1. Overview

   This policy provides for participation in the Ohio university educational benefits program. An active employee must be on the payroll by the first day of the semester. The program applies only to courses offered for credit by Ohio university.

2. Eligibility

   The following categories of employees are eligible for the benefits identified in this policy:

   1. Summary

      1. Full-time and part-time benefits eligible employees, excluding temporary and intermittent appointments, with:
         1. An employment period of greater than one hundred twenty days and an FTE level of 0.67 or greater, or
         2. Part-time employees who were enrolled for benefits as of June 30, 2015.
      2. "Tenure Track," "Instructional," "Visiting Professor" and "Clinical" faculty as defined by the "Faculty Handbook."
      3. Retired employees as defined in policy 41.090, disability retired employees, and employees that qualify under policy 41.015, or employees on approved leave.
      4. Collective bargaining employees should refer to their collective bargaining agreement.

   2. Faculty and staff

      The educational benefit is determined by the following criteria:

      1. Full-time, benefits eligible employees are eligible for one hundred per cent of the instructional fees and one hundred per cent of the non-resident fee (when applicable).

      2. Part-time, benefits eligible, employees working at .67 of a full-time equivalent (FTE) or more, are eligible for one hundred per cent of the instructional fee and one hundred per cent of the non-resident fee (when applicable). An FTE of .66 or less will receive benefits (instructional and non-resident fees) pro-rated according to their FTE.

         The educational benefit covers the instructional and non-resident fees (if applicable) per semester for undergraduate, graduate, and medical students, with graduate and medical benefits specifically limited to full-time (nine to eighteen credit hours) Athens campus comprehensive graduate fees. 

   3. Courses and fees

      With supervisory approval, an eligible active faculty or staff member may take, at most, one course per semester during regular working hours and one additional course, including asynchronous, during nonworking hours during periods of employment. An additional course, including asynchronous, during nonworking hours may be added with the approval of the department head. Courses taken during the summer or other breaks are also limited by academic regulations and department responsibilities.

      Faculty and staff must first satisfy employment demands; therefore, eligible active faculty and staff will not simultaneously be full-time students. Consequently, no more than eleven term hours of undergraduate courses and no more than eight term hours of graduate courses will be permitted per semester without approval from the appropriate department head, using the "Educational Benefits Request Form."

      Class schedules shall normally be approved by the supervisor and time spent in class may be required to be made up.

      It is the intention of this policy to encourage employees to further their education, and therefore, supervisors should attempt to assist employees, whenever possible, to take one course during working hours. However, there may be departmental demands that make this difficult in any one term, since position responsibilities take precedence over course work. Every effort should then be made to accommodate the course request in the subsequent term. Any supervisor or employee who cannot reach accommodation within this two-term period should refer the matter to the department head for consideration. If resolution cannot be reached at this level, the matter should be referred to the planning unit head for final resolution.

      At the discretion of the department chair or head, a waiver of general fees may be granted for course work that is directly related to the employee's current position. A full fee waiver is granted on a course-by-course basis, not for an entire degree program. The department is responsible for the cost of fees waived in excess of the instructional fee. 

      No particular class standing is necessary for the original awarding of this benefit except that the student must meet the admission requirements.

      Fee structures of the university are subject to change without notice at the university's discretion.

3. Additional information

   1. Excluded programs and fees

      Benefits under this policy shall not be applicable to non-credit courses and workshops, audited courses, programs delivered in partnership with an outside vendor who has not agreed to waive applicable fees, or special course fees.

      Any unit offering courses or programs to be delivered in partnership with an outside vendor shall promptly identify those courses or programs to university human resources (UHR), so that benefits will not be provided under this policy. UHR shall inform employees by ensuring that the information is available online, linked through https://www.ohio.edu/hr/benefits/educational-benefits.

   2. Benefit Taxation

      Benefits may be subject to withholding taxes under regulations of the internal revenue service. For more information, please see the link provided at https://www.ohio.edu/hr/benefits/educational-benefits.

   3. Application process

      Requests for participation in the educational benefit program must be submitted each term by the employee on the "Educational Benefits Request Form." The form must be completed by the employee and signed by the appropriate authority as indicated on the form.

Forms, References, and History

1. Forms

   The following form is specific to this policy:

   1. The Educational Benefits Request Form is available from University Human Resources, or online at https://www.ohio.edu/hr/resources/forms

2. References

   The following items are relevant to this policy:

   1. The Faculty Handbook is available online, linked through Faculty Handbook | Ohio University. 
   2. Educational Benefits, https://www.ohio.edu/hr/benefits/educational-benefits.
   3. Policy 20.109, "Employing Graduate Students on Contracts." Graduate Students employed by the university such as GAs, TAs, or RAs, should refer to this policy.
   4. Policy 40.016, "Educational Benefits for Qualified Dependents."
   5. Policy 41.010, "Benefits for Administrative Presidential Appointees."
   6. Policy 41.015, "Reduction-in-Force Benefit Programs for Administrators and Classified Staff."
   7. Policy 41.090, "Retirement Separation."
   8. Policy 41.129, "Professional Development for Administrators."
   9. Policy 45.101, "Graduate Study for Employees."

3. History

   Draft versions of this policy that were circulated for review, their cover memos, their forms, and Reviewers' comments on them are available on the password-protected Review site.

   Prior versions of this policy were approved on:

   1. September 23, 2024 (ESPC approved use of interim policy for an additional six month period, in accordance with policy 01.001). 
   2. April 9, 2024 (ESPC approved use of interim policy for an additional six month period, in accordance with policy 01.001). 
   3. October 11, 2023 (approved for interim use) 
   4. November 19, 2021
   5. April 13, 2021 (re-formatted) 
   6. June 19, 2020 (approved for interim use in accordance with policy 01.001) 
   7. February 7, 2014
   8. August 3, 2012 (for up to six months of interim use; re-approved for an additional six months' use with no changes, on February 27, 2013, and on August 23, 2013)
   9. June 1, 1997
   10. February 1, 1994
   11. January 1, 1992
   12. January 1, 1988