Nonacademic Misconduct Grade Appeal

1. Students must first attempt to resolve nonacademic misconduct grievances involving grades with the individual instructor. If the grade grievance is not resolved, the student has the right to appeal a course grade not related to alleged academic misconduct to a hearing board.
2. The student will notify the Office of Academic Affairs that she or he wishes to appeal a grade.  The Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences will notify the Chair of the Academic Standards and Enrollment Management (ASEM) Committee that an appeal is forthcoming so that a hearing board can be formed.
3. The hearing board will consist of three faculty members drawn from the ASEM Committee and a pool of faculty members appointed by the chairs council, together with three student representatives selected by the ASEM Chair.  The composition of the hearing board shall reflect a reasonable attempt to avoid bias and conflict of interest.  The Chair of the ASEM Committee will serve as a nonvoting chair of the hearing board and will be responsible for assembling the evidence from both the student complainant and the course instructor. If the ASEM Chair has a conflict of interest, a new chair will be elected by the ASEM committee.
4. A finding to change a course grade shall require the approval of five of the six voting members. Findings of the hearing board shall be communicated to the Chief Academic Officer, who will provide notification to all parties named in the petition.

There is no appeal beyond this point.

Grade Protest Procedures

1. Students must attempt to resolve grievances involving grades with the individual instructor.
2. If the grievance is not resolved, the student may request a grade protest form and directions concerning the grade protest process from an academic advisor.
3. The grade protest forms must be received by the SPGS/GSOE Student Grievance (SG) Committee Chair within 90 days of the last date of the protested course.
4. The SG Committee Chair forwards the student’s completed grade protest form and possible accompanying papers to the instructor. The instructor must respond in writing within the deadline assigned by the SG Committee Chair.
5. The student is provided a copy of the completed instructor response form. Once the student receives this notification, he or she has 30 days to request in writing, giving specific rationale for the review, that the case be reviewed by the appropriate SG Committee. This request is directed to the SG Committee Chair.
6. All the written documents submitted by the student and faculty member with relevance to the case are reviewed by the appropriate SG Committee.

Grade changes may be made administratively only if there is sufficient reason to believe that the grading procedure was in error.

Academic Concerns

A student who has a concern about a course, assignment grade, or faculty member must approach the faculty member to discuss the issue before meeting with the Assistant Dean. It is expected that the issue will be resolved at this level. When either party believes the issue has not been satisfactorily resolved, a note regarding the discussion should be drafted and signed by both parties. The student or faculty member may then forward the concern to the Assistant Dean for further review and resolution of the concern.

Assignment Grade Appeal

If a student believes there has been an error in computation or transcription of an assignment grade or does not agree with the assignment grade, the student must meet with the instructor within five business days after the grade is posted to discuss the grade. If the student does not believe the matter is resolved, the following procedure may be followed:

1. The student must write a letter identifying the rationale for changing the grade to the instructor within three business days after meeting with the instructor.
2. The instructor must respond to the student in writing within three business days after receiving the student letter.
3. If the student and instructor are not able to resolve the grade in question, the student may appeal to the Assistant Dean for further guidance.
4. The Assistant Dean has the final ruling.
5. If the student believes the assignment grade contributed to an overall failing grade in the course, the student can refer to the grievance procedure.

Grievance Procedure

For academic issues, the student must follow the Academic Concerns Policy. If a grievance or appeal is filed, it must be submitted to the Assistant Dean within seven business days following knowledge of the concern. Within the policy, the term appeal will be used in reference to the grievance process. An appeal may be filed in reference to the following occurrences:

• Failing final course grades (Concerns for assignment grades should be addressed with the faculty member.)
• Dismissal from the program
• Denial of admission to the program

For grievances filed over winter or summer break, the student will have three business days to submit documentations.  Hearings will be held before faculty leave for winter or summer break.

1. The student confers with the Assistant Dean for information and guidance about filing a grievance.
2. The student submits written documentation describing the grievance to the Assistant Dean, who presides over the grievance hearing.
3. The involved faculty member(s) submits documentation to the Assistant Dean.
4. A hearing board composed of four full-time faculty members will hear the grievance within seven business days from the time the grievance was filed. The student will select one full-time faculty member, and the Assistant Dean will appoint three full-time faculty members, in consultation with the Student Affairs Chair. The composition of the hearing board shall reflect a reasonable attempt to avoid bias or conflict. If the grievance involves a clinical issue, all four full-time faculty members must teach a clinical course. The Student Affairs Chair will conduct the hearing, and the Assistant Dean will oversee the procedure; neither will have voting privileges. The Dean will only attend at the student’s request and will not be a voting member. Votes will be counted by the Assistant Dean and the Student Affairs Chair. A majority vote of the four full-time faculty members determines the hearing outcome. The Chair will only vote in the case of a tie.
5. The grievance hearing is an internal process allowing only the student and faculty to be present. Only information related directly to the grievance will be considered.
6. The Student Affairs Chair will notify the student following the hearing. A written notification of the outcome will be mailed within two business days.
7. If the final decision of the hearing board is not acceptable to the student, he or she may provide a written final appeal to the Dean within five business days. After reviewing all information, the Dean will notify the student either by phone or email, and any involved faculty of the final decision within five business days. The Dean’s decision in the School of Nursing formally ends the grievance process.