Academic Affairs

Conference Travel Funds Guidelines

The following guidelines have been created to promote an orderly and equitable distribution of faculty travel funds among those wishing to travel for scholarly or educational purposes.

Please refer to the Travel Policy from the Finance Department for details.

Faculty may request travel funds up to $1,500 per year (or $1,800 for international travel) for attending the conference only. If the faculty is presenting a paper or chairing a session in a conference, an additional $500 (i.e. up to $2,000 for domestic travel or $2,300 for international travel) will be allowed in their budgets.

  1. In order to support faculty research and encourage professional activities, faculty members may apply for conference travel funds. Available funds will be distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis throughout the year.
  2. Forms to request travel funds are available online. Requests must be submitted to the Dean of Academic Departments and Programs at least 2 weeks before departure so that budgets can be evaluated and faculty notified in advance of the amount that is approved. Travel arrangements made before approval may not be honored.
  3. Requests for travel funds that exceed the maximum amount allowed will be considered only later in the fiscal year and then only if funds are still available.
  4. The College will pay all reasonable expenses incurred for ground and/or air transportation. It is expected that faculty will avail themselves of the most economical and reasonable method of transportation.
  5. Faculty members are required to obtain original itemized receipts for reimbursement of expenses that exceed $25 per transaction. In reconciling your charges through the Union credit card system, you must scan your receipts and attach electronic copies to your transaction.
  6. With receipts, the maximum allowance for meals is $60 per day of travel, including tax and gratuities; $225 per night of travel, including tax, for room rent; and $.655 per mile if driving one’s own car. Additional room expenses such as movies, snacks, and drinks are not reimbursable.
  7. If you travel internationally and it is not possible to obtain receipts for lodging and/or meals, the College’s per diem rate for meals is $45 per day maximum. Note that per diem is not available for local travel.
  8. Upon your return, reconcile your expenses through the Works program using you Research and Travel Account number. Specific reconciliation procedures are sent to you when your request is approved. Additional conference travel requests will not be approved until transactions from previous year are reconciled.
  9. Expenses must be reconciled before the end of the fiscal year, June 30.
  10. New application will not be considered if your research & travel account has a negative balance. Please reconcile all of your expenses on time.

Updated July 2023 by Emily Tong