member’s contract. The leave will be paid at a salary commensurate with the salaries of comparable faculty members.
  • 2.1.5. Exception Provision: Exceptions may be made to recognize extraordinary circumstances, including, but not limited to, extended or superior service in administrative roles. Any exception to these provisions must be approved by the Board of Trustees and by the President.
  • 2.1.6. Failure to Return to Faculty Role: In the event that the faculty member does not assume faculty responsibilities for at least a semester after the Scholarly Leave in accordance with this policy, the Chancellor is authorized, in their discretion, to require repayment of compensation paid during the leave period from the non-returning faculty member. Requirement for repayment in accordance with this provision will be included in the written contract. For the avoidance of doubt, such a failure to return to a faculty role shall be deemed a voluntary resignation from employment with no right of appeal notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter VI, Section 603, The Code.
• 2.2. Appointment of an Administrator without Faculty Return Rights:
• An administrator leaving a position that is categorized as “at will” and who does not have contractual faculty retreat rights has no claim to a position at the University; however, there may be circumstances in which the Chancellor, or Chancellor’s designee, determines that an assignment to another administrative or teaching position would be beneficial for both the University and the employee. In these cases, the new salary should be appropriate to the assignment. Any exception to this salary standard (for example, if the supervisor proposes to pay the administrator their full administrative salary after moving the administrator to a position that would normally be lower paying) must be approved by the Board of Trustees and by the President. This regulation does not supersede any notice or severance pay required by Board of Governors policy.
• 2.3. Separation from the University
  • 2.3.1. In some cases, it may be in the best interests of the University to negotiate a severance agreement with an administrator. UNC policy addresses timely notice for termination of Senior Academic and Administrative Officers and Exempt Professional Staff hired pursuant to UNC Policy 300.1.1. In certain circumstances, these employees are entitled to notice of the discontinuation of their employment with full pay for up to 90 days or severance pay, depending on their length of service.
  • 2.3.2. The Chancellor may, at their discretion, determine that the circumstances justify continuing full pay for employees subject to UNC Policy 300.1.1 for up to 90 days. Any agreement that results in a longer period of compensation must be approved by the Board of Trustees.
• 2.4. Retirement
  Nothing in these Regulations shall prevent a tenured faculty member from immediately participating in phased retirement, consistent with existing University of North Carolina and East Carolina University policies.
• 2.5. Coverage
  The regulations in Section 2 apply to individuals appointed on or after May 2, 2010. Individuals appointed prior to May 2, 2010 remain covered under the Policy on Administrative Separation and/or Retreat to a Faculty Position (Section 3, below).

3. Administrative Separation and/or Retreat to a Faculty Position (appointed prior to May 2, 2010)

• 3.1. Retreat to a Faculty Position
  • 3.1.1. An administrator who holds a concurrent tenured faculty appointment may return to that appointment with all the rights and responsibilities of faculty in the home academic department, unless an institutional due process or termination proceeding is initiated to discharge or demote the administrator from the faculty position.
  • 3.1.2. Removal of Administrative Stipend: If there has been an administrative stipend associated with the related administrative duties during the appointment, that stipend will be removed upon the termination of administrative duties and before any salary conversions are made (i.e., from a 12-month appointment to a 9-month appointment).
  • 3.1.3. Salary: The salary will be determined based on either a 9-month or 12-month appointment, as appropriate for the department, commensurate with the salaries of similarly situated faculty members in the department and prevailing market conditions.
  • 3.1.4. Preparation for Return to Faculty Position: At the Chancellor’s discretion, the Chancellor may approve a reasonable period of time to provide an opportunity for the employee to prepare for teaching and research responsibilities. Such preparation time may be with full or partial pay. The period of time should be directly related to the time spent in administrative duties but may not continue for longer than one year without approval of the Board of Trustees.
• 3.2. Reappointment of an Administrator without Faculty Retreat Rights
• An administrator leaving a position that is categorized as at will has no claim to a position at the University; however, there may be circumstances in which the Chancellor determines that assignment to another administrative or teaching position would be beneficial for both the University and the employee. In these cases, the new salary should be appropriate to the assignment. If the supervisor proposes to pay the administrator their full administrative salary after moving the administrator to a position that would normally be lower paying, or if paid leave is to be granted, the agreement with the administrator must be approved by the Board of Trustees. This guideline does not supersede any notice or severance pay required by Board of Governors’ policy.
• 3.3. Separation from the University
  • 3.3.1. In some cases, it may be in the best interests of the University to negotiate a severance agreement with an administrator. UNC policy addresses timely notice for termination of Senior Academic and Administrative Officers hired pursuant to UNC Policy 300.1.1, I.B. In accordance with The University of North Carolina UNC Policy 300.1.1, III.B, in certain circumstances these employees are entitled to notice of the discontinuation of their employment with full pay for up to 90 days or severance pay, depending on their length of service.
  • 3.3.2. The Chancellor may, at their discretion, determine that the circumstances justify continuing full pay for employees subject to UNC Policy 300.1.1 for up to 90 days. Any agreement that results in a longer period of compensation must be approved by the Board of Trustees.
• 3.4. Retirement
  Nothing in these guidelines shall prevent an administrator from retiring or an administrator who holds a faculty appointment from participating in phased retirement consistent with existing University of North Carolina policies.