Paid Parental Leave

    [Faculty Handbook Category #1]

    The College will provide up to six (6) weeks of paid parental leave to eligible full-time faculty following the birth of an employee’s child, or the placement of a child with an employee in connection with adoption or foster care. Faculty on part-time appointments anytime during the year prior to the leave will receive prorated paid parental leave. Paid parental leave is not intended to replace any STD benefits a birthing parent may receive; instead, the purpose of paid parental leave is to enable the employee to care for and bond with a newborn or a newly adopted or newly placed child. This policy will run concurrently with leave under the FMLA, MPLA, or other leave policies we may have, as applicable.

    Eligibility

    Benefit-eligible faculty (those working an average of 20 or more hours per week) are eligible for paid leave under this policy.

    In addition, faculty must meet one of the following criteria:

    • Have given birth to a child
    • Be the non-birthing parent of a child
    • Have adopted a child or been placed with a foster child (in either case, the child must be age 17 or younger). Formally adopting a spouse’s child from a previous marriage/relationship does not qualify for leave under this policy
    • Become a parent through gestational surrogacy (surrogate mothers and sperm donors are excluded from coverage under this policy)

    Amount, Time Frame and Duration of Paid Parental Leave

    • Eligible faculty will receive a maximum of six (6) weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, adoption or placement of a child/children. The fact that a multiple birth, adoption or placement occurs (e.g., the birth of twins or adoption of siblings) does not increase the six-week total amount of paid parental leave granted for that event. In addition, in no case will an employee receive more than six (6) weeks of paid parental leave in a rolling 12-month period, regardless of whether more than one birth, adoption or foster care placement event occurs within that 12-month time frame. 
    • Each week of paid parental leave is compensated at 100 percent of the employee’s regular, straight-time weekly pay. Paid parental leave will be paid on regularly scheduled pay dates.
    • Approved paid parental leave may be taken at any time during the six-month period immediately following the birth, adoption or placement of a child with the employee. However, once leave begins in connection with birth, adoption, or placement, paid parental leave must start being used. Paid parental leave may not be used or extended beyond this six-month time frame. Paid leave under this policy is taken in connection with (not in addition to) leave taken under other policies we may have that cover birth, adoption, and/or foster care placements.
    • Faculty must take paid parental leave in one continuous period of leave and must use all paid parental leave during the twelve-month time frame indicated above. Any unused paid parental leave will be forfeited at the end of the twelve-month time frame. 

    Coordination with Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML)

    • When an employee’s parental leave qualifies for PFML wage replacement benefits, paid leave under this policy can be used to supplement PFML. That means paid parental leave will not be paid out in whole-day increments, but, instead, will be used to supplement the PFML payments, so that employees will receive the equivalent of 100% of their regular wages. For instance, if the PFML program only pays 60% of the employee’s regular wages, paid parental leave will be used to make up the additional 40%. In no case will employees receive both PFML payments and a full day’s worth of paid parental leave.
    • Paid parental leave under this policy will only be paid during the first six (6) continuous weeks of the leave, regardless of whether PFML payments are also being made.  Therefore, even if the first six (6) weeks of parental leave are also covered by PFML, there will be no paid parental leave left under this policy at the end of the six (6) week period.

    Coordination with Other Benefits and Leave Policies

    • Paid parental leave taken under this policy will run concurrently with leave under the FMLA, as well as any related state parental leave laws. Therefore, any leave taken under this policy that qualifies for FMLA or state law protections will be counted as both leave under this policy, and leave under our FMLA policy and any applicable state leave policy at the same time. Please refer to our FMLA and/or state parental leave policies for further information.
    • We will maintain all benefits for employees during the paid parental leave period just as if they were any other paid leave benefit that we offer, such as PTO.
    • If a holiday occurs while the employee is on paid parental leave, such day will be charged to holiday pay, and will not count against the paid parental leave balance.

    Requests for Paid Parental Leave

    • To use paid leave under this policy, faculty must provide their supervisors and the Human Resources Department with at least 90 days’ advance of the beginning of the semester in which the leave will occur (or, if the leave was not foreseeable, as soon as possible), complete any necessary forms, and provide any additional documentation as may be requested by the Human Resources Department. 
    • Whenever possible, a faculty member’s course schedule should be designed to minimize the impact on courses caused by a leave. Reasonable attempts should be made to ensure the course load during an interrupted semester is equal to or less than the course load during the uninterrupted semester. When the leave overlaps with the January Term for any amount of time, faculty should not be scheduled to teach during the January term. 

    Optional Paid Parental Semester Leave

    • Full-time faculty members who are eligible for a Paid Parental Leave can choose to receive instead a Paid Parental Semester Leave that includes one paid course release. Use of this leave would replace the Parental Leave. 
    • Paid Parental Semester Leave must take place within one (1) calendar year after the birth, adoption or placement with adoption pending. 
    • A faculty member who wishes to take Paid Parental Semester Leave should submit their request at least three (3) months in advance of the beginning of the semester in which the leave will occur (unless circumstances make such notice impossible).

      Revised November 3, 2023; Revised January 1, 2026