Staff Educational Development Leave

Texas State University values the pursuit of education for everyone, including Texas State staff members. Through the Staff Educational Development Leave (SEDL) program eligible staff can participate in college or university credit courses at higher educational institutions with a full tuition and fees waiver and paid class release for up to half of their working hours. 

Before applying, please explore the eligibility requirements, benefits breakdown, application guides, and divisional contact information below.

Please note that we have updated the prior document into a user-friendly Adobe Webform application. Upon completion of the applicant portion of the e-form please provide the emails for your supervisor, department head, executive assistant, and vice president. 

What is the Staff Education Development Leave Program?

The Staff Educational Development Leave program provides eligible staff with paid leave to attend college credit courses and a waiver of all tuition and fees. A maximum of seven employees are nominated each semester to participate. Selection is reviewed and approved by divisional vice presidents.

Who is eligible for Staff Educational Development Leave Program?

Full-time, benefits-eligible staff members, who have been employed at the university at least one year, are eligible to participate in this program as outlined in UPPS 04.04.35.

Course requirements for staff members are:

• nine to twelve credit hours per spring or fall semester [Undergraduate participants]
• six to nine credit hours per spring or fall semester [Graduate participants]
• Eligibility to continue in the program will be evaluated should a participant drop below the approved minimum required semester credit hours before the end of the semester.

Employees must remain in good academic standing by meeting the Financial Aid GPA qualifications of Texas Education Code 54.2001.

Participating staff can receive up to twenty hours of paid class release time while still being paid their full-time rate. Release time will be determined by the number of enrollment hours.

More information can be found in UPPS 04.04.35, section 05.03.

If employees feel that they will not require the entire time allocation, work hour reduction could be negotiated with their supervisor.

Eligible staff will have their tuition waived after grades post for the previous semester (even if they were not enrolled). Staff members do not have to complete the Academic Release and Tuition Support form to receive the fees and designated tuition waivers. The ODC team will provide Student Business Services with a list of participating employees.

In order to be eligible for a waiver, you must remain in good academic standing by maintaining a minimum Texas State GPA of 2.0 for undergraduates and 3.0 for graduates. You must meet the Financial Aid GPA qualifications of Satisfactory Academic Progress for continued awards per Texas Education Code 54.2001.