PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Travel Policy

The University is undertaking an effort to significantly reduce travel expenses. The following restrictions will help identify and determine the need for travel. The University’s Travel Expense Reimbursement Policy will continue to apply for all travel expenses actually incurred. All travel must be directly related to an activity in which the University derives a benefit. University employees authorized to approve travel expenditures should exercise prudent judgment when determining if the travel is necessary and justified. The following principles should be used as a guide when determining the appropriateness of the travel expenditure:
 

• Travel to meetings, conferences, seminars, athletic events etc., must be limited to essential personnel (i.e., primary decision maker, presenter, officer, athletes, coaches) and must be mission critical.
• Travel necessitated by the need to obtain critical training must be limited to situations where no comparable on-line or local training opportunity is available.
• When the need to travel for training is unavoidable, the training location (assuming multiple options exist) must be selected based on lowest total cost to the University.
• Use of teleconferences, video-conferencing technologies, on-line meeting capabilities, etc., must be used in lieu of traveling to events.
• Where possible, attendance at multiple meetings, conferences, seminars, and other events should be combined in an effort to reduce the number of individual travel trips.

Generally, no more than one University employee should travel to the same event unless multiple attendees are essential and mission critical. The use of University funds for travel purchases related to a University guest (i.e., speaker, recruit, donor, board member, etc.) may be justified, but should be limited. In each of these cases, justification for the use of University funds rests upon the conduct of official University business and must generally be approved by a third-party who is authorized to sign for the budget being charged.

This restriction does not extend to student funds associated with campus-wide student activities or to grant funds (if the grant specifically provides for the travel purchases).  Any exceptions to this budget advisory must be obtained in advance from the President or a Divisional Vice President.

Travel Requests

Requests must be approved by the supervisor to whom you ultimately report (Dean of Students, Senior Director of Athletics and Recreation or Assistant Vice President for Student Development and Assessment). Staff members may only begin the registration process after they have received final approval. 

Travel Approval Process

• If you feel your request meets the University criteria for travel, make a formal request to your supervisor in writing.  Your request must include the following information:  Title, description, and dates of the travel activity.  Also include a breakdown of the estimated costs including travel, food, registration and other fees.
• If your supervisor approves the request, he/she will then submit it up the chain of command until it is approved by the supervisor to whom you ultimately report for final approval.
• If your request does receive final approval, you will be notified in writing.  Once you receive this notification, then you may officially register for the event.
• If your request does not receive final approval, you will be notified in writing.

Institutional and Professional Association Memberships

The office of the vice president for student affairs pays the annual institutional membership dues for the following national professional organizations:  American College Personnel Association (ACPA), Association of College and University Housing Officials-International (ACUHO-I), National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), and Jesuit Association of Student Personnel Administrators (JASPA).  Institutional memberships in other professional organizations must be approved by the vice president for student affairs.  Decisions regarding institutional memberships will be based on mission, university benefit and budget availability.

Institutional membership in the national umbrella organizations for student affairs affords the opportunity for individual staff members to purchase professional memberships at a significant cost savings.  Membership in these and other professional associations are encouraged but are optional in most cases.  Therefore each individual is responsible for his/her own annual membership fees/dues to belong to the professional organizations of his/her choosing.

Professional certifications/licenses