Skip to Content
Faculty Senate

Faculty Development Leave Information

Fall 2026 Application Cycle
for
Fall 2027 and/or Spring 2028 Faculty Development Leave

Important dates

  • Applicants must meet with Department Chair or School Director and declare intent to apply by 9/15/26
  • Chairs/Directors submit names to Faculty Senate by 9/18/26
  • Applications open in Watermark Faculty Success on 9/21/26
  • Applications close 10/2/26
  • Chair approvals through 10/09/26
  • Dean approvals through 10/16/26
  • Senate submits recommendations to Provost by 11/13/26
  • Supplemental Review Committee reviews applications late November
  • Review committee submits recommendations to the Provost early December
  • Provost forwards approved and supplemental applications to the President by mid-December
  • President submits approved applications to the Board of Regents for final approval in January

Eligibility

  • Faculty must be tenured by the time leave begins.

 

  • At the time the development leave period begins, first time applicants must have completed at least six years of full-time Texas State University service, at least two of which are consecutive.

 

  • At the time the development leave period begins, faculty with prior development leave(s) must have completed at least six years of university service since their last development leave. (Faculty with prior development leave(s) may apply for: Fall 2027 leave, Spring 2028 leave, or the 2027-2028 academic year if the last development leave was taken during academic year 2021-2022 or earlier.)

Application Process and Guidance

  • ​Applications must meet with their department chair or school director by September 15 to declare their intent to apply.
  • Chairs will submit the applicants' names by September 18.
  • Applicants will be contacted via email to submit their application between September 21 and October 2, 2026.
  • Applicants are encouraged to meet with their respective senator(s) prior to October 16 to assure that their senator fully understands the proposed project, and to provide any needed clarification. 
  • Applicants are encouraged to update their online faculty profile, which may be referenced during evaluation of applicant’s expertise and feasibility of the proposed project. 
  • Applications should be written in plain language appropriate for a broad university faculty audience and avoid technical jargon where possible
  • Applicants may upload CV in pdf format and a document regarding previous FDL award if applicable. Additional documentation should be added to the end of the CV.
  • The online application will enforce character limits, will not allow additional documents to be submitted, and will not accept applications after midnight on October 02. 
  • Additional information may be found in AAPPS 04.02.02

Application Materials:

  • A completed application form.
  • Please provide a proposal narrative that details planned leave activities and the methodology for achieving project goals (2000-character limit, including spaces).
  • Please provide a list of anticipated outcomes from the proposed FDL project in a table or bullet point format. Outcomes should be aligned with goals identified in abstract and should emphasize impact on faculty development, contribution to the applicant’s field, and/or return on university investment (e.g., alignment with university priorities/goals) (500-2000 character limit, including spaces).
  • FDL is intended to support activities that are beyond the scope of what could likely be achieved while carrying out the regular duties of a non-leave semester. Please specifically describe why FDL is necessary to complete the project (500-character limit, including spaces). 
  • If external collaborators or off-site resources are involved, please upload evidence of commitment (e.g., support letter or contract) as a PDF attached to the end of your CV.
  • An up-to-date curriculum vitae in Texas State format. 
  • If previously awarded FDL, please upload an outcomes report from most recent FDL completed. This report may be a duplicate of what was initially submitted following completion of past FDLs or, submit an updated report that provides more detail and includes outcomes that that had not yet been realized when previous FDL report was first submitted.    (Upload PDF of report)
  • If an applicant is applying for the supplemental award, he/she must complete the supplemental award questions stated in the online application

Evaluation Process

  • Completed Faculty Development applications will be electronically routed to the applicant’s chair/ director for approval due by midnight Friday, October 09, 2026. 
  • Chair approved applications are routed to the college dean for approval due by midnight, Friday, October 16, 2026.
  • The senate, in a closed meeting, will briefly discuss the merits of each application. Senators will evaluate all applications using the criteria included below.

.

Criteria for Evaluation
Goals/outcomes are described in plain language appropriate for a broad university faculty audience:
Project activities are beyond the scope of what could likely be achieved while carrying out the regular duties of a non-leave semester:
Outcomes will support faculty development in terms of expected impact on the applicant’s research/scholarly activity or other transformative area of applicant’s career:
Outcomes will be beneficial to the university in terms of alignment with university’s goals and return on investment:
Project is likely to be completed successfully as described in application; review of CV, faculty online profile, previous FDL report, and dean/chair comments suggest that the project is feasible in terms of time, resources, and faculty expertise.
Further, if applicable, evidence of commitment from external collaborators is provided (e.g., support letter or contract):
Adherence to application requirements (e.g., word limits, CV provided, completed application, and clarity of writing/formatting):

Supplemental Funding:

Pending the availability of funds, ten Supplemental Awards of $20,000 each are available to faculty who receive Development Leaves.  These awards are provided to assist faculty in their research efforts, and can be used to:  

fund travel and lodging costs associated with research expenses during the Faculty Development Leave

purchase equipment or materials needed for research during the leave, OR

supplement salary for those who select both the fall and spring semesters for their leave

In the latter case, the supplemental award may be combined with other funds from the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs to provide up to 100% of salary for an academic-year leave.

A committee appointed by the Provost, and including representation from the Faculty Senate, will review all requests for these awards from faculty who have been approved by the President for Faculty Development Leaves. 

The committee will recommend up to ten award recipients to the Provost, who will make the final decisions. Award notifications will be made by the Provost by February, 2027.