Student Grievance Procedure

A student who believes that he or she has not received equitable treatment by a member of the faculty may register a formal grievance. Grievances concerning course grades are appropriate only when the grade constitutes one of a number of factors that, together, may represent a pattern of inequitable treatment of the student. In all cases, course instructors have the final responsibility for assigning course grades.

The grievance will typically be submitted in writing to the appropriate department chair'. If the department chair is the source of the grievance, the student will submit the grievance in writing to the vice dean. In either case, the written grievance must include the relevant facts surrounding the grievance and any supporting materials.

If the department chair is not the subject of the grievance, he or she will take all steps necessary to investigate the details of the grievance. If the department chair is the subject of the grievance, the vice dean will take all steps necessary to investigate the details of the grievance. Such steps may include but are not limited to, interviewing the student and faculty member, reviewing supporting documentation, and soliciting external, blinded review of materials by individuals with appropriate expertise. Within 30 days of receipt of the written grievance, and after consideration of all available and relevant facts surrounding the grievance, the department chair or vice dean will propose a resolution to the grievance. The student may either accept the proffered resolution or appeal the decision.

Appealing a Proposed Grievance Resolution

If the initial review was conducted by the department chair, the appeal will be made to an ad-hoc committee consisting of the vice dean as chair and two members of the faculty of the school. If the initial review was conducted by the vice dean, the appeal will be made to an ad-hoc committee consisting of three members drawn from the senior faculty and administration, appointed by the dean.

The appeals committee will review all documents related to the grievance and interview the involved parties, including the student and appropriate faculty members. The purpose of the appeal process will be to ensure that the grievance process was conducted fairly and that all relevant information was taken into consideration. The appeals committee will render one of two decisions: (1) the appeals committee may decide by majority vote to uphold the proposed resolution; (2) the committee may find that the process through which the proposed resolution was developed was unfair or otherwise flawed; in the latter case, the committee may, by majority vote, recommend an alternative resolution to the dean. If the appeals committee finds that the process was unfair or flawed, the committee will produce a written report that characterizes the basis for that finding. In either case, the committee will reach a decision by majority vote within 45 days after the appeal is requested. The appeals committee decision will form the basis for a recommendation to the dean. The dean, having taken all information into account, will make a final decision regarding resolution of the grievance.

Students in Speech-Language Pathology

Students in the Speech-Language Pathology Program may register a signed, written complaint to the Chair, Council on Academic Accreditation (CM) of the American-Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 10801 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The complaint must clearly describe the specific nature of the complaint and the relationship of the complaint to the accreditation standards, and include supporting data for the complaint. The CAA requires that the complainant exhaust all institutional grievance and review mechanisms before submitting a complaint to the CAA.