(a) The Mayor or Administrative Officer is hereby authorized and directed to implement a tuition reimbursement plan for the benefit of employees of the City, which plan shall be based on the following:
(1) Any full-time, permanent employee who has completed the probationary period is eligible to make application.
(2) Courses must be job-related, add to the employee's ability to perform his or her present job, relate to his or her future work for his or her department, or increase his or her potential to the department.
(3) Courses must be taken at an accredited college or university.
(4) Courses must be taken outside the employee's normal working hours and all course work must be completed on the employee's own time.
(5) The amount of reimbursement shall depend upon performance standards as follows:
Grade Received Percentage of Reimbursement
“A” or equivalent 100%
“B” or equivalent 80%
“C” or equivalent 60%
“Satisfactory” or equivalent 100%
No refunds shall be made for grades below “C” or its equivalent. If the employee receives an “Incomplete” or “In Progress” grade, no refund shall be made until a final grade is received.
(6) Reimbursement shall include tuition, application fees, activity fees and the cost of textbooks. Lab fees are excluded unless they are specifically included in the course tuition. Also, the course of study must be approved by the Mayor or Administrative Officer.
(7) Any refund obligation of the City shall be canceled upon the termination of employment or the failure to maintain a satisfactory job attendance or performance record prior to the completion of courses.
(8) After being reimbursed under the tuition reimbursement plan, the employee shall repay to the City all monies paid for any courses reimbursed during the previous year if the employee terminates his or her employment with the City within the previous one.
(9) Acceptance into the plan shall be subject to the sole discretion of the Mayor or Administrative Officer, based on the availability of funds, the strength of the application and the needs of the City as determined by the Mayor or Administrative Officer. The tuition reimbursement plan is a grant to, and not a right of, any particular employee of the City.
(b) The Mayor or Administrative Officer is hereby authorized and directed to establish the procedures necessary to implement the tuition reimbursement plan as set forth in subsection (a) hereof.
(Ord. 68-1995. Passed 10-23-95; Ord. 98-2005. Passed 1-23-06; Ord. 10-2018. Passed 3-12-18.)