Review of student grades (Taken from Article VII of the Faculty Handbook: Credits and Grades)

1. General standards for assessing student performance.

a. Students are responsible for meeting the standards of academic performance established for each course in which they are enrolled.

b.  The establishment of the criteria for graduates and the evaluation of student academic performance are the responsibilities of the instructor, subject to the appeal provisions provided herein.

2.  Grounds for appeal of grades. Any appeal from a grade given to a student by an instructor must be based upon the following:

a.  No grade may be appealed except the final course grade.

b.  No grade may be appealed unless it is alleged that the grade is arbitrary and capricious as defined in subsection 3.

c.  The following non-exclusive allegations would not be grounds for appeal under these provisions:

 i. A challenge to the instructor's standards of academic performance;

ii. A challenge with respect to the instructor's judgment of the substantive quality of the student's academic performance;

iii. A challenge with respect to other purely judgmental determinations made by the instructor.

d.  Any review under this section is an appeal of the decision by the instructor and is not to be considered a de novo review of the academic performance of the student. In no case shall the review involve a substitution of the instructor's judgment with respect to the substantive quality of the student's academic performance. No grade shall be changed based merely on judgmental matters.

3.  Arbitrary and capricious grades. A grade may be considered arbitrary and capricious under these rules only if one of the following is shown:

a.  The grade is assigned on some basis other than the performance in the course;

b.  The grade was assigned by reference to more exacting or demanding standards than were applied to other students in the course, except that for undergraduates in 300 and 400 level courses, a different, but similarly uniform, grading standard may be applied than for graduate students in the course;

c.  The grade was assigned by reference to a performance standard which substantially deviated from the performance standard previously announced by the instructor;

d.  The grade was assigned after the instructor refused to correct mathematical or mechanical grading errors.

4.  Procedures for appeal. If you believe you have been graded unfairly you should:

STEP 1. Discuss the grade, as well as the performance standards expected by the instructor, with the instructor prior to the end of the semester following the one in which the grade was assigned.

STEP 2. After unsuccessful resolution of the appeal under STEP 1, the student wishing to proceed further must file a written petition with the department chair (or with the Dean of the college or division if the instructor whose grade is being appealed is the department chair). Note: Since COM 1200 is a large course with many sections, there is a Course Director who reviews and makes decisions about grade appeals. Therefore, a student wishing to file a written petition about a COM 1200 grade should submit the written petition to the COM 1200 Course Director in Switzler 115. Emailed petitions will not be accepted for review.

a.  The written petition shall state:

i. The course in which the grade was received;

ii. The instructor whose grade is being challenged;

iii. The semester in which the grade was received;

iv. Specific facts showing why the student considers the grade to be arbitrary and capricious;

v. The relief sought;

vi. The signature, address and local phone of the student.

b.  Upon receipt of the written petition, the course director shall within 10 days:

i. Serve a copy of the petition upon the instructor whose grade is being appealed, and

ii. Acknowledge receipt of the petition in writing to the student at the address provided by the student.

c. The student may elect to provide an oral presentation to the authority considering the appeal in addition to the written petition description in section A. above.

d. The appeal shall be considered pursuant to the appeal guidelines established by the department, which guidelines shall be sent to the student with the acknowledgment letter.

e.  The appeal shall be considered within 15 days after the date of the acknowledgment letter, unless the student consents to a longer time, after good cause has been shown.

f.  The final determination of the course director shall be in writing. It shall state the grounds for the granting or denying of the relief requested by the student. The final determination shall be communicated to the student and the instructor within 10 days following final submission of any evidence to be considered.

5.  Further review of grades.

a.  There is no further direct right of appeal beyond the department under these rules. In their discretion, the department chair, Dean of the college or division (unless the original appeal was heard by the Dean), Provost, or Chancellor can grant further review of grades according to substantive guidelines established by them.

b.  No such further review may be requested except to the next higher authority in the University. A request for review shall follow the order set forth in subsection 5a above.

c.  Any request for review shall be by written petition.

i. The written petition shall comply with the provisions of subsection 4 (STEP 2a) above.

ii. The petition shall state also: reviews already taken in the matter; the decisions in those reviews; why the last decision in that review was arbitrary or capricious.

iii. The petition shall be accompanied by copies of the determinations of each prior appeal or review.

d.  The department chair, Dean of the college or division, Provost, or Chancellor may deny the petition for review in his discretion on the basis of the petition and the written record of the previous appeals and reviews, or may grant the petition.

e.  If the petition for review is granted, the department chair, Dean of the college or division (unless the original review as heard by the Dean), Provost or Chancellor shall follow the procedural provisions contained within subsection 4 (STEP 2b, c, d, e) above.