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Sabbaticals

Sabbaticals are available to teachers to:

  1. Enhance their teaching skills
  2. Restore their health
  3. Achieve state certification in a shortage area

Members can apply for a sabbatical through SOLAS. See the current DOE sabbatical memo for additional guidance and deadlines. 

Regular sabbatical leaves for study or restoration of health

Eligible teachers who want to enhance teaching skills or restore health during illness may request a sabbatical leave.

All teachers are eligible for a one-year sabbatical (of either type) after 14 years of service. (For your first one-year sabbatical, you can count up to three years of regular substitute service; the rest must be regularly appointed service.)

Spring semester study sabbaticals are available only for middle and high school classroom pedagogues, who are also eligible to take one-year study sabbaticals. 

School secretaries, laboratory specialists and technicians hired before July 1, 1985 are eligible for study and health sabbatical leaves. However, school secretaries, laboratory specialists and technicians hired on or after July 1, 1985 are only eligible for health sabbaticals effective September 1, 2007.

Before retiring or leaving service, you are required to return to your position for one year after a six-month sabbatical and for two years after a one-year sabbatical. Other rules apply. UFT borough offices hold sabbatical workshops in the fall and spring to guide prospective applicants.

Restoration of Health Sabbaticals

A Restoration of Health Sabbatical is purely for rehabilitation from serious medical issues. It does not require study, only recovery. Your ailment must be acute and require immediate treatment. It cannot be chronic in nature, unless your doctor can certify that it is a rare flare-up and can be controlled with further treatment.

  • To be eligible for a Restoration of Health Sabbatical of up to six months in length, you must have accrued seven years of appointed service; for a year-long sabbatical, you must have 14 years of appointed service to be eligible. 
  • A six-month Restoration of Health Sabbatical pays 60% of your salary; a year-long sabbatical will pay 70% of your salary. 
  • Medical benefits are retained during a Restoration of Health Sabbatical and you remain on payroll. CAR days are not accrued during the sabbatical period. 
  • Six-month sabbaticals typically start on Aug. 1 and end Jan. 31, or start Feb. 1 and end July 31 and full-year sabbaticals usually run from Aug. 1 through July 31. 
  • If your health improves, you do not have to stay out for the entire duration of your sabbatical, and you can return to work early with a simple letter of clearance provided by your doctor. 
  • Special Sabbatical Leaves can be granted for emergency situations and can start at any time, but will also end on either Jan. 31 or July 31. The same length of service requirements apply. However, members must use their accrued CAR days to cover medical absences prior to the start of a Special Sabbatical Leave. 
  • Upon completion of a six-month Restoration of Health Sabbatical, an individual must serve a minimum of one year of service and must serve a minimum of two years of service after completing a year-long sabbatical. If an individual fails to complete the required duration of service upon their return, they may be liable to repay their salary that was issued while on sabbatical. 
  • Members who are unable to return to work due to a medical incapacity which developed after the start of a Restoration of Health Sabbatical may apply for a waiver of sabbatical return. 
  • Members can apply for a Restoration of Health Sabbatical through the DOE SOLAS website. 

For further information, see the current DOE sabbatical memo or call Thomas Bennett, UFT Liaison to DOE Medical, at 646-630-4746.

Study Sabbaticals

Study sabbaticals must be used for rigorous coursework related to your teaching assignment. You must submit an official transcript or final research project upon completion of a study sabbatical. If your superintendent does not approve your proposed course of study, you have the right to amend it.

During a study sabbatical, teachers earn 70 percent of salary.

Special study sabbaticals to achieve state certification

Teachers who are regularly appointed and want to be certified in a designated shortage area may apply for a special one-year or six-month sabbatical for study relating to certification (see list of current shortage areas below).

Any applicant applying for the special study sabbatical must meet all other requirements for state certification, in addition to being within 16  required credits. A minimum of eight credits are required for a six-month sabbatical and a minimum of 16 credits are required for a one-year sabbatical.

Shortage area licenses

Special sabbatical leave for study may be granted to complete certification in shortage license areas. See the most recent sabbatical personnel memo for the current list of shortage areas. 

You are required to provide a letter from your college or university, or a statement from the New York State Education Department, confirming that you have met all requirements except the remaining 16 or fewer academic credits needed to achieve certification.

You must also submit the completed Application for Special Study Sabbaticals to Achieve Certification. Individuals awarded special study sabbaticals will be required to submit their documented proof of enrollment in an appropriate academic program at an accredited college or university. Documentation must be submitted prior to the start of the sabbatical, confirming that the employee has registered for 16 credits or less.

An individual who receives this special sabbatical leave of absence for study will commit to completing certification and will accept assignment to teach in the license area for a minimum of two years.

DOE documents