Falk College Grievance Policies and Procedures

Presented to the faculty for adoption in principle April 26, 2013 And May 3, 2013.

Revised and approved April 15, 2013 and April 29, 2013 by the College Grievance Committee.

The faculty, staff, and students of the College of Sport and Human Dynamics recognize that academic integrity, honesty and respect for others are fundamental expectations in all academic and public communities. All College of Sport and Human Dynamics faculty, administrators, staff and students are expected to contribute to creating an environment which is directed toward those characteristics. 

The College, in setting its expectations for students, faculty, administrators and staff, will recognize the core values, mission, vision and goals of Syracuse University. 

Syracuse University Academic Integrity Policies and Procedures

"Syracuse University schools and colleges utilize a uniform approach to academic integrity to promote communication and awareness of procedures and fairness and consistency in their application.”

View Syracuse University policies and procedures 

University Policies Regarding Authority to Establish Policies

There are multiple sources of policy directives for student and faculty behavior as promulgated by the University. 

Student Grievance Procedures 

Syracuse University is committed to providing an environment where the individual rights of all persons are protected and where concerns regarding these rights are promptly dealt with and resolutions reached in a fair and just manner. Syracuse University’s Student Grievance Procedures ensure that all students and student organizations are afforded an opportunity to resolve their grievances in a timely manner (S.U. Student Handbook ). 

Student Behavior 

The rights and responsibilities of students and the Code of Student Conduct are elaborated in the Syracuse University Student Handbook and the Syracuse University Judicial System Handbook. All matters related to student behavior outside the academic arena are handled by the Syracuse University Judicial System. 

Syracuse University Code of Student Conduct 

“Students at Syracuse University are expected to conduct themselves in a manner supportive of the educational mission of the institution. Integrity, respect for the person and property of others, and a commitment to intellectual and personal growth in a diverse population are values deemed fundamental to membership in this university community” (SU Student Handbook)

Syracuse University Judicial System 

The Syracuse University Judicial System exists to hear cases of alleged violation of student conduct. The schools and colleges each have Academic Judicial Boards for the purpose of hearing grievances related to academic matters. Cases involving academic grievances, other than Academic Integrity issues, that are related to faculty (i.e. violation of professional standard and integrity; grade appeals; and student charges of unfair treatment by faculty, staff, or administration of the college) are handled within the College of Sport and Human Dynamics by the college’s Grievance Committee, which acts as the Academic Judicial Board. 

Academic Standards 

The expectations and standards for student academic performance and behavior are assigned to the college for the student’s academic program of study. Procedures related to academic matters are delegated by the University Senate to be established in each school or college. Policies are expected to be in keeping with the University’s core values, mission and vision.

Faculty 

The rights and responsibilities of faculty are elaborated in the Syracuse University Faculty Manual.

Issues regarding Sexual Harassment and other types of harassment/discrimination in violation of University policies are addressed in the Faculty Manual outlining both informal and formal means for dealing with such issues. If the situation is not resolved by informal means, the Faculty Manual provides guidance in filing a formal complaint and names various resource persons who may assist the individual (4.04.61; Misconduct, Disciplinary Action, and Grievances.) 

Issues regarding accommodations for student disabilities are handled by the Office of Disability Services. 

Staff 

All matters involving staff are handled by the academic administrator(s) to whom that person reports and the Dean of the school or college in conjunction with policies established by the Vice President for Human Resources. 

Issues involving alleged sexual harassment are handled by the University’s Office of Equal Opportunity, Inclusion, and Resolution Services.   Tables 1&2 (below) show various types of formal grievances and the authority for their adjudication. 

Principles for Initial Response 

There are four guiding principles for seeking to resolve a grievance: 

Informal Means 

The use of informal conversation with the party with whom the conflict exists is encouraged. It is recommended that both parties attempt to hear each person’s perspective. The person with the complaint should strive to present his/her position as clearly and as calmly as possible. 

Resource Persons/Mediation 

Informal resource persons are available in every situation from whom a person may seek assistance, i.e. for students, a residence hall advisor, academic advisor or faculty with whom the student has a prior relationship. 

Local Directives 

Each school or department within the College of Sport and Human Dynamics has policies for the informal or formal adjudication of grievances before they are taken to the College Grievance Committee. These may be found in Appendix A. The use of the Department Chair, Director or Associate Dean to facilitate the dialogue is recommended if both parties are willing. The same persons will also advise the grievant about the matter and give advice on the appropriate process for filing a formal grievance. 

Formal Action 

The first source named in Table 1 or 2 (below) is the appropriate source for presenting an initial grievance when informal discussions or mediations have not resolved the complaint. If the party is not satisfied, the complaint may be taken to the next level, but in most instances the second person in the hierarchy will not respond until the complaint has been discussed with the person(s) directly involved and the person at the first level of the formal grievance process. 

Note: The grievant is encouraged to use all informal means of resolving a complaint before  a formal grievance is initiated. These actions include discussion with the person  directly involved, consultation with a resident or faculty advisor or faculty senior  colleague. Each department or school has a chair or director who should be  consulted before proceeding to the next source of adjudication. 

Source of Authority for Adjudication of Grievances 

Table 1: Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics Grievance Types and Source of Authority for Adjudication (Outside of the College Grievance Committee) 

Table 2: Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics Grievance Types Handled by the College Grievance Committee 

Each school, department or program may have informal or formal procedures to be followed before initiating a grievance at the college level (See Appendix A). Each department or school has a chair or director who should be consulted before proceeding to the next source of adjudication. 

Note: Other situations may be brought to the Grievance Committee for consultation as to how a situation should be handled. 

Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics Academic Judicial System 

It is the responsibility of all members of the community to uphold standards of academic integrity, honesty and respect for others. When there are differences or conflicts between members of the community, reasonable efforts must be made to reach a resolution through mutual dialogue and agreement directed toward respect for persons and the standards of the community. Such informal efforts shall be facilitated by the Department Chair, Director or Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. 

When such informal processes do not lead to satisfactory resolution by the parties involved, the dissatisfied party will be referred to the appropriate body for the submission of a formal grievance. Table 1 outlines the adjudicating body for the various types of formal grievances outside the college. 

For those issues that fall within the scope of the College, the College Grievance Committee is the body responsible for hearing charges or appeals, and making a determination. Table 2 outlines the types of formal grievances to be heard by the College Grievance Committee. 

Grievance Committee Procedures 

The Grievance Committee is established under the By-laws of the Faculty of the College of Sport and Human Dynamics to establish policies and procedures related to grievances originating from either student or faculty matters that are not elsewhere adjudicated, and which have been determined appropriate matters for a college grievance committee which have not been resolved informally. 

The College Grievance Committee shall oversee the implementation of the College of Sport and Human Dynamics Professional Standards and Integrity Policy, student academic grievances/appeals related to faculty, course grade appeals and any matters not adjudicated through other university policy and procedures. The Committee will serve as the hearing panel for cases, according to the policies outlined herein. That panel shall have the power to impose penalties appropriate to the infraction up to and including expulsion from the college. 

The procedures included in this document may be revised by the committee, as needed, to ensure efficient and equitable hearings of grievances as experience shall indicate. 

Committee Membership 

This committee consists of four tenured faculty members elected at large. The faculty members will be elected by the faculty for staggered two-year terms. Members may be reelected to increase the continuity of the committee’s work. The committee will be chaired by a faculty member elected from among those who have served at least one year on the committee. No academic unit chair may serve on this committee. An associate dean shall be designated to serve as an ex-officio member. 

No member of the committee shall hear a case in which he or she has been involved in a previous stage of the appeal, or is directly involved in the grievance procedure. 

Professional Standards and Integrity Policy

Student behaviors consistent with professional standards in human services professions are expected within the academic area and clinical or field practicum. 

Each department within the College of Sport and Human Dynamics may have its own statement of professional standards of behavior to which students are expected to conform. Procedures within each school or academic program are spelled out for the first response to allegations of professional misconduct. Violations of professional standards and integrity include, but are not limited to, the following behaviors: 1) entry to clinical/field placement before completion of clinical clearance and faculty approval, 2) violation of confidentiality, 3) breach of civil/courteous behavior, 4) failure to maintain drug and alcohol sobriety, 5)failure to practice safe and professional actions in clinical/field placement settings, 6) failure to be punctual and/or provide timely notifications of absence from clinical/field placement due to illness, and 7) failure to follow agency standards of dress, language and institutional policies. 

Students engaged in research are expected to comply with all policies set by the Institutional Review Board and to the provisions of the academic integrity policy. 

Procedure for Reporting Violations of Professional Standards and Integrity 

Charges may be made by a faculty member or another student. Charges involving violation of professional standards are expected to be handled first by the student’s school or department. A student may appeal the actions of his/her department to the College Grievance Committee. A student who observes a violation should report it immediately to the faculty member in order that the latter may also observe the violation to the extent possible. 

The Department Chair, Director or Associate Dean shall be consulted for questions of appropriateness of charges and procedural clarification. 

Procedures for Responding to Violation of Professional Standards and Integrity 

Informal Stage 

Attempts to achieve a mutual agreement through informal dialogue or mediation facilitated between the faculty member, the school or department, and the student are encouraged. The Associate Dean is to be notified in writing of any sanction assigned by a faculty member, Department Chair or Director. Upon imposing a sanction, the school or department shall notify the student of his/her right of appeal to the College Grievance Committee. If the faculty member, school or department chooses to respond to the suspected violation (and this is permissible in local guidelines) by means of direct entry to the Formal Stage, the Associate Dean will refer the charges directly to the College Grievance Committee. 

Formal Stage 

The formal stage for charges of violation of professional standards and integrity begin with the school or departmental policy. Only in those instances when local policy permits may a charge be referred directly to the Academic Grievance Committee. All other cases heard by the committee will be appeals of sanctions imposed by the school or department’s procedures. 

Student Academic Grievance/Appeal Related To Faculty

The grounds for students' grievances related to faculty are:

Unfair Treatment in the Academic Area

The student has the right to appeal a faculty grade decision or to appeal faculty behavior on the basis of unfair treatment in the academic area. Students are encouraged to use all efforts to resolve the issue through informal dialogue. The Department Chair/ Director and Associate Dean must be consulted for questions of appropriateness of charges, mediation and procedural clarification before a student proceeds to a formal grievance. 

Procedure for Initiating the Examination of an Academic Grievance 

Informal Stage 

The informal stage is an attempt to reach a mutual agreement between the faculty member and the student when the student approaches the faculty member with concerns. If mutual agreement is not reached, the Department Chair, Director or the Associate Dean is available to meet with both parties with their consent in order to further pursue a resolution. Use of a mediator is encouraged. If mutual agreement is not reached the process moves to the Formal Stage. 

Formal Stage 

The Grievance Committee shall appoint three of their committee members without prior involvement in the case to serve as the hearing panel. The Panel shall determine the resolution of the grievance specific to the nature of the situation. Options available to the committee include: 

1. Rejection of the grievance/upholding action of faculty or department/school. 
2. Support in favor of the grievance. In such cases the committee shall recommend actions appropriate for the situation in order to attain resolution of the grievance. Actions affecting grades may be implemented only in accordance with the policies outlined under the course grade appeals. 

The decisions of the panel are effective immediately unless a written intent to appeal has been received within five working days after the decision/sanction has been communicated. 

Appeals 

Appeals concerning decisions of the College Grievance Committee are made to the Dean of the College of Sport and Human Dynamics; the intent to appeal the decision is to be made in  writing within five business days after the decision was made and communicated. 

Course Grade Appeals 

Official Senate Policy 

The following set of general statements are the officially approved policy of the Syracuse University Faculty Senate for a student seeking resolution to grievance of a course grade. 

Normal Practice for Course Grade Appeals

The following set of general statements represents normal practice at SU* for a student seeking resolution to a grievance of a course grade. 

1. The assignment of grades at SU is the responsibility of the faculty; once assigned by a member of the faculty, a grade cannot be changed without his or her consent, except by due process as detailed below. In cases where the instructor of record is not a member of the faculty, the faculty member charged with oversight of that instructor is ultimately responsible for the assignment of grades. 
2. A course grade is based upon the instructor’s professional assessment of the academic quality of the student’s performance on a body of work. Such assessments are nonnegotiable, and disputes about them do not constitute valid grounds for an appeal. Valid grounds can arise, e.g., when an instructor fails to provide or implement uniform and consistent standards, or bases an assessment on criteria other than academic performance. * 
3. Unless there are issues of a personal nature, the appeal process for a grade dispute begins with the instructor of record. Failure to comply with this may be grounds for denial of subsequent appeals. Any appeal beyond the instructor of record must be initiated in writing to the department chair before the last day of classes of the academic year semester immediately following the one in which the aggrieved grade was received by the Registrar. This written appeal should describe the basis for the grievance, the informal steps taken to resolve the dispute, and the remedies sought. 
4. If satisfaction is not obtained at this or any subsequent level, the appeal always moves to the next level of authority. The levels in succession are: the instructor of record, faculty member in charge of the course, the department chair of the faculty member, the dean of the department chair. 
5. At each level of appeal, a fair and thorough hearing of all views is sought before a decision is made. This may, but need not, require a face-to-face meeting of the parties directly involved in the dispute. A decision may be reached if both student and instructor agree. If such a decision cannot be reached, a panel designed by the college for this purpose shall hear the case. Details of the operation and manner of selection of this panel may vary by school or college**, but shall conform to the following guidelines: 
   1. The panel shall have a quorum of at least three. 
   2. All voting members of the panel shall be tenured faculty. 
   3. No member of the panel shall hear a case who has been involved in a previous stage of the appeal. 
   4. Membership of the panel shall be fixed and made public in a given academic year, though replacements may be made in the event of resignations. 
   5. Membership of the panel shall be approved by the faculty of the school or college, or by a representative group of the faculty, in each academic year. 
   6. The Senate Committee on Instruction shall approve the manner of selection and charge of a school or college’s panel before its first case. The committee shall also approve any subsequent changes in the manner of selection or charge of each college or school’s panel. The panel may, at its discretion, meet with the aggrieved parties either separately or together. The decision of this panel, either to deny the student’s original appeal or to authorize the Registrar to change the grade, shall be final. The panel shall inform both the student and the instructor of its decision in writing. The panel shall also summarize the case and its outcome in a written report to the Senate Committee on Instruction. Said committee may include summary statistics on grade disputes in its final report to the Senate. 
6. The only grounds for any further appeal shall be irregularities in the above procedures. 
7. In such cases, either party may appeal the final decision of the faculty panel to the Senate Committee on Instruction. The Senate Committee on Instruction may either deny the appeal or insist that the procedure begin anew at the point the irregularity occurred. 
8. All stages of the appeal process shall be kept confidential to the maximum extent possible, consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. (Course Catalog, Academic Rules) 

* For further guidance, consult the bylaws of the individual school or college.

** These procedures do not apply for students in the College of Law. 

College Grievance Committee Policy 

Any member of the College Grievance Committee and any tenured faculty member without prior involvement in the case can serve to populate the three-member grade appeal panel. 

The hearing panel for grade appeals shall follow the procedures outlined above.