Leave Administration

All full-time benefits-eligible University Support Staff, unclassified professional, and annual faculty/academic employees who accrue vacation leave will receive the same number of holidays in a calendar a year even if the employee's regular schedule is a non-standard work week (e.g. Tuesday - Sunday instead of Monday - Friday). 

All part-time benefits-eligible employees in regular positions shall receive paid holiday hours equal to the number of hours regularly scheduled to work on a designated holiday (e.g. if the employee is regularly scheduled to work five (5) hours on the day the holiday is observed, the employee will receive 5 hours of holiday pay for that day).

9/10 month faculty who do not accrue vacation leave are not eligible for holiday credit.

Part-time employees (including temporary employees) who work an irregular schedule are also not eligible for holiday credit.

University offices are closed for the majority of legal and officially observed holidays and most employees are not required to work on a designated holiday. However, it is recognized that the functions of certain departments will require some personnel to be on duty during holidays (e.g. Veterans Day when classes are in session). In those cases:

• Eligible non-exempt employees required to work on an observed holiday shall be afforded compensatory time or compensation at one and one-half (1.5) time for each hour worked. Holiday compensatory time may be used, accrued or paid as authorized.
• Eligible exempt employees who accrue vacation leave and are required to work on any observed holiday shall be afforded equivalent time off at a later date.

If an eligible full-time employee is required to work on two consecutive holidays (one legal and one officially observed) during his or her normal work week, the employee shall receive the appropriate holiday credit for only one of the two days, the day on which the employee worked the greater number of hours in accordance with existing State of Kansas regulations. When Thanksgiving and the following day are both legal holidays, the employee shall receive one and one-half (1.5) hours for each hour worked for both days.

To help you plan your time-off and work schedules throughout the year, we are happy to share the 2024 holidays.

Holidays for State of Kansas employees are designated on an annual basis by the Governor of the State of Kansas and the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) for eligible employees.

The following dates have been designated as paid holidays for all departments of Wichita State for the 2024 calendar year. This information is available online at any time.

The following dates have been designated as paid holidays for all departments of Wichita State for the 2024 calendar year.

• Discretionary Day*
• New Year's Day - Monday, January 1, 2024
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - Monday, January 15, 2024
• Memorial Day - Monday, May 27, 2024
• Juneteenth – Wednesday, June 19, 2024
• Independence Day - Thursday, July 4, 2024
• Labor Day - Monday, September 2, 2024
• Veterans Day - Monday, November 11, 2024 (classes are in session on this day)
• Thanksgiving Day - Thursday, November 28, 2024 and Friday, November 29, 2024
• Christmas Day - Wednesday, December 25, 2024

*The discretionary day must be used during the payroll calendar year. For 2024, it must be utilized December 24, 2023 - December 21, 2024. This paid leave benefit is used for observance of a holiday, family event or other special day. Employees who work a Monday through Friday schedule should plan to use their discretionary day on or before Friday, December 20, 2024.

Employees will not be paid for the discretionary day in lieu of taking the time off, and the banked hours expire at the end of each payroll year. Employees will use standard leave request procedures to seek leader approval in advance of taking the discretionary day.

To help you plan your time-off and work schedules throughout the year, we are happy to share the winter closedown has been approved this year to commence at the end of the day on Friday, December 20, 2024, and reopen on Monday morning, January 6, 2025. The closedown is ten (10) days, two (2) of which are paid Holidays. In addition, employees may use Presidential Administrative Days to remain in pay status for the four (4) days between Christmas and New Years Day - thanks to President Muma. Classes will not be in session during this period.

Unclassified Professional and University Support Staff who would normally be scheduled to work these days may use accumulated vacation leave or their 2025 discretionary day* during the Winter Closedown. Non-exempt employees may also use accumulated compensatory time off during the Winter Closedown.

If your role requires you to work during the Winter Closedown it must be approved in advance by your immediate supervisor.

DATES:

• Monday, December 23, 2024
• Tuesday, December 24, 2024
• Wednesday, December 25, 2024 (Paid Holiday)
• Thursday, December 26, 2024 (Presidential Administrative Day)
• Friday, December 27, 2024 (Presidential Administrative Day)
• Monday, December 30, 2024 (Presidential Administrative Day)
• Tuesday, December 31, 2024 (Presidential Administrative Day)
• Wednesday, January 1, 2025 (Paid Holiday)
• Thursday, January 2, 2025
• Friday, January 3, 2025

An employee must be in pay status the entire workday before and the entire workday after state holidays to receive holiday pay. The official state holidays (bolded) are Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Employees required to work during the Winter Closedown will be allowed to use their four (4) Presidential Administrative Days anytime from Monday, December 23, 2024, through January 31, 2025. We appreciate your dedication and service to the University.

*The discretionary day for 2024 must be used on or before Friday, December 20, 2024, prior to the beginning of the Winter Closedown. The discretionary day for 2025, will be available as of Sunday, December 22, 2024, and may be used during the 2024 Winter Closedown.