Baylor Introduces New Parental Benefits for Faculty and Staff

April 28, 2017
Effective April 1, Baylor University provides paid parental leave for staff and adoption assistance for faculty and staff. These important additions to Baylor’s benefits package reflect the University’s ongoing commitment to families and the cultivation of a caring community that extends beyond campus.

Paid Parental Leave gives new parents time and flexibility to bond with their new child(ren) and to foster work-life balance that is vital to families’ capacity to flourish. Designed for staff, the policy is a companion to Baylor’s faculty maternity leave policy established in 2015. Baylor is one of only two universities in Texas to offer this benefit to staff and faculty. The Adoption Assistance Program helps defray expenses associated with the adoption process and affirms the choice by faculty and staff to grow their families in this way. Baylor is the only university in Texas and one of the few nationally that offers this reimbursement benefit.

At a ceremony on March 30 at Pat Neff Hall, Baylor Interim President David E. Garland formally approved the new benefits and recognized staff members who shepherded the vision to reality. Gathered to celebrate this milestone in the life of the University were representatives from the Baylor Staff Council, Human Resources, Faculty Senate and Executive Council.

“Baylor values its faculty and staff as essential to the fulfillment of its mission, and these important additions to staff and faculty benefits reflect our ongoing commitment to families and the cultivation of a caring community that extends beyond our campus,” Garland said. “We give thanks to the Human Resources team and Baylor Staff Council for their good work and collaboration on the development of these new benefits.”

Baylor’s commitment to continuous improvement calls for the pursuit of excellence among higher education employers who provide generously for their faculty and staff. Nationally, other universities offering paid parental leave include Brown, Duke, Georgetown, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest. With its provision of the less common Adoption Assistance Program, Baylor joins the national ranks of schools such as Emory, New York University, Notre Dame, the Ohio State University, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“This is a step forward for families in the Baylor community and one we feel will enrich the lives of our staff and faculty by improving their family time and resources,” said Cheryl Gochis, vice president for human resources and chief human resources officer at Baylor.