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Academic Grievance Policy

To the Point - Student Handbook 2025-2026 > Academic Grievance Policy

Procedures to address student complaints about facultyĚý

If a student has significant concerns or complaints about a faculty member, the following procedure should be followed.Ěý

NB: this procedure is to be used as a last resort after normal efforts to discuss and resolve concerns with the instructor have not proven effective. These steps are neither intended nor appropriate for complaints regarding the instructor’s personality or delivery (e.g., “the instructor isn’t interesting”) or the student’s learning preferences (e.g., too much reading; grading is too difficult; course doesn’t use Blackboard).Ěý

Rather, complaints brought forward may include but are not limited to matters that relate to fundamental fairness or the student’s ability to be successful in the course as defined by the syllabus. If there are questions about the applicability of the student complaint procedures, the student is encouraged to consult with the Office of Associate Deans of Faculty to discuss.Ěý

  1. If the student complaint involves matters of gender bias or sexual harassment, sexual violence, stalking, or intimate partner violence, the student is encouraged to make a report directly to the Title IX Coordinator, Deputy Title IX Coordinator, the Dean of Students Office, Public Safety or the Office of Student Conduct. Complaints involving College employees, volunteers or contractors can also be made to the College’s AA/EEO Officer.
    1. In addition to and separate from the student’s report, responsible employees – including faculty, coaches, administrators, Public Safety, and student employees or volunteers with a significant responsibility for student welfare – are required to report any knowledge of alleged sexual misconduct to the Office of Title IX.
  2. If the student complaint involves matters of bias, the student is encouraged to make a bias incident report directly to the Bias Prevention and Support Team. Bias-related incidents are acts that demonstrate bias on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, ethnicity, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. As defined here, bias-related incidents are ones that do not rise to the level of discrimination or harassment prohibited by law (such as Title IX sexual harassment, Title VI or Title VII discrimination on the basis of race, ability-based discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and others). In many cases, the determination of whether a bias-related incident will be addressed by the Bias Prevention and Support Team or another College office or official will be based on the severity and/or pervasiveness of the reported conduct, as determined by a reasonable person.
  3. If the student complaint involves specific academic policies such as a grade grievance or the desire to appeal a claim of academic misconduct, the student should follow the procedures defined for those purposes in the Student Handbook. The student may also consult the Office of the Associate Deans of Faculty with any questions.
  4. If the student complaint falls outside the above three categories and instead involves more general issues of interpersonal conflict, classroom management, or other pedagogical concerns, the student should pursue the steps below.
      1. Note that the window for a student to pursue a complaint is time-limited; a complaint may be filed no later than Friday, 5:00pm of the fourth week into the subsequent semester.
      2. To the degree in which the student is comfortable doing so, the student is encouraged to first attempt to discuss and resolve the matter unofficially with the instructor. In the case of a satisfactory resolution, both parties are encouraged to summarize this resolution in a shared email in the event it should later be useful.
      3. If the student is uncomfortable having that conversation, if the student believes there is bullying or intimidating behavior on the part of the instructor, or if the matter is not resolved by way of discussion, the student may advance the complaint to the department chair for consideration and resolution, known as “an assessment.”
        1. The department chair should respect the student’s confidentiality if so requested; however, the student should be made aware that this may limit the chair’s ability to fully investigate the issue.
        2. The student should also be made aware that the instructor will be notified of the existence of a student complaint once the chair begins the assessment.
        3. The assessment will likely involve separate discussions with the instructor and with the student, plus a review of any related course materials. This should be completed within two weeks (14 calendar days) of the student’s filing, unless otherwise negotiated with Academic Affairs (both parties should recognize that challenges in arranging discussions may necessarily extend that timeline, although failure of either party to respond to requests for meetings will not prevent the chair from moving forward with the investigation in a timely manner). The chair should summarize findings in a letter and propose a course of action, redacting the student’s name if confidentiality has been requested.
          1. The unredacted letter and any related documentation should be forwarded to the office of the Associate Deans for future reference.
          2. The final letter (redacted version, if the student has requested confidentiality) and any related documentation should be shared with the student and faculty member. Each party should have the ability to respond within 7 calendar days.
            1. Any response should likewise be forwarded to the office ofĚýthe Associate Deans for future reference.Ěý
            2. ĚýThe chair should retain a copy of all documentation for reference during the course of the chair’s term of service;Ěýhowever, the letter and documents should not be discussedĚýwith other department members or passed on toĚýsubsequent chairs. It is incumbent upon the chair toĚýmaintain the confidentiality of both the student and facultyĚýmember during and after the process.Ěý
          3. If either party is not satisfied with the outcome, or if the course of action does not alter behavior, either party or the chair may advance the grievance to the instructor’s Associate Dean of Faculty.
      1. If the complaint involves the chair, or if the matter is not resolved satisfactorily through the chair, the student may bring the complaint to the chair’s Associate Dean of Faculty.Ěý
        1. The Associate Dean should respect the student’s confidentiality if so requested; however, the student should be made aware that this may limit the Associate Dean’s ability to fully investigate the issue.
        2. The student should also be made aware that the instructor will be notified once the Associate Dean begins the formal assessment of the complaint.
        3. The assessment will likely involve discussions with the instructor and with the student, plus a review of any related course materials. This should be completed in a timely manner, ideally within 14 calendar days of the student’s complaint (both parties should recognize that challenges in arranging discussions may necessarily extend that timeline, although failure of either party to respond to requests for meetings will not prevent the Associate Dean from moving forward with the investigation in a timely manner).
        4. The Associate Dean should summarize findings in a letter and propose a course of action, redacting the student’s name if confidentiality has been requested, and retain the documentation for future reference.
        5. The unredacted letter of the Associate Dean and any related documentation should be retained with the associated materials on file.
        6. The final letter (redacted version, if the student has requested confidentiality) and any related documentation should be shared with the student and faculty member. Each party should have the ability to respond within 7 calendar days.
          1. Any response should likewise be forwarded to the office of the Associate Dean for future reference.
        7. If either party is not satisfied with the outcome, or if the course of action does not alter behavior, either party or administrator may advance the grievance to the Dean of Faculty for an appeal. All reasonable efforts will be made for the Dean of Faculty to respond to the appeal within 10 business days. The Dean of Faculty will have final jurisdiction over the outcome.
        8. Upon the resolution of the complaint, electronic copies (unredacted) of all assessment letters and associated materials should be forwarded to the Office of the Associate Dean of Faculty for the sole purposes of institutional documentation in the event that similar student complaints should later arise, or should the complainant pursue further redress.
        9. The findings of all assessments may be appealed through the Dean of Faculty, who will make the final ruling.
        10. The summary of the assessment(s) and the outcome(s) of any student complaints should be summarized in writing by the assessor and forwarded to the instructor, chair, and student.