Student Grievance and Complaint Policy

Complaint Procedures

Students wishing to raise a complaint, concern or grievance are to follow these procedures:

1. The student should informally address his or her concern or complaint with the faculty member, staff member or administrator involved.
2. If the student is not satisfied, he or she is to address the individual’s superior (complaints relating to faculty members should be raised with the appropriate Department Head followed by the appropriate Division Head). This process should be resolved in 3 working days.
3. If the student’s concern or complaint is not resolved under Step 2, he or she may file a written complaint with the Office of Student Services. The written complaint will be investigated by the Director of Student Services, who will issue a decision. This process should be completed within 3 business days.
4. If the student’s concern or complaint is not resolved under Step 3, he or she may file a written complaint with the Campus Dean. The written complaint will be investigated by the Campus Dean, who may uphold or modify the decision of the Director of Student Services. This process should be completed within 3 business days.

The total period to resolve a student complaint, concern, or grievance is 9 working days.  

Note: Grade Reviews are not included as part of this policy, refer to the Grade Review Policy.

Please refer to the University’s Sexual Harassment Policy and/or the Title IX Procedures for complaints related to those policies.

State Student Complaint Process for Students Enrolled in Residential (In-Person) Programs:

Information about college complaint procedures with the Florida Commission for Independent Education can be found at https://www.fldoe.org/policy/cie/student-concerns.stml. Complaints submitted in accordance with these instructions should be addressed to: Commission for Independent Education 325 W. Gaines Street, Suite 1414 Tallahassee, FL. 32399-0400. Or E-mail: cieinfo@fldoe.org
Or Fax: 850-245-3238

Complaint Process for Students Enrolled in Distance Education (Online) Programs:

• Florida residents enrolled in distance education programs should first follow the institutional complaint process and then the State Student Complaint Process for Residential (In-Person) Programs, described above.
• Non-Florida residents, must first follow the institutional and State Student Complaint Process.
• If the student is not satisfied with the outcome of the Institutional and State Complaint process, then the student can appeal to the Council at FLSARAinfo@fldoe.org.
• The FL-SARA Council complaint process applies to non-Florida residents who reside in a state that participates in the Unified State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (“SARA”). Information about whether a state or other jurisdiction participates in SARA can be found at https://nc-sara.org/directory. As of October 2019, the following states and jurisdictions participating in SARA: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming.
• California residents in distance education programs may file a complaint with the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education. Additional information can be found at https://www.bppe.ca.gov/enforcement/complaint.shtml and the California Bureau can be contacted at (916) 431-6959 (telephone), (916) 263-1897 (fax) or 2535 Capitol Oaks Drive, Suite 400 Sacramento, CA 95833 (mail).

Accrediting Agency Student Complaint Process:

For complaints alleging a violation of accreditation policies, students may review the SACSCOC Policy Statement, Complaint Procedures against SACSCOC or its Accredited Institutions Policy Statement to find information about how to make a complaint to the University’s accrediting body, the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACSCOC). The Policy Statement, including the required “Complaint against Institutions: Information Sheet and Form” and other important information, is available at https://sacscoc.org/app/uploads/2020/01/ComplaintPolicy-1.pdf. Complaints must be addressed to the President of the accrediting body at the following address: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097.