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Faculty Travel Grants

Travel Grant April 2020 COVID-19 Guidance For Faculty & Students

April 2020

In response to COVID-19, the following measures have been implemented regarding the Academic Senate Travel Grant programs:

  • Travel grant recipients who are unable to travel will need to notify the Academic Senate of any changes to their travel plans as soon as possible. This includes changes in travel due to changes by conference organizers, travel restrictions, etc. as well as personal choices to change travel plans.
  • Notification of any travel changes should be made in writing (Faculty: travel.grants@senate.ucsb.edu; Doctoral students: doctoral.grants@senate.ucsb.edu) to inform us of the change in plans.
  • Travel grant recipients whose travel plans have changed will need to cancel their application and resubmit a new application.
  • If a conference is cancelled or rescheduled after travel arrangements have already been made, then the traveler should work to reschedule the travel arrangements or seek a refund. A credit (airline, hotel, conference fee) must be declined in order to receive a reimbursement through the Academic Senate. If a refund is not possible, then Travel Grant funds may be used to reimburse an award recipient, as long as appropriate documentation is provided up to the originally-approved amount. Documentation includes: receipts, cancellation notice, and a letter of explanation regarding the cancelled travel.
  • For Faculty:
    • In cases where a conference has been cancelled, travel grant recipients will be allowed to withdraw their application and re-apply for another conference. The same rules will apply regarding the conference, per the Faculty Travel Award Policy (i.e., the faculty member must be presenting their original research or creative work, etc.).
    • In the case where a conference has been rescheduled, a Travel Grant recipient may change the date/ location of the travel based on the rescheduled conference. In this case, the travel award amount will be based on the location of the rescheduled conference.
  • For Doctoral Students:
    • Doctoral students who are unable to fulfil their travel plans due to circumstances relating to the coronavirus and who receive reimbursement for cancelled travel will be eligible for another travel grant at a later date.