New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 18 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Chapter II - Regulations of the Department of Social Services
Subchapter H - Personnel
Part 678 - Personnel Policies
Section 678.2 - Paid educational leave
Universal Citation: 18 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 678.2
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
[Additional statutory authority: Social Services Law, §§30, 31 ]
(a) Persons covered. Persons with permanent or probationary status shall be eligible to apply for educational leave. The fields of study be such as to improve the individual's performance of his duties. On induction into the local department each employee shall be informed in writing of the salient features of the educational leave program. In addition, there shall be an annual posting in the local department regarding the educational leave program of the local department for the benefit of all employees.
(b) Purpose, extent, financial provisions of educational leave.
(1) Educational leave may
be granted on a full-time, part-time or block time basis for a specific
education program as approved by the department.
(2) The period of time for which educational
leave is granted shall be subject to determination by the appropriate local
and/or State authorities with the approval of the State Department of Social
Services.
(3) Each educational
leave grant shall be for no more than one academic year.
(4) The grant for educational leave may
include salary, school tuition, certain fees, and some travel. The continued
salary shall not be less than when the grant became effective and not more than
it would have been in regular employment. Tuition and fees shall be paid
directly to the school. Travel expense shall be reimbursable to the
employee.
(5) For those awards
granted under Priority I designation, full tuition, specified fees, certain
travel, and continued salary shall be furnished.
(6) For those awards granted under Priority
II, full salary shall be furnished.
(7) For those awards granted under Priority
III, full tuition shall be reimbursed the awardee upon successful completion of
the approved education program.
(c) Application process.
(1) Applicants for full-time educational
leave shall have applied to at least one appropriate and accredited school
before submitting application for educational leave.
(2) All applications for educational leave
shall be completed on the prescribed form and submitted by the employee to the
designated superior in his agency in accordance with prescribed
procedures.
(3) All submitted
applications for educational leave shall be completed by the local commissioner
and/or the State requesting officer who shall recommend approval or disapproval
of the applications and forward the approved applications to the appropriate
office in the department, in accordance with prescribed procedures.
(4) The department shall approve or
disapprove the applications and notify appropriate personnel, in accordance
with prescribed procedures. Final action shall be deferred on applications
until documentation is received by the department of unqualified acceptance for
admission to an appropriate and accredited school for the period for which
application was made.
(5) Each
applicant shall be notified in writing by his local department of the approval
or disapproval of his application, including the reason in case of
disapproval.
(d) Selection of participants.
(1) Criteria for
department approval:
(i) district or
department recommendations and the local department's evaluation of
applicant;
(ii) number of awards
and amount of money available for the program in a given fiscal year;
(iii) program and administrative needs of the
department or local social services departments:
(a) Priority I designation.
(1) Jobs, or class of jobs under
consideration, must be specifically identified; knowledge, skills, and values
desired must be identified.
(2)
Education program requested must be deemed essential to the particular job or
class of jobs, as determined by a deputy commissioner and approved by the
commissioner of the department; or as determined by a local commissioner and
approved by the department.
(3) The
school and the curriculum requested must be those designated by the department
as appropriate for the identified educational need.
(b) Priority II designation.
(1) Jobs, or class of jobs, must be
specifically identified; knowledge, skills, and values desired must be
identified.
(2) Education program
requested must be deemed desirable for a particular job or class of jobs as
determined by a deputy commissioner and approved by the commissioner of the
department; or as determined by a local commissioner and approved by the
department.
(3) The school and the
curriculum requested shall be specified by the applicant and approved by the
department as appropriate.
(c) Priority III designation.
(1) Education program is one desired by
employee for career development.
(2) The school and the curriculum requested
shall be specified by the applicant and approved by the department as
appropriate.
(2) Criteria for the
local department's evaluation of applicant and recommendations:
(i) length of service: at the local
department's discretion but no less than six months of satisfactory employment
in the local department; or completion of one academic year of graduate
education in an accredited school of social work with a B or higher average,
and a minimum of 10 weeks of satisfactory employment in the agency;
(ii) quality of performance: demonstrated
interest in job's performance and agency program, efforts for improvement of
production, use of supervision, attendance at appropriate school courses,
institutes, workshops;
(iii)
physical and emotional ability to perform effectively at school and on the job,
attendance record being one indicator;
(iv) expected improved value to the local
social services department, including the local department's plan for
utilization of applicant upon his return which takes into consideration the
course of study the applicant is planning to follow.
(e) Conditions of the program.
(1) An employee granted educational leave
shall retain all rights in the position held at the time leave was granted, or
in one with comparable security and pay, with no loss of rights and benefits
provided under applicable State or local law, such as: accumulated overtime,
sick leave, vacation accruals; salary increments; retirement benefits; health
insurance; workmen's compensation. Unless contrary to the local department's
policy, vacation, sick or personal leave credits shall not accrue during
full-time or block-time educational leave. Time on educational leave shall not
count as part of the probationary period. The balance of the probationary
period shall be served upon return from the educational leave.
(2) An employee receiving full-time or
block-time educational leave shall be relieved of all responsibility for
performance of current department work for the period of academic time
approved.
(3) An employee receiving
part-time educational leave shall have his work load correspondingly reduced if
the approved educational program requires more than 10 percent of the local
department's work week for a continuous period covering an academic semester or
quarter.
(4) An employee on paid,
full-time or block-time educational leave shall comply with the school's
attendance rules while enrolled in the school program. Absences during the
period of leave are not charged against leave credits. The dates of the
employee's educational leave status shall be according to the official school
schedule, from date of first date of registration to the last date of official
attendance at school. For full-time educational leave, the dates are from date
of registration to end of one work week following the last official attendance
date.
(5) In case of withdrawal
from the leave, termination of the educational leave status shall coincide with
the official date of withdrawal from school.
(6) An employee on educational leave shall be
responsible for reporting to his local department his status or standing or
attendance at school, as required by that department.
(7) An employee granted educational leave
shall be fully informed of the conditions on which educational leave may be
granted, including the length of time expected to remain in the local
department's service, the terms of the agreement, and his status before, during
and following educational leave.
(8) The applicant shall execute an agreement
with the New York State Department of Social Services concerning employment
responsibility in return for the educational leave award which agreement shall
include an agreement by the employee to return to the local department in which
employed immediately upon termination of his financed education and to serve in
such employment for one calendar year for each academic year subsidized or part
thereof. Recognition is given to the fact that circumstances may make it
impossible for the employee to fulfill the work requirement for the educational
leave given. Situations may arise in which continuation of employment with the
agency would result in undue hardship for the employee and a disadvantage to
the local department. Under conditions which warrant, the local department may
wish to provide for repayment of funds when the original agreement cannot be
fulfilled.
(f) Reimbursement. 100 percent of salary expense incurred by the district for educational leave granted according to the policies and prescribed procedures may be claimed.
(g) Substitute worker. Reimbursement shall be available to the district for the salary of a substitute worker while the regular worker is in school, provided the substitute meets the minimum requirements.
(h) Liaison responsibilities. The local commissioner or State requesting officer shall be responsible for maintaining liaison with the employee while on educational leave following prescribed procedures.
(i) Civil emergencies affecting school program. In the case of a disturbance affecting the school program, such as a strike, the employee from the State or a local department of social services who is on educational leave and in attendance at the school in question shall continue in his full-time school program as long as the school remains open, or, if that is not possible, shall immediately report to his employing agency for instructions.
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