Professional Development Allowance - Administrative/Professional Staff
Summary
Recognizing that Delta College should encourage A/P staff to develop professionally, the College will provide a $500 annual allowance for each full-time A/P employee’s professional development. As these types of professional development activities and expenses are directly related to the A/P employee’s work and professional development goals as an employee of Delta College, the A/P employee’s supervisor shall be responsible for authorizing the professional development activities and expenditures as part of the employee’s annual professional development plan and/or departmental initiatives. It is the responsibility of the employee to determine their current PDA balance and obtain supervisory approval to carry forward the unused annual PDA allowance.
Procedures
Examples of expenditures to be included as part of professional development includes:
-
- Professional related travel (including lodging, meals, transportation and mileage).
- Annual professional dues, licensing fees, certifications, tests/exams.
- Coursework tuition, fees or related expenses at Delta College or other institutions, conference, seminars, webinars and clinic fees.
- Professional development materials (i.e., books, subscriptions, DVD’s, periodicals, etc.).
How a PDA travel request is processed
General
The IRS requires that all reimbursements be substantiated with invoices and supporting
documentation in order for the reimbursement to be treated as a non-taxable benefit.
A/P staff
Prior to travel, complete the “Travel Approval and Reservations” form and forward to your Supervisor. For in-district mileage expense only, use the “Mileage Reimbursement” form. Travel expenses paid through PDA funds are subject to the same reimbursement and procedural rules as College business-related travel. After travel, complete the Travel Expense Account form with appropriate receipts, to your Supervisor for approval. All reimbursements for the same travel request must be submitted at one time regardless of funding sources. Once a reimbursement request has been submitted and approved for payment, the PDA procedures do not allow for transfer of funds from another source.
Supervisor
The Supervisor reviews the request to determine if the experience is related to the A/P employee’s work and professional development goals as an employee of Delta College and is part of the employee’s annual professional development plan and/or departmental initiatives; the request is signed by the Supervisor and forwarded to Business Services.
Business Office
The Business Office verifies that the request has proper approvals and that the requester has sufficient PDA funds available, and approves the request for payment. In addition, the Business Office may provide assistance with travel arrangements, questions relating to travel, and other PDA related questions. Conference registration fees may be paid in advance by the Business Office and charged directly to PDA by submitting a requisition with the registration form attached. This option is available only if the full amount of the registration fee is available in PDA funds.
For travel related PDA, reimbursement of expenses such as lodging, meals, and transportation are not made until completion of the trip or conference.
Note: Individuals traveling on approved College business must process their travel requests in advance using the procedures identified, in order to have appropriate documentation for legal and business reasons. Travel expenses paid through PDA funds are subject to the same reimbursement and procedural rules as College business related travel.
Travel forms are available in the Business Services office or online at Business Services - Travel Forms
How (Non-Travel) other PDA requests are processed
For all non-travel related PDA expenditures and purchases, the employee must initially pay and then request reimbursement from their PDA. For reimbursements for PDA purchases, reimbursement is made only with proper supporting documentation.
Reimbursement for other PDA expenditures should be processed as follows:
A/P staff
A/P staff should use the appropriate College purchasing requisition form and send it to their Supervisor. The requisition should include their name and employee number. The appropriate detailed receipts documenting the expenditure should be stapled to the requisition.
Requisition forms are available online at Business Services - Requisition Forms.
Supervisor
The Supervisor reviews the request to determine if the expenditure is within the intended purpose of PDA, relates to the work and professional development goals as an employee of Delta College and is part of the employee’s annual professional development plan and/or departmental initiatives; if approved, the request is signed by the Supervisor and forwarded to Business Services.
Business Office
Business Office reviews the receipts and/or documentation, verifies that the requester has sufficient funds, authorizes and processes reimbursement.
Due to IRS regulations, all tuition, course fees, books and instructional materials and related expenses for enrollment in a non-Delta College program or course, must be initially paid by the individual. Reimbursement for courses taken at an institution other than Delta College will be made at the completion of the course. A requisition, with appropriate receipts and validation of course completion are required for reimbursement.
Unused PDA
Up to 100% of an individual’s PDA, if unused, may be carried forward to the next budget year. A PDA account will not exceed 2 times the current year’s allocation.
See Guidelines on Professional Development Allowance.
Revision/review dates
01/11, 5/18