Library: Policy
OKDHS:2-1-42. Educational leave
Revised 07-01-01
(a) Statement of policy. Educational leave with or without pay may be afforded to education assistance recipients or other employees to attend classes offered by accredited colleges or universities. The classes shall be directly related to the employee's career development and the Agency's mission. Educational leave with pay for up to a maximum of 20 working days (160 hours) may be afforded to employees during the payroll calendar year (December 16 through December 15).
- (1) The employee must receive the approval of the appropriate associate director, area director, division administrator, or institution superintendent and provide evidence of enrollment and satisfactory completion of coursework.
- (2) Educational leave without pay is subject to the same terms and conditions as other requests for leave without pay.
(b) Procedure for approval of educational leave. Educational leave with pay is afforded a limited number of employees each year. Employees receiving Department-afforded education assistance will receive priority for educational leave with pay.
- (1) Employee's responsibility. The employee is responsible for:
- (A) consulting with his or her immediate supervisor prior to enrollment concerning eligibility for educational leave, including area of study and anticipated class schedules;
- (B) submitting a written request using form ADM-1 (new Form 10AD001E), Request for Approval of Leave, through appropriate supervisory channels to the local administrator requesting educational leave. Requests are to be submitted at the earliest possible date, but no later than 30 calendar days prior to the date such leave is to begin. A copy of the class schedule indicating the dates and times for which educational leave is requested must be attached;
- (C) attaching a copy of the assistance approval to the Form ADM-1 (new Form 10AD001E), if the employee is receiving Department education assistance; and
- (D) arranging class schedules so as to minimize the amount of educational leave needed to attend required classes.
- (2) Supervisor's responsibility. Educational leave is not automatically approved and is subject to review by appropriate Department officials. Requests for educational leave are subject to the approval/disapproval of the person administratively responsible for the office, division, or area to which the employee is assigned, based on the factors listed in (A)(i) - (vi) of this paragraph.
- (A) Local administrators are responsible for carefully reviewing requests for educational leave, consulting with other supervisory staff as appropriate, and making recommendations for approval/disapproval based on the:
- (i) status of the employee's workload;
- (ii) staffing levels and workload situation in the office or institution to which the employee is assigned;
- (iii) employee's tenure and performance evaluations;
- (iv) length of time for which leave is requested;
- (v) potential benefit to the Department, including the area of study and the employee's anticipated tenure with the Department; and
- (vi) employee's prior leave record.
- (B) In times of critical staff shortages, such as during hiring freezes, requests for educational leave may be denied if an employee's absence will cause an adverse effect on the delivery of client services.
- (C) Where all factors listed in (A)(i) - (vi) of this paragraph are equal, and a decision concerning educational leave must be made between two or more employees, the decision will be based on the order in which the requests were received.
- (A) Local administrators are responsible for carefully reviewing requests for educational leave, consulting with other supervisory staff as appropriate, and making recommendations for approval/disapproval based on the:
