FY26 Time Off and Leave
Montgomery College provides comprehensive time off and leave programs to benefit-eligible employees. This page contains important FY26 information about vacation time, sick leave, personal time off, and professional development opportunities.
Time Off and Leave Programs
Montgomery College offers various ways for employees to take off, including sabbatical leave, professional development leave, annual time off (vacation), sick time off, and personal time off. The details on these categories are provided below. For information on additional time off types such as holiday pay, disability leave, and family and medical leave, please visit Time Off and Leavenew window.
The last day to use annual and personal time off is Tuesday, December 23, 2025. Employees and supervisors are encouraged to work together to ensure proper and fair use of time off throughout the year.
Change in Terminology
In Workday, there are two (2) types of absences an eligible employee may use: "time off" and "leave."
- Time off applies to all short-term absences, such as annual, sick, personal, enrichment, civic, sick and safe, bereavement, professional meeting, and unpaid.
- Leave applies to long-term absences, such as sabbatical (faculty), professional development (staff/administrators), family medical leave (FML), short-term disability (STD), Worker's Compensation (WC), administrative (voluntary and involuntary), annual military reserve, and extended military service.
The last day to use annual and personal time off for staff and administrators is Tuesday, December 23, 2025. Employees and supervisors are encouraged to work together to ensure proper and fair use of time off throughout the year.
Annual Time Off
Regular staff and administrators may accumulate and carry over unused annual time
off to the next calendar year, according to their annual leave accrual maximum. On
occasion, the leave accrual rate may be greater depending on the number of pay dates
in a given calendar year. For more information, visit Annual Time Offnew window.
| Length of Service | Annual Time Off Accrual Rate/Maximum Time Off Carried Forward* |
|---|---|
| Less than 3 years | 4.61 hours/15 days (120 hours) |
| 3 years, but less than 15 years | 6.15 hours/20 days (160 hours) |
| 15 years or more | 8 hours/26 days (208 hours) |
*For part-time employees, the amount of time off carried forward is prorated based on the proportion of their work week to a 40-hour work week.
Personal Time Off
Personal Time Offnew window is provided every calendar year and does not carry over into the following year.
Benefit-eligible employees may be granted personal time off (non-cumulative) with
pay, up to a maximum of 24 hours for full-time employees and on a prorated basis for
eligible part-time employees each year. For more information, see Personal Time Off.
Sick Time Off
Sick Time Off new windowis granted for personal illness, injury, recovery, and quarantine, as well as for
medical, dental, or optical examinations and treatment. The policy permits the use
of sick time off for illness or medical/health care appointments for immediate family
members when the employee's presence is required. Full-time staff and administrators
earn 3.69 hours of sick time off per pay period (12 days per year). Sick time off
can be used only after it has been earned. To learn more, visit Sick Time Off.
Annual Time Off
Annual Time Off for department chairs is allocated as a lump sum each year in July.
The amount of annual time off is based on the department chair's years of service
(see table below). Department chairs are not permitted to carry over any unused annual
time off into the next fiscal year and are not eligible for a payout of unused annual
time off upon completion of their assignment. For more information, visit Annual Time Offnew window.
The last day for department chairs to use annual time off in FY26 is Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
| Length of Service | Annual Time Off Allocation Rate |
|---|---|
| Less than 3 years | 15 days (120 hours) |
| 3 years, but less than 15 years | 20 days (160 hours) |
| 15 years or more | 26 days (208 hours) |
Personal Time Off
Personal Time Off is provided every calendar year and does not carry over into the
following year. Eligible chairs may be granted personal time off (non-cumulative)
with pay, up to a maximum of 24 hours for full-time employees and on a prorated basis
for eligible part-time employees each year. For more information, see Personal Time Offnew window.
Sick Time Off
Sick Time Off is granted to staff, full-time faculty, and administrators for personal
illness, injury, and quarantine, as well as for medical, dental, or optical examinations
and treatment. The policy allows the use of sick leave for illness or medical/health
care appointments for immediate family members when the employee's presence is required.
Full-time chairs earn 3.69 hours of sick time off per pay period (12 days per year).
Sick Time Off can only be used after it has been earned. To learn more, visit Sick Time Offnew window.
Personal Time Off
Personal Time Off is provided on an academic-year basis and does not carry over into
the following academic year. Eligible full-time faculty members may be granted three
(3) days of personal time off for the observance of religious holidays, emergencies,
or special personal obligations. One (1) day of unused personal time off may be carried
forward to the subsequent summer session only.
Sick Time Off
Sick Time Off is granted at the commencement of each academic year. Full-time faculty
members are credited with 80 hours of sick time. Faculty who worked during the preceding
summer earn additional sick time off as follows: instructional faculty teaching between
three (3) and six (6) ESH or non-instructional faculty working between 15 and 30 days
(120–240 hours) are credited with 88 hours of leave; instructional faculty teaching
six (6) or more ESH or working 30 or more days (240 hours) are credited with 96 hours
of leave. (Time off is not credited while on sabbatical leave.) Faculty may accumulate
and carry forward unused sick time to the next calendar year.
| Type of Time Off | Leave Amount |
|---|---|
| Personal Time Off | 3 days (24 hours) |
| Sick Time Off (Regular) | 10 days (80 hours) |
| Sick Time Off (Summer): Between 3 and 6 ESH or 15 days* | 11 days (88 hours) |
| Sick Time Off (Summer): 6 or more ESH or 15 days* | 12 days (96 hours) |
*ESH for instructional faculty. Days for non-instructional faculty.
Sabbatical Leave for Full-Time Faculty
Full-time faculty can take sabbatical leave for one semester at full pay or one (1)
academic year at half pay to pursue professional development. Eligibility requires
14 consecutive semesters of service, with a commitment to return for the next four
(4) academic semesters.
The Maryland Healthy Working Families Act (MHWFA) mandates that employers with 15 or more employees provide sick and safe leave (SSL), extending this benefit to non-benefits-eligible employees. As a result of this legislation, part-time faculty, casual temporary employees, and student employees may be eligible to accrue and use SSL.
In December each year, SSL-eligible employees with remaining SSL balances will have their leave carried over to the new calendar year, up to a maximum of 40 hours. This year, the deadline to use earned sick and safe time before it rolls over is Tuesday, December 23, 2025. Any SSL exceeding 40 hours will be forfeited.
Employees accrue one (1) hour of SSL for every 30 hours worked, provided they work at least 24 hours in a pay period.
Additionally, these employees may:
- Accrue no more than 40 hours of SSL in a year.
- Carry over no more than 40 hours of accrued SSL.
- Accrue no more than 64 hours of SSL at any time.
- Use no more than 64 hours of SSL in a year.
For more information on SSL, please refer to the MHWFA FAQs (PDF, 
) or email Leave Request.
Sabbatical Leave (full-time faculty)
Workshop date: Friday, September 5, 2025
Application deadline: Friday, October 17, 2025
Professional Development Leavenew window (administrators and staff)
Workshop date: Friday, December 5, 2025
Application deadline: Friday, February 27, 2026