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Overview of the ECAS Professional Development & Travel Approval and Reimbursement Process

This webpage is currently under construction. Effective Sept. 19, 2024 | Updated June 19, 2025

The Office of the Dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, supports faculty professional development, especially travel to professional conferences across fields and interests. All professional travel must be approved by the Dean’s Office before any expenses are incurred.

All requests in the current fiscal year (July 1, 2026 – May 31, 2026) must be submitted no later than April 1, 2026. Funding support is limited to the academic fiscal year in which the conference travel occurs. If your presentation is scholarship of �þ��� and learning, plan to request funding from CATL.

ECAS Professional Travel and Development Funds

• If you are presenting, faculty will not be approved for more than $2,000 per fiscal year.
• Faculty attending a conference, but not presenting, are eligible for a maximum of $800.
• Faculty members who hold an office or significant leadership position in an organization may be awarded additional travel funds (maximum $500) to meet their responsibilities to the organization. This often includes needing to travel ahead or stay after, or if presenting and needing to attend the conference.
• Faculty making presentations at international conferences held outside North America may be awarded additional travel funds (maximum $500).

Below are important guidelines related to professional development and travel support. Please follow these processes to ensure that your request receives timely review.

ECAS Publication Support

• Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, will support up to $1,000 of publication costs per fiscal year for permanent faculty scholars who have work accepted for publication. College faculty co-authors can both apply for support.

Guidelines for Submitting Professional Development and Travel Support

Below are important guidelines related to professional development and travel support. Please follow these processes to ensure that your request receives timely review.

Step 1: Complete the Travel Request Form

• Fill out the online after your work has been accepted for presentation or you have decided to attend. Submit your request for professional travel support no later than April 1, 2026.
• Submit the form for approval before you incur expenses. Provide the best estimates in the following categories: food, airfare, checked baggage, hotel, mileage (mileage rate: 0.725/mile), etc.
• Expenses that are not reimbursed:
  • Membership fees
  • Expenses related to the preparation of presentations (e.g., posters, handouts)
  • Expenses related to childcare, pet care, or elder care during your professional travel
  • Expenses related to car rental unless previously approved by the Dean due to special circumstances (e.g., the airport is more than 100 miles away from the conference site).
  • Receipts that are in someone else’s name (e.g., partner’s name).

Step 2: Submit Travel Reimbursement for prepaid expenses

• Complete the .
  • Be sure to fill out the required information on both pages and number receipts to correspond with the expense page. Page one is for reimbursable expenses (expenses you paid with personal funds). Page two is the breakdown of expenses, including p-card transactions and corresponding receipts. Note that p-card receipts do not need to be attached. They need to be listed on the expense page and uploaded into the WORKS system. The receipts to attach are those being reimbursed to you.
• Work with your program assistant to upload all receipts and other documentation needed to support the reimbursement request. Your program assistant may ask you to provide additional information, as they are trained in what is required in the accounting process.
• Please upload p-card receipts into WORKS, but do not sign off on them. Complete the reimbursement form and include a list of transactions, noting they are on a p-card and the cardholder, if different from faculty member. Submit the reimbursement form and supporting documents to your program assistant. The Dean’s Office will reallocate the transaction once received and verified.
•  The completed reimbursement form and receipts will be sent by your program assistant to the Dean’s Office for processing.

While at the conference:

• P-cards may be used to cover costs associated with professional travel. P-card usage and reimbursement must comply with policies established by the Purchasing Department.
• Please keep all original receipts and write a brief description on each receipt (e.g. conference lunch for J. Doe, M. Smith). Make sure to retain all itemized receipts. Receipts need to show the last four digits of any credit card used.
• Write down any expenses for which you did not receive a receipt. For any missing receipts, please fill out the . You can attach a bank statement or credit card statement to the affidavit showing the transaction to support the reimbursement request.

Step 3: Submit Travel Reimbursement for conference expenses

• Complete the no later than four weeks after the conclusion of the conference to be assured of reimbursement. Please complete only one post-travel request per conference.
  • Be sure to fill out the required information on both pages and number receipts to correspond with the expense page. Page one is for reimbursable expenses (expenses you paid with personal funds). Page two is the breakdown of expenses, including p-card transactions and corresponding receipts. Note that p-card receipts do not need to be attached. They need to be listed on the expense page and uploaded into the WORKS system. The receipts to attach are those being reimbursed to you.
• Work with your program assistant to upload all receipts and other documentation needed to support the reimbursement request. Your program assistant may ask you to provide additional information, as they are trained on what is required in the accounting process.
• Please upload p-card receipts into WORKS, but do not sign off on them. Complete the reimbursement form and include a list of transactions, noting they are on a p-card and the cardholder, if different from faculty member. Submit the reimbursement form and supporting documents to your program assistant. The Dean’s Office will reallocate the transaction once received and verified.
• If you use a p-card for professional travel, it is your responsibility to submit receipts through the Works system to support those charges, and note those transactions on the Professional Development and Travel expense form as “p-card tx.” If you spend more than was pre-approved for the professional travel, you are responsible for reimbursing the University for the overage. You can drop off a check to the Bursar’s office to settle your account.
• If a credit card charge is in foreign currency, Accounting requires a copy of the credit card statement reflecting the charge in USD amounts for each transaction, in addition to the receipt. If you paid cash in a foreign currency, Accounting requires you to submit a screenshot of the foreign currency conversion rate covering the relevant period (day/month) in addition to the receipt.
• Hotels: Hotel bills cannot be reimbursed in advance. Accounting requires the final hotel bill received at checkout, not the reservation confirmation. Be sure the hotel bill is in the faculty/staff member’s name.
• Flights: Flights can be reimbursed prior to travel. Accounting requires a full itinerary of the route, including departure and arrival, in addition to the total cost paid and payment method.
• If you use a p-card for professional travel, it is your responsibility to submit receipts through the Works system to support those charges.  If you spend more than was pre-approved for the professional travel, you are responsible for reimbursing the University for the overage. You can drop off a check to the Bursar’s office to settle your account.

Additional information:

• Faculty participating in professional travel may be approved for up to $2,000 per fiscal year.
• Faculty will not be approved for more than $2,000 per fiscal year.

If you’re not presenting:

• Faculty attending a conference, but not presenting, are eligible for a maximum of $800.
• Faculty members who attend a conference without presenting (and received the aforementioned $800) and then request funds to present at another conference are eligible for no more than a total of $1,200 in travel support for the subsequent request.

Organization leadership:

• Faculty members who hold an office or significant leadership position in an organization may be awarded additional travel funds (maximum $500) to meet their responsibilities to the organization.
• A limited amount of leadership funding is available.

International Travel:

• Faculty making presentations at international conferences held outside North America may be awarded additional travel funds (maximum $500).
• Additional funds to support international travel are limited.

ECAS Policy for Publication Costs:

• Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, will support up to $1,000 of publication costs per fiscal year for permanent faculty scholars who have work accepted for publication. College faculty co-authors can both apply for support.
• Requests are to be submitted through the funding request portal. Please upload a scanned copy of the acceptance letter that indicates the full cost of the publication.
• We strongly encourage faculty scholars to seek additional support from their home departments and the Provost’s Office.
• �þ��� has agreements with several publishers that enable researchers to publish their articles open access. .

Questions about procedures, status of reimbursement requests, or funds available, please work with your program assistant. In addition, especially for questions regarding travel policies and procedures, please contact Caroline Ketcham, Associate Dean for Academic Administration and Operations (cketcham@elon.edu; x5807) or Andrew Rento, Administrative Assistant (arento@elon.edu; x6490).

Links (You can also locate these links in the monthly ECAS Digest.)