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Policy: 6Hx28: 3C-04
Responsible Executive: Executive Vice President, Administrative Services
Policy Contacts: Chief Human Resources Officer
Specific Authority: 1001.64, F.S.
Law Implemented: 1001.64, F.S.
Effective Date: 05-07-2026
Date of Last Policy Review: 05-07-2026
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Policy Statement:
- Full-time instructional employees who earn advanced college credit or academic degrees or full-time non-instructional employees who earn academic degrees during their employment at Valencia College (“College”) may be recognized for this accomplishment. The College adheres to all federal and state rules and regulations governing the reporting of all compensation to its employees, including but not limited to any compensation awarded in accordance with this policy.
- The College President, or designee(s), is(are) authorized to approve advanced degrees, advanced courses and/or other courses of study, not specifically identified in this policy, that are deemed to be beneficial to the College and the eligible employee.
- The College President, or designee(s), may establish programs and procedures to implement this policy.
Adopted 11-2-16; Amended 5-7-26
Related Policies:
Amends Policy 6Hx28:3C-04.3.2 (repealed 11-2-16)
Combines Policy 6Hx28:3C-04.3.1 (repealed 11-2-16)
- Full-Time Instructional Employees (including Counselors and Librarians) Receiving Advanced College Credit or Academic Degrees
- A full-time instructional employee who earns advanced college credit or an advanced degree from an accredited institution is eligible to receive an increase in salary. If the criteria specified herein are met, the eligible full-time instructional employee will be placed in the higher salary range commensurate with the advanced degree or advanced credit. When the eligible full-time instructional employee earns a higher degree, their salary will be adjusted to the corresponding degree-based salary range as determined by Organizational Development & Human Resources (ODHR). The new salary preserves the eligible full-time instructional employee’s position within the range by applying the same percentage above the base salary as previously calculated when determining the eligible full-time instructional employee’s salary, taking into consideration the new degree and calculated years of experience.
The effective date of the increase in salary will be determined by the date on which the evidence of completion of the advanced degree or advanced college credit submitted by the eligible full-time instructional employee has been successfully verified and validated by the College, in accordance with the procedures related to this policy.
- Counselor or Librarian: In order to qualify for the Bachelors, Masters, or Doctoral degree categories, a Counselor or Librarian must complete an approved degree which is appropriate to the college level and which is related to the occupation (e.g., academic counseling, library science) or educational administration/management.
- All Other Full-Time Instructional Employees: In order to qualify for the Bachelors, Masters, or Doctoral degree categories, all other full-time instructional employees must complete an approved degree which is appropriate to the college level and which is related to education, the teaching discipline, or educational administration/management.
- Once the advanced degree or advanced credit is earned, the eligible full-time instructional employee is responsible for submitting evidence of completion to ODHR. Such evidence shall consist of official transcripts bearing the seal of the accredited institution, with the date conferred and the awarded degree or credits. If ODHR determines that the employee has met the criteria specified in this policy, ODHR will prepare a personnel action form and forward it to the eligible full-time instructional employee’s supervisor along with the evidence submitted by the employee. The supervisor is responsible for verifying the applicability of the degree awarded as described in Procedures Section I.A.1. or 2., as appropriate. When approved by the supervisor, the personnel action form and evidence of completion will be processed by ODHR for payment and the supporting documentation will be retained in the employee’s personnel record.
- If the request for recognition of educational advancement is not approved by ODHR or the eligible full-time instructional employee’s supervisor, ODHR, in partnership with the supervisor will notify the respective employee in writing of the reason for the decision. The respective employee may appeal the decision in writing to their respective Provost/Vice President, whose decision will be final.
- Full-Time Non-Instructional Employees Receiving an Educational Recognition Award for Advanced College Degrees
- An Educational Recognition Award is a one-time, lump sum payment that will be awarded to full-time non-instructional employees of the college who have been employed at the college for a minimum of six months and subsequently earned a degree from a regionally accredited institution provided the academic degree was not a required qualification of the employee’s current position. (Note: Employees who received their degree prior to the conclusion of the six-month eligibility requirement are not eligible for this award.)
- Eligible full-time non-instructional employees who wish to apply for this award must follow the appropriate procedures and instructions as listed on the Educational Recognition Award application.
The employee will be compensated for only one award per academic degree earned in the categories listed below.
For example, an employee who earns a second Master’s degree after having received an award of $3,000 for the first will not receive another $3,000 for the second Master’s degree.
- The schedule for this award is as follows:
| Degree |
Amount |
| Associate’s Degree |
$500 |
| Baccalaureate’s Degree |
$1,500 |
| Master's Degree |
$3,000 |
| Doctorate Degree (including Juris Doctorate) |
$6,000 |
(The lump sum is considered taxable income and it is not attributable towards retirement.)
Adopted 11-2-16; Amended 11-21-16; Amended 3-23-17; Amended 4-17-18; Amended 5-7-26
Date of Last Procedure Review: 05-07-2026