Grievances Process
It is Chattahoochee Technical College, a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, to have a grievance process available to all staff and students that promotes an open and meaningful forum for grievances and their resolution with clear protocols. This does not cover complaints related to unlawful harassment, discrimination, and/or retaliation for reporting harassment/discrimination against students. Those complaints are filed with the Title IX Coordinator.
All individuals have the right to file and discuss grievances without fear of bias or prejudice stemming from the administration’s prior experiences. Each grievance will be addressed impartially and will remain so unless substantiated facts justify a different course of action.
Repetitively filing the same complaint, complaints that are frivolous in nature, or malicious complaints directed against school personnel and policies will be deemed a misuse of the grievance process and dismissed. Grievance processes are not intended to replace open communication and the understanding that comes from it, both of which are necessary to the educational process.
Please note: All meetings will be recorded for the accuracy of the information, which will remain confidential. This is permitted under the Georgia Recording Law.
Complaints Procedure
1. Informal Procedure: In order to properly investigate, a student must submit their grievance within a reasonable timeframe from the date of the incident being grieved to resolve the complaint informally by meeting with the College faculty or staff member directly involved in the incident. It is incumbent upon the student to document the date, time, and place of the meeting as well as the concern. If the grievance is not informally resolved after attempting, then the student may proceed to the formal grievance process at any time within a reasonable timeframe.
2. Formal Procedure: To submit a grievance/concern at the local College level, please access the Report a Concern page via the Chattahoochee Technical College website. The student must submit their grievance within a reasonable timeframe from the date of the incident and/or informal meeting to submit a formal grievance/concern.
3. Processing by Conduct Officer: The Student Conduct Officer or his/her Designee will have fifteen (15) Business Days to investigate and respond to the student. In complex cases, the Student Conduct Officer may notify the student that an additional fifteen (15) Business Days will be needed to respond. The response will be sent via email to the student college email address or to the private email address provided on the form if the grievant is not a student.
a. Upon review of all documents and fact-finding meetings, the student will receive a Grievance Resolution Memo to the official Chatt Tech email address
Complaint Procedure for Faculty / Staff
1. The Student Conduct Officer or his/her Designee will notify the faculty/staff member that a grievance has been filed against the faculty/staff member, which will include information about the grievance.
2. Within 5 – 7 days of receiving the grievance, the Student Conduct Officer or his/her designee conducts a fact-finding meeting with the faculty/staff member as a part of the investigation.
3. The faculty/staff person may provide additional information in writing within three (3) Business Days to the Student Conduct Officer after their initial meeting.
4. Once the grievance process has been completed, the Student Conduct Officer or his/her Designee will share the outcome in writing with the faculty/staff member and that person’s supervisor.
Faculty/staff have the right to be accompanied by an advisor of his or her choice, according to Section 1 of the Student Code of Conduct.
Applicability
The Student Complaint Policy applies to matters that may include: classroom learning environment, course content, access to classes, student advisement, and quality of services to students. The policy also applies to matters concerning services provided by Administrative Offices, including Admissions, Registrar, Financial Aid, Advisement, Business Office, and Facilities.
Referred Complaints
The following forms of complaints will be referred to the appropriate administrator:
Academic Grade Appeals Academic Affairs
Classroom Management Academic Affairs
Harassment Title IX/ Equity Coordinator
Sexual Harassment/ Sexual Violence Title IX/ Equity Coordinator
Discrimination Title IX/ Equity Coordinator
Section 504/ADA Section 504/ADA Coordinator
ADA Accessibility 508 Section 508 /ADA Coordinator