Policy Regarding Student Complaints

An informal or verbal complaint from a student will be expeditiously considered and resolved at the lowest level, if possible, by the institutional officer who is responsible for the area in which the complaint is made.

If the informal complaint is not satisfactorily resolved and the student decides to submit a signed written complaint, Fairmont State will record the complaint in a log to meet the requirement on student complaints of The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The log will include all complaints that are made formally in writing, signed by the student, and addressed to and submitted to the institutional officer who is responsible for handling the complaint. Institutional officers ultimately responsible for responding to student complaints are the FSU President, the FSU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, the FSC&TC President, and the Vice President for Student Affairs.

A log entry on a student complaint will include the following:

• 1. the date the complaint was first formally submitted
• 2. the nature of the complaint
• 3. the steps taken by the FSU or FSC&TC to resolve the complaint
• 4. the final decision regarding the complaint, including referral to outside agencies, and
• 5. any other external actions initiated by the student to resolve the complaint, if known to Fairmont State (e.g. lawsuit, EEOC investigation, etc.)

Fairmont State provides published appeal procedures for final course grades, academic suspension, and other academic penalties. These procedures include provisions for formally resolving issues that are involved in such academic appeals. These appeals will not normally be considered as complaints that are to be are included in the log of student complaints.

The information in the log of student complaints, which is maintained by the FSU Office of Academic Affairs, will be made available for review by the Evaluation Team of the HLC when the next comprehensive evaluation takes place in April 2003. Steps will be taken to insure the anonymity of any student who files a complaint. Fairmont State will not show the evaluation team any letter or document from a student complainant without the complainant's express permission.

The purpose of the review by the evaluation team is to establish that Fairmont State processes complaints in a timely manner and in a way that demonstrates fairness and attention to student concerns. The evaluation team will also look for any pattern in the complaints that suggests problems with institutional quality or with factors related to the accreditation of FSU and FSC&TC.

The address of The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools is 30 North LaSalle Street, Suite 2400, Chicago, Illinois 60602-2504, the telephone number is (800) 621-7440, and the Web site is www.hlcommission.org.