{"id":4402231127653,"date":"2025-08-07T14:15:39","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T14:15:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.philanthropy.com\/kbdtrpjvjjcp\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T16:47:45","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T21:47:45","slug":"sabbaticals-strengthen-leaders-and-nonprofits-heres-how-to-recharge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.philanthropy.com\/solutions\/sabbaticals-strengthen-leaders-and-nonprofits-heres-how-to-recharge\/","title":{"rendered":"Sabbaticals Strengthen Leaders and Nonprofits: Here\u2019s How to Recharge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Iliana Tavera deserved a break.<\/p>\n

Haven Hills,<\/u><\/a> where she has been CEO since 2015, went through a period of terrifying demand during the pandemic. Calls to its domestic-violence hotline nearly tripled, and the charity struggled to find enough space for survivors who were coming in for shelter. Meanwhile, she also had to protect her staff from the unknown impacts of the virus. She was on call 24\/7.<\/p>\n

Tavera didn\u2019t take a day of vacation in two years. But once she pulled Haven Hills through the aftermath of the Covid era, she had a moment of clarity: She loved her work \u2014 and she had to stop doing it.<\/p>\n

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A Template for a Sabbatical Policy<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n
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The North Star Fund, a grant maker with $34 million in assets that supports social-justice organizations in New York City and the Hudson Valley, offers a 12-week paid sabbatical to all employees for every five years of work.<\/p>\n

The foundation shared its policy, so other organizations may use it as a template. It states: \u201cAfter each five years of completed service, an employee is entitled to twelve weeks paid sabbatical leave. This leave is paid at the employee\u2019s regular rate of pay, so that if the employee is part-time, they receive part-time pay for the hours that they would have regularly worked. Scheduling of sabbatical leave must be approved at least four months in advance by the Executive Director, or Board of Directors in the case of the Executive Director. During sabbatical, the employee will not accrue leave benefits such as sick and vacation leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more about the North Star Fund\u2019s sabbatical policy in executive director Jennifer Ching\u2019s blog post, \u201cRest Isn\u2019t Radical.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cAs a leader, you\u2019ve got to realize when you need to step away,\u201d she says. She explains why she decided to take a three-month rest: \u201cI love this organization. And there\u2019s a lot that I can still do here \u2014 a lot of good that I can still provide. I want to be here, and that required that I step away from it for a little bit to recharge and come back excited about this work.\u201d<\/p>\n

During her sabbatical last summer, she vacationed in Europe for two months and spent time relaxing at home. Haven Hills shut off access to her email, affording her the space to reflect on her career and her future. By the end of August, she was rejuvenated and ready to return.<\/p>\n

Tavera says the change in perspective was exactly what she \u2014 and her charity \u2014 needed to thrive.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was fully understanding that no organization is about one person, right? And that sometimes we undertake tasks and responsibilities that don\u2019t make sense for us because we think that only we can do it,\u201d she says. \u201cThat was liberating \u2014 coming back and understanding that there are other people here that enjoy that work as well, or that it makes more sense for them to be responsible for certain things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tavera and four other nonprofit executives spoke to the Chronicle<\/i> about their recent sabbaticals. Here are their top tips on how and why to take time to recharge, even during challenging periods.<\/p>\n

Listen to trusted advisers or coaches who recommend time away<\/h2>\n

Jacob Martinez says his sabbatical wasn\u2019t his idea. In fact, he was initially reluctant to take time off from Digital Nest<\/u><\/a>, the group he founded in 2014 to empower Latino youths. However, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation \u2014 one of his trusted funders \u2014 insisted he reconsider.<\/p>\n

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As a leader, you\u2019ve got to realize when you need to step away.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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He recalls they were persuasive: \u201c\u2018We\u2019re going to get a wellness coach for the organization. We\u2019re going to do an assessment of the organization\u2019s health. We\u2019re gonna give you a small grant \u2014 we\u2019re going to fully fund it.\u2019 So I said, okay, I\u2019ll do it for the Nest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the six-month period before his leave began in July 2023, an executive coach<\/a> worked with Martinez and his chief operating officer, Antonia Franco, whom he tapped to serve as interim CEO during his leave. When he returned after seven weeks away, Franco did not hand back all of the tasks, which freed up Martinez to focus on his top priorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe knew this is what the organization needed \u2014 for me to get out of the weeds,\u201d he says. “[She would say,] \u2018I got this, Jacob. You don\u2019t need to be involved in all these meetings.\u2019 It was a bit of relief for her, too, and gave her a lot of authority and really positioned her within this organization differently. We\u2019ve been able to maintain that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Working with a coach also helped him clarify<\/u><\/a> how he could keep balance in his life post-sabbatical.<\/p>\n

Martinez\u2019s assistant changed his email password the day he left to prevent him from accessing any of his work accounts. But he quickly realized he had been using his work email to log into Netflix and his personal bank account.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy coach at the time was like, Aha, there\u2019s the problem. No separation between you and your work life. It\u2019s all one,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI hit a wall \u2014 like, oh my gosh, I\u2019m so interwoven within what I do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martinez says two years later, he\u2019s still working on finding some hobbies outside of work \u2014 he\u2019s considering woodworking, pottery, or glass blowing \u2014 and enjoying the process.<\/p>\n

Stepping back \u2014 with careful planning \u2014 allows others to step up and grow<\/h2>\n

Daniel McPhee, executive director of the Urban Design Forum,<\/u><\/a> returned from a three-month sabbatical in July. He says he saw his break as a chance for his team to shine this year.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI really wanted to make sure that the organization was strong outside of my influence,\u201d McPhee says. \u201cTo feel like the board and the staff were managing and leading this organization to the same extent, I really wanted to take a step back and allow them to step up into new roles and responsibilities.\u201d<\/p>\n

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I really wanted to make sure that the organization was strong outside of my influence.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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He divided his tasks between Urban Design Forum\u2019s director of programs, Guillermo G\u00f3mez, and its managing director, Katherine Sacco. The trio spent six months scenario planning<\/u><\/a> to cover every conceivable possibility: \u201cWhat happens if a project falls apart? What happens if a board member passes away?\u201d It helped them feel confident in their interim roles and protected McPhee from any interruption during his leave, which he spent entirely in Japan.<\/p>\n

Showing trust in your team has capacity-building benefits as well. Giving senior staff valuable experience at the helm while you take time to recharge sets up your organization for a healthy future, McPhee says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were ready to rise in their leadership,\u201d McPhee says, \u201cand this really did afford them the opportunity to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seek grants to cover your costs; many foundations are open to this form of support<\/h2>\n

A grant from the foundation All Stars Helping Kids,<\/u><\/a> with support from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and the Satterberg Foundation, paid for Martinez\u2019s salary, benefits, and travel during his time away from Digital Nest.<\/p>\n

Haven Hills received $75,000 from the Durfee Foundation<\/u><\/a> to support Tavera\u2019s sabbatical, which included $60,000 for her discretionary use and $15,000 for the two co-executive directors who filled in during her absence, which they used for executive coaching.<\/p>\n

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You can apply for grants to support your leave under proposals for discretionary purposes, professional development, or technical assistance.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Often these grant programs are regional or limited to executives who meet specific criteria. For example, R&R, the Rest of Our Lives provides matching grants of $30,000<\/u><\/a> to heads of nonprofit groups that serve Jewish communities in the United States. Since 2005, the Barr Foundation has offered a paid fellowship<\/u><\/a> intended to overlap with sabbatical leave for nonprofit executives in the Boston metropolitan area. Every other year, the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation accepts applications<\/u><\/a> from charity leaders in North Carolina; the most recent round, in 2024, awarded $40,000 each to five executive directors for six months of paid leave.<\/p>\n

Even if a foundation doesn\u2019t have a sabbatical program,<\/a> you can still apply for grants to support your leave under proposals for discretionary purposes, professional development, or technical assistance, recommends Joanne Smith, president and CEO of Girls for Gender Equity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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She took a sabbatical five years ago and has since helped four other executive directors to plan theirs. While she paid out of pocket for her own leave, she has some tips to help other leaders prepare financially.<\/p>\n

\u201cI typically advise executive directors to begin writing it into proposals and earmarking the funds within the organization so that they can cover the expenses that come up, including additional salaries, consultants, training, etc.,\u201d Smith says. \u201cThat is an area that funders should support, since [covering a leader\u2019s] salary [while they are on leave] isn\u2019t always enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sabbaticals are not just for CEOs; offer the benefit to all staff members<\/h2>\n

Martinez says his sabbatical experience was so transformative that he now sees extended paid leave as a retention strategy for his Digital Nest staff at every level \u2014 even young professionals.<\/p>\n

\u201cRealistically, nobody stays at a company for 10 years anymore. It\u2019s a hard milestone to hit,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The policy he\u2019s developing would grant an additional week of paid time off for every two years of employment, with longer sabbaticals available for executives who have been there eight years.<\/p>\n

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It was actually my colleagues who came to me and were like, you not taking the sabbatical impacts the culture of us saying everyone needs it.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Modeling for your staff that self-care isn\u2019t radical is a vital part of leadership, adds Jennifer Ching, executive director of the North Star Fund,<\/u><\/a> a grant maker with $34 million in assets that supports social-justice organizations in New York City and the Hudson Valley.<\/p>\n

The foundation has a longstanding policy<\/u><\/a> that entitles employees to 12 weeks of paid leave for every five years of service. However, when she passed the five-year mark in 2022, Ching delayed her sabbatical because she felt she couldn\u2019t afford to be gone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was actually my colleagues who came to me and were like, you not taking the sabbatical impacts the culture of us saying everyone needs it,\u201d Ching remembers. \u201cYou obviously need it and deserve it and you earned it. So, you should take it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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She says they were right. After her positive sabbatical experience that summer \u2014 which she spent traveling, taking care of family members, and completing physical therapy she had been putting off \u2014 she felt empowered to counsel other charity heads on making their organizational culture healthier, now and in the future.<\/p>\n

Ching observes that leaders often feel uncomfortable about unfinished work. \u201cIt comes up in so many ways: the way we martyr ourselves in conversation, or workload, or that we feign our indispensability,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

But a sabbatical is good practice for leaving your job or retirement, she says, whether that\u2019s just around the corner or a few decades away. \u201cA lot of executive directors, many of us get into our roles because we just can\u2019t handle it when things are not done our way.\u201d A sabbatical \u201copens up those doors that things can be done a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors<\/a> or submit a letter<\/a> for publication.<\/i><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Five nonprofit heads share insights about their recent sabbaticals. 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