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Rev. 11.15.21.
If after ten instructional days beyond the initial informal meeting a satisfactory resolution is not
reached, the department chair or program director will meet with the student grievant and the
respondent. Within fifteen instructional days of that meeting, the chair or program director will
complete an investigation of the allegations and will reach conclusion. The chair or program
director shall promptly communicate the decision to the student and the respondent. If the
grievant is not satisfied with the results of the informal process, he or she may initiate a formal
grievance procedure by contacting the appropriate college dean (or designee) or the
responsible person at the next nonacademic level within fifteen instructional days of the
decision.
2. Formal Grievance Procedure
To initiate the formal grievance procedure, the student is required to submit a written
“statement of grievance” – a clear, concise, signed, and dated statement of events from the
student’s perspective. The statement should provide enough information to present a
complete understanding of the situation and of the remedy sought by the student.
A student initiates the formal procedures by submitting the statement of grievance to the
appropriate department chair or program director. The chair or director will then submit a
copy of the statement of grievance to the appropriate college dean or next appropriate higher
administrative level and to the respondent. The respondent is required to submit a written
response to the chair or program director with ten instructional days. The chair or program
director will then provide a copy of the respondent’s reply to the grievant and to the college
dean or next appropriate higher administrative level.
The dean or appropriate administrator has a period of ten instructional days to review the case,
during which he or she may opt to seek additional information from the parties involved or
from witnesses. By the end of that ten-day period, the dean or administrator will either (1)
render a decision or (2) convene a college hearing committee to investigate further. The
student shall have the right to request that a college hearing committee be convened.
3. College Hearing Committee
If required, a college hearing committee will consist of an administrator representing the dean,
two faculty members elected from the Faculty Council of the appropriate College, a student
representative elected from the Student Council of the appropriate College, a designee of the
vice president for student services, and faculty adviser elected by the Academic Advising
Council appropriate to the grievance. All meetings of the college hearing committee will be
closed to the public, and no transcripts will be prepared. If the college hearing committee
seeks evidence by means of personal testimony, the meeting at which such evidence is
presented shall be conducted in the manner of any other academic committee meeting and is
not considered a formal hearing. Both the grievant and respondent shall be given opportunities
to present their views. There shall be no cross-examination.