Highlighting Best Practices
Princeton University
Princeton University has implemented a wide range of family-friendly policies for both its faculty and trainees. For Princeton faculty, these policies include paid temporary disability leave from three weeks before to six to ten weeks after birth, automatic extension of the tenure-clock for any assistant professor who becomes a parent, one semester of full workload relief from classroom teaching and administrative committee work, or two semesters of half relief from such duties (at full pay), unpaid parenting leave for up to a year for any faculty, back-up childcare services, support for dependent care while traveling, child care subsidies, and partner placement services to help dual-career couples stay together. Similarly, family-friendly initiatives for graduate students include six weeks of paid leave for birth mothers, extension of financial support for graduate students who are primary care givers, onsite childcare, childcare grants, back up care, and support for dependent care while traveling.
Not only does Princeton have these policies in place, but they are all listed on the websites of the Office of the Dean of Faculty and the Graduate School. According to the websites, faculty and students are not only encouraged to take advantage of these policies, but are expected to do so. These policies were also presented by Joan Girgus at the From Doctorate to Dean or Director: Sustaining Women through Critical Transition Points in Science, Engineering, and Medicine Workshop which was co-hosted in September 2008 by the National Academies Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine and the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health.
Princeton Family-friendly Policies for Faculty
Princeton Family-friendly Policies for Graduate Students
University Expands Family-friendly Policies for Graduate Students
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