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Steps Defined

In order to accommodate the resolution of such situations, Drake State offers the following grievance procedures as the appropriate course of action for settling disputes and resolving problems. 

Initial Steps 

Any student of Drake State who has a grievance against another student or a member of the Drake State faculty, staff, or administration concerning any form of discrimination (Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964), sexual harassment (Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972), or violation of the rights of the disabled (Sec. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973) should first attempt to resolve his/her situation with the individual involved. However, a student who believes herself or himself to have been subjected to sexual harassment is not required to first speak to or attempt to resolve the situation with the perpetrator of sexual harassment before filing a complaint. If for some reason resolution of the grievance is not possible, the student should make his/her grievance known to the immediate superior of the individual against whom the student has a grievance, and/or to the Title IX Coordinator (Students) in order to seek an informal resolution to the problem. If, after the discussion between the student and the respective College official or representative it is determined that the complaint is valid, the College official or representative will take appropriate action to resolve the complaint using a formal “plan of resolution.” 

If the student’s complaint requires a formal “plan of resolution,” a written report must be submitted to the Dean of Students. The report shall be submitted by the College official or representative within ten business days of the initial complaint and shall detail the complaint and the plan to resolve the complaint. If a student’s complaint cannot be resolved in the manner described above, an unresolved complaint shall be termed a “grievance.” 

Interim Resolution 

If the Dean of Students should determine that the grievance is of a nature that there should be imposed an interim resolution pending the outcome of the grievance procedure, the Dean of tudents shall recommend such an interim resolution to the President or designee. The President or designee shall have the discretion to impose or not impose an interim resolution. 

Formal Grievance Process

 A student who submits a complaint to the appropriate College official or representative in the manner described above and who is not informed of a satisfactory resolution or plan of resolution within ten business days after the complaint’s initial submission shall have the right to file, within ten business days, a formal grievance statement. The written grievance statement shall be filed using Grievance Form A, which will be provided by the Grievance Officer and shall include the following information: 

  1. Date the original complaint was reported; 
  2. Name of the person to whom the original complaint was reported; 
  3. Facts of the complaint; and, 
  4. Action taken, if any, by the receiving official to resolve the complaint. 

The grievance statement shall also contain any other information relevant to the grievance the Grievant wants to be considered by the Dean of Students. Any grievance must be filed within 45 calendar days of the occurrence of the alleged discriminatory act or the date of which the Grievant became aware that the discriminatory act took place 
The Dean of Students will notify the student or a member of the Drake State faculty, staff or administration of the charge(s) against him/her within five business days of receiving the formal grievance statement. If after a reasonable attempt to notify the student, faculty member, staff member, or administrator of the charges against him/her, the Dean of Students is unable to do so, then the Dean of Students may suspend the student, or the President of the College or his/her designee may suspend with pay the faculty member, staff member, or administrator until a hearing is held and decision rendered. 

The College shall have thirty (30) calendar days from the date of receipt by the Dean of Students of the grievance to conduct an investigation of the allegation(s), hold a hearing on the grievance, and submit a written report to the Grievant of the findings arising from the hearing. Grievance Form A shall be used to report both the grievance and the hearing findings 

Investigation Procedure 

The Dean of Students shall have the right to conduct such preliminary hearing(s) as the Dean of Students or designee shall deem necessary to complete his/her investigation. The Dean of Students shall conduct a factual investigation of the grievance allegations and shall research each applicable statute, regulation, and/or policy, if any. The Dean of Students shall determine, after completion of the investigation, whether or not there is substantial evidence to support the grievance. The factual findings in the investigation and the conclusion of the Dean of Students (Grievance Officer) shall be stated in a preliminary written report which shall be submitted to the Grievant and to the party or parties against whom the complaint was made and shall be made a part of the hearing record, if a hearing is subsequently conducted. Each of the parties shall have the opportunity to file written objections to any of the factual findings and, if there is a hearing, to make their objections part of the hearing record. If the Grievance Officer finds the grievance is supported by substantial evidence, he or she shall make a recommendation in the report as to how the grievance should be resolved. Upon the receipt of the Grievance Officer’s preliminary report, the Grievant and the Respondent shall have three (3) business days to notify the Grievance Officer of the respective party’s request for a hearing. The Dean of Students may, nevertheless, at his/her discretion, schedule a hearing on the grievance if to do so would be in the best interest of the College. In the event that no hearing is to be conducted, the Grievance Officer’s report shall be deemed a final report and shall be filed with the President, with a copy to be provided to the Grievant.  

Hearing Procedure 

In the event that the Dean of Students schedules a hearing, the Title IX Coordinator or designee will appoint a qualified five-person committee. The Dean of Students shall serve as the nonvoting chairperson. A quorum shall consist of four members of the committee and the chairperson. Unless the President determines otherwise, or both parties agree in writing for the hearing to be public, the hearing shall not be open to the public. 

At the hearing, the Grievant and the Respondent(s) shall be read the grievance statement. After the grievance is read into the record, the Grievant shall have the opportunity to present such oral testimony and offer such other supporting evidence as he/she shall deem appropriate to his/her claim. Each Respondent shall then be given the opportunity to present such testimony and offer such other evidence as he/she deems appropriate to the Respondent’s defense against the grievance. In the event that the College, or the administration of the College at large, is the party against whom the grievance is filed, the President shall designate a representative to appear at the hearing on behalf of the College. 

Any party to a grievance hearing shall have the right to retain, at the respective party’s own cost, the assistance of legal counsel or other personal representative. However, the respective attorney or personal representative, if any, shall act in an advisory role only and shall not be allowed to address the hearing body or question any witness. In the event that the College or its administration at large is the Respondent, the College representative shall not be an attorney or use an attorney unless the Grievant is also permitted to be assisted by an attorney or other personal representative.

A student does not forfeit any of his/her constitutional rights upon his/her admission into Drake State, nor does a faculty member, staff member, or administrator forfeit his/her constitutional rights upon employment with Drake State. The Committee shall not have the authority to compel any witness to testify. However, insofar as it is not contrary to law, the Committee may take into account the refusal of a witness to testify when deliberating the evidence. With regard to a College employee, the President shall have the authority to direct the employee to testify at a hearing if, in the discretion of the President, such testimony could be material to an accurate determination of the facts in the case. 

The hearing shall be recorded by either a court reporter or on audio or video tape or by other electronic recording medium. In addition, all items offered into evidence by the parties, whether admitted into evidence or not, shall be marked and preserved as part of the hearing record. 

Report of Findings and Conclusions 

Within five (5) working days following the hearing, there shall be a written report from the chairperson on the findings of the hearing committee (with a copy forwarded to the President, the Grievant, and each Respondent). The report shall contain at least the following: 

  1. Date and place of the hearing; 
  2. The name of each member of the hearing committee; 
  3. A list of all witnesses for all parties to the grievance; 
  4. Findings of facts relevant to the grievance; 
  5. Conclusions of law, regulations, or policy relevant to the grievance; 6. Recommendations(s) arising from the grievance and the hearing thereon. 

Resolution of Grievance 

In the event of a finding by the Committee that the grievance was supported, in whole or in part, by the evidence presented, the Dean of Students shall meet with the Grievant, the Respondent(s) and the appropriate College representative(s) and attempt to bring about a reasonable agreed-upon resolution of the grievance. If there is no mutual resolution, the President shall impose a resolution of the grievance which shall be final and binding.   

Appeal Procedure 

The President of Drake State shall be the appeal authority in upholding, rejecting, or modifying the recommendations of the Grievance Committee. The President shall not be bound in any manner by the recommendation(s) of the hearing committee, but shall take it (them) into consideration in imposing his/her decision. The charged student, faculty member, staff member, or administrator may file a written request with the Title IX Coordinator and Dean of Students requesting that the President of the College review the decision of the Grievance Committee. The written request must be filed within 15 calendar days following the party’s receipt of the hearing report. If the appeal is not filed by the close of business on the fifteenth day following the party’s receipt of the report, the party’s opportunity to appeal shall have been waived. If the appeal does not contain clear and specific objections to the hearing report, it shall be denied by the President. The President of the College shall issue his/her opinion to accept, reject, or modify the decision of the Grievance Committee within 15 calendar days of the initiation of the appeal process. If the decision of the Grievance Committee does not satisfy the complainant and should the grievance allege discrimination (Title VI), sexual harassment (Title IX), or violation of the rights of the handicapped (Sec. 504), the complainant may file a written grievance with: 

  1. The Alabama Community College System pursuant to Alabama Community College System policies and procedures, with respect to Title IX violations;
  • If, after exhausting all available institutional processes, a student’s complaint remains unresolved, the student may appeal to the Alabama Community College System using the System’s official Student Complaint Form or at the ACCS website (www.accs.edu). Students may submit completed complaint forms by printing the form, signing it, and then either  scanning it and emailing it to complaints@accs.edu or mailing it to: 
    • Alabama Community College System 
      Attention: Office of the Vice Chancellor for Instructional and Student Services 
      P.O. Box 302130 Montgomery, AL 36130-2130 
  1. The Vice Chancellor for Instructional and Student Services or an appropriate administrator designated by the Vice Chancellor will investigate the complaint within 30 days of receipt. 
  2. The institution which is the subject of complaint has 30 days to provide a written response to questions and/or concerns raised during the investigation. Such response may or may not          contain a resolution. 
  3. The Vice Chancellor or designated administrator will adjudicate the matter and write a report or letter to the institution and student detailing corrective action, if any is necessary, or stating that the school has no violation of policies. 
  4. If corrective action is needed the institution will have 30 days to comply or develop a plan to comply with the corrective action. 
  5. The System Office will monitor the institution’s compliance to ensure the completion of any required corrective action.
  6. The regional office of the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education within 180 days of the discriminatory act; 
  7. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission within 180 days of the discriminatory act.