Academic Grievances

When students believe they have an academic grievance, they should first seek to resolve it by discussions with the faculty member or administrator involved. If these discussions are not satisfactory, the complaint should be taken to the next highest level listed in the following procedure. If the grievance arises from a classroom situation, students should take the following steps in seeking redress:

1. Consult with the instructor involved, in person or in writing, no later than 12 calendar days following the incident.
2. If an agreement or compromise cannot be achieved within 3 days, take the grievance to the appropriate Division Director (Ms. Jackie Spivey).
3. If an agreement or compromise cannot be achieved within 3 days, take the grievance to the appropriate Associate Dean (Ms. Kathy Buntin, Associate Dean, Health Sciences).
4. If still not satisfied that a fair and equitable solution has been found within 3 days, take the academic grievance to the Dean, Instructional Affairs. If still not satisfied, move to step 5.
5. The student should read the Judgments section of this policy in the WCC Catalog/ Student Handbook before contacting the Dean, Student Affairs for a hearing before the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee.
6. As a last resort and only after steps 1 -5 have been carried out or conscientiously been attempted, a student may take a grievance in writing to the Dean, Student Affairs and the chairperson of the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee. The grievance must be filed within 20 class days of the term following that in which the grievance occurred.

In some instances when the personalities or problem involved would make starting at the level of the complaint too awkward or embarrassing, students may initiate a complaint at the next higher level listed.

Certain types of grievances should not be brought to the committee, although they may be brought to the attention of the Division Director (Ms. Jackie Spivey) so that an effort may be made to ameliorate problems. Examples of these grievances include:

• Gross differences in grading by instructors teaching separate sections of the same course.
• Personal habits of the instructor that distract students in their attempts to learn course material.
• Fine distinctions in grading (e.g., the line between an “A” and a “B”, or between a “D” and an “F”) may be appealed only to the instructor.
• Unannounced quizzes will not be considered a grievance, unless they are contrary to the class syllabus or information provided to the class by the instructor.

For the complete Student Academic Grievances policy, please refer to the WCC Catalog /Student Handbook.