Student Right to Grade Appeal
A student who wishes to contest a final course grade must first institute an informal appeals process through the instructor who awarded the grade or made the decision. A student must make every effort to resolve the appeal through initially contacting the instructor by phone, email, or personal visit before filing a formal appeal. The appeal must be filed within two weeks from the date that the student learned or reasonably should have learned of the grade.
If consultation with the instructor does not resolve the appeal, the student may appeal to the Academic Dean of the school in which the course was taught by filing a written request for review. (Forms for the appeal may be requested from the Office of Academic Affairs, the Academic Dean, or downloaded from the college website.) The written appeal must state the class in which the grade was received, corresponding semester, grade received, the instructor of the class, response from corresponding with the instructor, the reason for the appeal, the action requested based on the appeal, and student contact information. This request must be filed within four weeks from the date that the student learned or reasonably should have learned of the grade.
The Academic Dean will respond to the student within two weeks of receiving the written request. If the student is not satisfied with the Dean’s decision, the student may appeal in writing to the Vice President for Academic Affairs within two weeks of receiving the Dean’s decision The Vice President will respond to the student’s request within one week. The decision of the Vice President for Academic Affairs shall be final.
The College assures that a student will not face retaliation for filing a grade appeal.
The above appeal procedures do not apply to Student Code of Conduct alleged offenses or equity issues (i.e. race, age, national origin, or gender discrimination.) See the Non-Discrimination Policy and Grievance Procedure section of this catalog for an explanation of other grievance procedures or the Student Handbook for Code of Conduct procedures.