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Personal and Health Related Resources

 

We care about you as an employee of Oklahoma State University, so we have compiled these personal and health related resources that may be useful to you. 

 


Resources

Family Medical Leave Policy and Process

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 is a federal law designed to provide employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave for qualified family and medical related reasons. To be eligible for leave under FMLA, the individual must have been employed by the University for 12 months or a total of 52 weeks (need not be consecutive) and have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-month period preceding the FMLA qualifying event. Federal regulations, OSU guidelines, a list of frequently asked questions, and forms can be found at the site linked above.

 

Ombuds 

The OSU Ombuds Office was established by the Office of the President to promote a supportive learning and working environment at OSU. The office serves as a resource for all members of the OSU community on the Stillwater, Tulsa and IT-Okmulgee campuses. Services are provided for faculty, staff, and students, and offer a safe, voluntary and confidential place to talk about campus-related problems and concerns, between or among individuals and/or with organizations. The Ombudsperson will listen carefully to any “visitor” to review issues; explore options to solve problems; make inquiries and referrals as appropriate; and/or facilitate a process that attempts to bring a mutually agreeable resolution to a dispute, conflict, or problem, in an impartial and informal manner.

 

Sabbatical Leave for Faculty 

Upon recommendation of the department/school head and dean, and approval by the Provost, the University may periodically grant leave to tenure-track faculty members for study, research, or other activities directed toward professional growth. To qualify for leave, the candidate must have served as a faculty member for six (6) academic years since initial appointment or since a previous sabbatical leave. Sabbatical leave obligates the recipient to follow a program consistent with the purpose and conditions for which the leave was granted. The faculty member is entitled to apply for sabbatical leave from regular, scheduled duties for the purpose of professional development. Members of the faculty may apply for a maximum leave of one academic appointment period, not to exceed 12 months, at a reduced salary or a maximum leave of one-half the academic appointment period, not to exceed six months, at full salary.

 

Spousal/Partner Hires 

OSU is committed to assisting qualified candidates by exploring dual career hires for spouses/partners of prospective tenure-track or tenured faculty within the University community. Such a commitment is viewed as a positive inducement for recruiting quality faculty to the University. While employment cannot be guaranteed, the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs will assist deans in identifying open positions in other colleges that may be of interest to the spouse/partner and/or by directing deans to OSU Human Resources for information on available staff openings.

 

Tenure-Clock Extensions for Faculty for FMLA and Other Reasons 

Policies are in place for a tenure-track faculty member to request the extension of a period of appointment and pre-tenure period as follows: 

Circumstances Covered Under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) - Upon receipt of a written request from the faculty member, the unit administrator shall transmit to the dean of the college the request for an extension of the faculty member’s period of appointment and pre-tenure period for circumstances such as birth or adoption, elder care, dependent care, or other qualifying events covered under FMLA. Such an extension shall be granted upon approval by the VPAA. The extension of the pre-tenure period for a qualifying event covered under FMLA is not contingent upon use of an extended leave of absence.  (See Section 1.4.7.1 of the OSU Faculty Handbook)

Other Extenuating Circumstances (e.g. a leave of absence without pay, an extended sick leave not covered by FMLA, significant changes in published criteria for tenure, or significant changes in job description associated with transfer or promotion, etc.) - Upon written request by the faculty member and recommendation by the unit administrator and dean of the college, an extension of a period of appointment and the pre-tenure period of a faculty member may be extended up to three years upon approval by the VPAA.  (See Section 1.4.7 of the OSU Faculty Handbook.)

 

NOTE: This is updated annually to serve as a resource for all OSU employees, although some references are applicable only to faculty. The Provost’s Office, on behalf of the original COACHE Working Group, welcomes comments and/or suggestions of other resources that would be useful to include on this site. Suggestions should be emailed to provost@okstate.edu. 
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