Academic Appeals

Due Process

To ensure due process dealing with academic appeals of students, the President of National Park College appoints an Academic Appeals Committee at the beginning of each fall semester. This committee consists of six faculty members and six students. The appointed members elect a chairperson.

Academic issues of appeal shall be defined as improper grade assignment, charges of plagiarism, charges of cheating, discriminatory treatment of students, and instructor inconsistency with the written grading criteria.

The jurisdiction of the committee includes appeals from students showing evidence of unfair treatment. In brief, the committee’s responsibility extends to all cases that cannot be settled within the framework of the student-faculty classroom relationship.

To initiate an appeal, a student obtains a form from the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs and meets with the Vice President to discuss appropriate procedures. This meeting also ensures that the student has thought out the complaint and exhausted any hope of resolving the matter informally with his or her instructor.

The student is required to submit a written complaint concerning a member of the faculty. This statement is given to the division chairperson of the instructor in question. The division head meets separately with each party and makes a written recommendation to each party. The matter may end at this point, if the student is satisfied. The chairperson is not allowed to exert pressure on either party but serves as a first evaluator. If the student is dissatisfied, a written appeal is sent along with the chairperson’s written recommendation, to the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Again the student may drop the complaint or continue the appeal process. The Vice President for Academic Affairs serves as second evaluator and is also not allowed to employ pressure on either party. If the matter cannot be resolved to the student’s satisfaction at this level, the Vice President for Academic Affairs then requests in writing to the chairperson of the Academic Appeals Committee that a hearing be scheduled.

Having completed the two preliminary steps, the student may submit the case to the Academic Appeals Committee. It reviews all appropriate material and has the power delegated by the Board of Trustees to take whatever action judged appropriate. The chairperson of the committee arranges with other members to place a case on the calendar and, in writing, notifies the parties involved of the time and place of the hearing. If the student does not appear, except in extreme instances beyond personal control, the appeal is dropped. If the faculty member does not appear, except in extreme instances beyond personal control, it is assumed that nothing is to be added to the evidence already submitted to the committee.

Other procedures are as follows:

• All hearings are closed.
• Hearings are informal but a recorded transcript is made and maintained by the Vice President for Student Affairs office. The recordings will be treated as confidential. Neither party may make private recordings during or after the appeal hearing.
• Either party may ask members of the College community (students, faculty, or staff) to present testimony relevant to the case.
• The faculty member and the student will have access to written statements of the other prior to the hearing or prior to any questioning by members of the committee at the time of the hearing.
• Notice of the hearing and rules governing the committee are made available in advance to both parties.
• Pertinent faculty records are to be made available in advance to both parties.
• Both parties to the appeal have the right to ask questions of the other during the hearing.
• Either party may have access to legal counsel during the hearing, but legal counsel may not answer for the client nor make comments or ask questions unless directed to do so by the committee chairperson. Either party may confer with legal counsel before answering a question or making a comment.
• The members of the committee may question both parties in the dispute. Questions must be relevant to the issues of the appeal.
• A quorum consists of not less than eight members, and a quorum must be present at all times during a hearing. A meeting of the Academic Appeals Committee shall have priority over all other academic responsibilities.
• Decisions of the committee are based on a majority vote of the members of the committee present. In case of a tie the matter challenged will not be changed.
• If the student or faculty member involved in the appeal is a member of the Academic Appeals Committee, they are to be disqualified for the hearing. A pre-selected alternate shall be used to maintain the committee balance.
• A student’s appeal must be filed within nine weeks after the official termination of the course. The committee may suspend this rule in exceptional circumstances.
• Hearings will be conducted only during the Fall and Spring semesters.

The decision and the reasons for the decision are reported in writing to both parties and to the officials who reviewed the appeal. Majority and minority opinions are included in the report. In case a grade is changed, the Registrar receives a copy of the decision authorizing him or her to change the grade on the student’s official record. If the case involves suspension from the College and is resolved in favor of the student, the Vice President for Student Affairs receives a copy authorizing him or her to reinstate the student. Decisions of the committee involving other parties in the College result in letters to the said parties authorizing them to take appropriate action.

All matters pertaining to the appeal shall be treated as confidential. No information will be released without written permission of both parties involved. Members of the committee are instructed at the initial meeting of the importance of confidentiality and absolute necessity of not discussing any part of the hearing. After the hearing is completed, the Vice President for Student Affairs will be responsible for gathering all materials used during the hearings and destroying all information except one official copy which will be filed in the College vault.

NPC Board Policy Number: 6.300 
Date Adopted: January 1, 1991, Revised November 15, 2000