Statement of Policy
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute is committed to mutual respect among all constituents of the college community. The purpose of this procedure is to provide CCC&TI students an equitable and orderly process to resolve grievances other than sexual harassment complaints and grade appeals. Because separate policies/procedures exist for these disputes, complaints of this nature are excluded from consideration under this policy.
Definition: A grievance exists in any situation in which students feel that there has been a violation, misinterpretation, or misapplication of an existing college policy including complaints alleging discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, disabling condition, or other personal characteristics.
Every attempt should be made to resolve violations of policy in an informal manner and only when these attempts are not successful should the formal procedure be utilized. Persons involved in the grievance procedures shall not be coerced, intimidated, or suffer any reprisal.
Informal Procedure
Prior to filing a formal grievance, students are strongly encouraged to discuss their grievances with the person alleged to have caused the grievance. The purpose of this informal discussion is to provide the student, faculty member, or other person with authority the opportunity to address and resolve the grievance at the lowest possible level.
- The student shall first informally discuss the matter in question with the college faculty or staff member most directly involved. If the meeting with the college employee fails to produce a satisfactory settlement, the student may appeal directly to the employee’s immediate supervisor.
- Should an informal discussion fail to produce a satisfactory settlement of the grievance, the student should contact the employee’s immediate supervisor, who will attempt to mediate a resolution. If these informal discussions do not satisfactorily resolve the grievance, the student may initiate the formal grievance procedure.
Formal Procedure
Step One: In the event the matter is not resolved informally, the student may submit the grievance in writing to the vice president of student services who shall hear all parties involved in the grievance and render a written decision. Note: The grievance may be initiated at or moved to Step Two without a hearing at a lower step(s), if both parties agree.
A copy of the grievance must be filed as provided in Step One within twenty (20) business days from the date on which the act or purported act which is the subject of the grievance occurred.
The vice president of student services will hear all parties involved in the grievance and render a written decision within five (5) business days of receipt of the grievance. If the grievance is against the vice president of student services, the president will perform the functions of the vice president of student services as required by this policy.
- Should a grievance not be satisfactorily resolved or should no decision be forthcoming in the time prescribed above, the grievance may, within five (5) business days, be submitted to the next step.
If the finding or resolution of a grievance at any step in the grievance procedure is not appealed within ten (10) business days, the grievance will be considered settled on the basis of the last answer provided, and there shall be no further appeal or review.
Step Two: If the grievance is not resolved satisfactorily in Step One, it may be appealed to the Grievance Committee, who will make a decision regarding the grievance. This decision shall be binding to all parties.
The Grievance Committee will hear all parties involved in the grievance and render a written decision within ten (10) business days of receipt of the appeal from the Step One decision.
- Time limits under the procedure may be changed by mutual agreement only.
The chair of the grievance committee will be appointed at the first meeting called by the president or by the chair of the board of trustees if the grievance is related to the president. The grievance committee will consist of four (4) standing members and three (3) members selected at the time a grievance is presented. In addition to the committee members, a recorder will be assigned. The four standing members will serve for two (2) years; and, in order to provide continuity, initially two members will be appointed for two years and two members will serve one year. The parties involved may challenge the impartiality of any of the seven members selected by the president or by the chair of the board of trustees. This committee will act as a hearing committee for all student grievances.