Board Policy GBRI_ Professional Personnel Personal Leaves and Absences (clean final)

FINAL CLEAN VERSION OF REVISED POLICY

Board Policy GBRI: Professional Personnel Personal Leaves and Absences
Original Adopted Date: 02/11/2002
Last Revised Date: 09/13/2021
Last Reviewed Date: 5/6/2024




The Board of Educafion (“Board”) expects all employees to maintain regular aftendance and to avoid
unnecessary absences. Out of concern for the health and welfare of employees and their families,
and in compliance with applicable laws, the Board will provide certain categories of leave for which
employees may seek approval. Immediate supervisors are expected to monitor employee
aftendance, and take appropriate acfion when aftendance problems occur. Leave taken without
approval, as required, may be treated as unauthorized leave and may result in disciplinary acfion up
to and including terminafion. Further, submifting falsified documents for sick leave, other types of
leave, or FMLA may also result in disciplinary acfion, up to and including terminafion.

A. SICK LEAVE

In accordance with Georgia law, all full-fime personnel shall be eligible for sick leave earned at the
rate of one-and-one-fourth (1.25) days for each month of service. Effecfive July 1, 1994 any unused
sick leave may be carried forward from one fiscal year to the next in a reserve bank unfil a maximum
of one hundred and ninety days is accumulated.


 Months of Service                   Sick Leave Days Per Year

 10-Month Employee – 8 Hour          12.5 Days

 10-Month Employee – 7 Hour          11.25 Days

 10-Month Employee – 6 Hour          11.25 Days



 11-Month Employee – 8 Hour          13.75 Days

 12-Month Employee – 8 Hour          15 Days


All days absent shall be reported by the employee, cerfifying the dates and reasons for the absence.
A physician's cerfificate may be required by the Superintendent or his/her designee at any fime
deemed necessary, but such cerfificate shall always be required for any illness longer than three
consecufive workdays.

Sick Leave is provided under state law to provide pay during absences related to medical issues for
the employee or immediate family member, as well as for certain other absences. An employee may
ufilize sick leave upon the approval of the Superintendent or his/her designee for absence(s) due to
illness or injury, or necessitated by exposure to contagious disease or to illness or the death of the
employee’s relafive. "Immediate Family Member" under this Policy, is defined as the following:
spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, grandchild, and corresponding step and in-law relafions.
At the fime of employment, a new teacher shall be credited with up to forty-five days of unused
sick leave if the teacher earned such sick leave while employed in any other public school system in
the State of Georgia, provided that the teacher has not been withdrawn from acfive service as a
public school teacher for the twelve months preceding employment by the DeKalb County School
District (“District”), and provided that the sick leave has been accrued in accordance with Georgia
law and policies of the Georgia State Board of Educafion.

Any accumulated unused sick and personal leave credited to an employee shall be forfeited if such
employee withdraws from service for a period of twelve or more consecufive months, unless the
withdrawal from service is for educafional leave to seek a higher level or different field of
cerfificafion and is for no longer than twenty-four consecufive months.

B. PERSONAL LEAVE

During a school year, employees may ufilize up to a maximum of three days of any accumulated sick
leave as personal leave, if prior approval of the absence has been given by the employee’s
immediate supervisor and if the presence of the employee requesfing the absence is not essenfial
for effecfive school operafion. Employee aftendance on certain days, designated crifical days, is
crucial for effecfive school operafion. Neither personal nor vacafion leave may be authorized during
the following designated crifical days for any personnel: pre-planning, post planning, the first five
days of the school year, and the last five days of the school year. Any excepfions must be approved
by the Superintendent or his/her designee.

Further, neither personal nor vacafion leave may be authorized for school-based employees during
either the first two days prior to a school holiday period or a work calendar reducfion day or the
two days following a school holiday period or a work calendar reducfion day. Nor may personal or
vacafion leave be authorized for school-based employees during any federal or state standardized
assessments administered by the District.

All requests for personal leave must be submifted in wrifing to the employee’s principal or
supervisor at least three days prior to the requested leave date. Any days missed for personal
reasons in excess of three days are unauthorized absences and will result in a loss of pay charged at
the employee’s daily rate of pay and may further result in disciplinary acfion, up to and including
terminafion. An employee is not required to indicate specific reasons for personal leave. The
employee’s principal or supervisor has the right to approve or deny the employee’s request for
personal leave.

C. VACATION LEAVE

Full-fime, twelve-month employees who have completed a minimum of ninety days of service in the
District will earn ten days of vacafion per year during the first five years of confinuous employment.
During each addifional one-year period of confinuous service, the employee earns one more day of
vacafion than that earned the preceding year, not to exceed twenty days of vacafion per year.
Employees are encouraged to take vacafion annually. The maximum amount of unused vacafion
that may be accrued at any point is forty-five (45) days. Any leave balance of more than forty-five
(45) days is forfeited at the end of each pay period. Upon refirement or resignafion, employees will
be paid for no more than forty-five (45) days of unused vacafion. All requests for vacafion leave
must be submifted, in wrifing, to the employee’s principal or supervisor at least two weeks prior to
the requested leave date. The employee’s principal or supervisor has the right to approve or deny
the employee’s request for vacafion leave.

D. BEREAVEMENT/RELIGIOUS LEAVE

An employee may use up to a maximum of three days of accumulated sick leave and/or up to three
days of personal leave as religious or bereavement leave in the event of the death of an immediate
family member. “Immediate family member” is defined as the following: spouse, child, sibling,
parent, grandparent, grandchild, and corresponding step and in-law relafions. If the employee
desires to take leave in excess of the days provided under this Policy, the employee may take unpaid
leave.

In advance of an absence, the employee must apply for bereavement or religious leave in wrifing,
stafing the specific reason for the anficipated absence. The principal or supervisor has the authority
to approve or deny the employee's request for bereavement or religious leave. The employee may
appeal a denial of the request for bereavement or religious leave to the assigned Superintendent or
Division Head within five days of the denial of the request for leave.

E. PROFESSIONAL LEAVE (School Representafive)

Annually, each District school will be allofted professional leave days which will not be charged
against an employee's personal leave allotment when used as specified by this Policy. Each school
will be allofted one day for each seven full-fime, cerfificated employees. An employee desiring to
use one or more of these days to aftend a professional meefing should submit a wriften request to
the principal at least three weeks prior to the meefing date. Principals are responsible for
developing and maintaining an equitable system for distribufing allofted professional leave days
among teachers of different departments and grades.

F. PROFESSIONAL LEAVE (Graduate Study Without Pay)

Full-fime personnel who have been employed with the District for at least twelve months and wish
to pursue graduate degrees in educafion that are related to the employees’ posifion with the
District may request an unpaid leave of absence to complete a residence degree program, student
teaching assignment, or other internship as required by the aftending university.

The employee must submit an applicafion for professional leave at least six weeks prior to the leave
event. Once an employee is granted professional leave, he/she may take up to one year of unpaid
leave to complete the course requirements. Only one professional leave may be granted for each
employee within a two-year cycle. Employees wishing to complete non-degree programs are not
eligible for professional leave. The Division of Human Resources has the right to deny the request
for professional leave. Reasonable efforts will be made to reassign an employee who returns from
professional leave within the allofted fime, but not necessarily to the same posifion previously held.

G. FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE

The policy of the DeKalb County Board of Educafion is to comply with all regulafions of the Federal
Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (“FMLA”). FMLA enfitles eligible employees of covered employers
to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons, with confinuafion of
group health insurance coverage under the same terms and condifions as if the employee had not
taken leave. Regarding the interpretafion of this Policy, employees should be guided by FMLA itself
and its regulafions.

An employee requesfing leave covered by this law shall have the appropriate health care provider
complete the WH380 form, which requests informafion permifted by FMLA.

H. EXTENDED MEDICAL LEAVE

Employees who have exhausted the leave provisions under the FMLA or DeKalb Medical Leave and
who are unable to return may apply for an extended medical leave. The extended medical leave may
not exceed a period of one year from the first day of the approved confinuous leave period. After
one year, if the employee does not return to the District, the employee will be separated from the
District.

I. JOB PROTECTION UPON RETURN FROM LEAVE

The Division of Human Resources will make every effort to find a posifion for reemployment for
eligible employees returning from leaves of absence. Employees returning from FMLA leave will be
returned to the same or equivalent posifion and locafion, as defined under the FMLA.
Employees returning from an approved Extended Leave of Absence may be considered for
reinstatement in accordance with the associated Administrafive Regulafion.

J. LEAVE OF ABSENCE WITHOUT PAY

The Division of Human Resources must approve all requests for a leave of absence without pay. Any
employee who takes a leave of absence, for any reason, without approval from the Division of
Human Resources will be placed on leave without pay. The Division of Human Resources will nofify
the employee of the unapproved leave, with a request to immediately return to work. If the
employee fails to respond to the nofificafion or to return to work, the employee may be
recommended to the Board for terminafion from the District for abandonment of his/her assigned
posifion.

K. UNUSED SICK LEAVE FINANCIAL EXCHANGE

Refiring employees who have accrued unused sick leave benefits may redeem them only under the
following condifions:

1. For employees covered by the Georgia Teachers Refirement System (“TRS”), a financial exchange
for unused sick leave will be provided only if the employee has established 40 years of creditable
service with TRS and cannot apply accumulated sick leave to increase the employee’s creditable
service with TRS pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 47-3-92. All other employees may redeem unused sick
leave benefits upon refirement pursuant to this secfion without regard to years of service.

2. Sick leave days transferred from other school systems will be excluded from the Sick Leave
Financial Exchange Program.

3. Unused sick leave days earned by an employee may be redeemed under the Sick Leave Financial
Exchange Program at refirement according to the following schedule:
Redeemed under the Sick Leave Financial Exchange Program at refirement according to the
following schedule:

Unused Sick Leave            Days Rate of Pay
Less than 25 days            $0.00 per day
26–50 days                     $3.00 per day
51–75 days                     $4.00 per day
76–100 days                   $5.00 per day
101–125 days                  $6.00 per day
126–150 days                  $7.00 per day
151–175 days                  $8.00 per day
176 days or more             $9.00 per day

L. JURY AND WITNESS LEAVE

An employee subpoenaed either for jury duty or as a witness to tesfify before a court of law in a
case arising out of the employee’s dufies as a District employee shall be allowed a leave of absence
without loss of pay. An employee who serves as a juror or a witness, as described herein, shall not
have the leave deducted from sick, personal, or professional leave. No employee ufilizing witness
leave shall be required to pay the cost of employing a subsfitute employee to serve during the
employee’s absence on such witness leave.

After an employee has been absent for ten days for jury duty in any twelve-month period, the
District shall receive all compensafion paid the employee for serving on a jury, excluding personal
expenses. Upon return to duty by the employee, a copy of the subpoena to serve as a juror or as a
witness shall be aftached to the Statement of Absence.

M. MILITARY LEAVE

Employees, other than those employed on a temporary basis, shall be enfitled to paid military leave
not to exceed eighteen days in any federal fiscal year for the purpose of complying with ordered
military duty with the Armed Forces of the United States or the State of Georgia, including duty as a
voluntary member of the milifia or the reserve component. Employees are also enfitled to paid
leave, not exceeding thirty days in any one federal fiscal year if ordered to duty as a result of the
declarafion of any emergency by the Governor or by the appropriate officials of the United States
Armed Forces.
Employees who have military commitments should inform the Superintendent or his/her designee
annually and shall cooperate, to the extent possible, in scheduling such leave so as to minimize the
disrupfion in those employees’ dufies and the mission of the Board.

Employees shall be enfitled to military leave for long-term, ordered military duty, with full
employment and reinstatement rights as provided by law. The employee subject to such military
duty must provide the Division of Human Resources with a copy of the official military orders, along
with the request for such leave.

N. SICK LEAVE BANK
The District may establish and maintain a Sick Leave Bank for the purpose of awarding eligible
employees who voluntarily make contribufions to the Sick Leave Bank each year with sick leave
days from the Bank after their earned sick leave accruals have been exhausted. The Sick Leave Bank
will be developed and maintained pursuant to O.C.G.A. 20-2-850 and to the guidelines developed
by the Superintendent.

O. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE

In accordance with Georgia law, eligible employees of the District shall be granted paid parental
leave upon the birth of an employee’s child or the placement of a child with an employee through
adopfion or foster care. Full-fime personnel shall be eligible for parental leave after six confinuous
months of employment with the District, and hourly employees shall be eligible if they have worked
700 hours during the preceding six-month period. The District will promulgate rules regarding paid
parental leave.



P. DEKALB MEDICAL LEAVE

The District sponsored medical leave is available to employees who have a serious medical
condifion as defined by the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) but who do not qualify for
FMLA. Employees may apply for an unpaid job-protected Medical Leave for a qualifying reason as
defined in the FMLA, with the confinuafion of group health insurance coverage under the same
terms and condifions as if the employee had not taken leave. The District will allow employees to
take a medical leave per rolling calendar year for the employee or an immediate family member
measured backward from the date an employee uses any Medical Leave. “Immediate family
member” is defined as parent, spouse, child under 18 years or child over 18 years of age and
incapable of self-care because of mental or physical disability. The employee must give the Division
of Human Resources at least 30-days advance nofice of the need to take a DeKalb Medical
Leave. When the need is unexpected the employee must nofify the Division of Human Resources
as soon as possible.

The leave does not need to be taken in a confinuous block. When medically necessary, eligible
employees may take the leave intermiftently. The allowable fime off is limited to the period of
disability as cerfified by the aftending physician but no more than 40 work days (8 weeks) or 160
hours. At the end of the approved leave period the employee will be required to return to work,
apply for addifional leave (if applicable), or resign his/her posifion. A confinued employee absence
beyond the approved medical leave period will be considered job abandonment. The Division of
Human Resources has the right to deny a request for Medical Leave for ineligibility purposes.