Grade Appeals Procedure
PSF 32/98-99

The assessment of the quality of a student's academic performance is one of the major professional responsibilities of university instructors and is solely and properly their responsibility. It is essential for the standards of a university's academic programs and the integrity of the degrees it confers that the professional judgment of instructors not be subjected to pressures or other interference from any source.

It is expected, however, that any final grade be based on evidence of the student's performance, that the student have access to the evidence, that the instructor be willing to explain and interpret the evidence to the student, and that a single standard and a single set of evaluative criteria be applied to all students in a section of a course. It is also expected that grades shall be determined in accordance with guidelines announced in the course syllabus.

It is necessary, therefore, that students be given the opportunity to appeal and seek correction of those grades which they judge to be inappropriate. A student who believes a final grade is inappropriate may seek clarification and, where warranted, redress as follows:

1. The student shall first discuss the grade with the course instructor and attempt to resolve any differences informally. The aim of such a conference is to reach mutual understanding about the grade and the process by which it was assigned, and to correct errors, if any, in the grade. If for any reason the instructor cannot be contacted, the department chair shall designate a faculty member to act for the instructor.

2. If, after conferring with the instructor, the student still believes that the grade is inappropriate, the student may submit a claim in writing to the appropriate department chair, who shall consult with both the instructor and the student separately or together, in an effort to reach an understanding and resolution of the matter. This must be done before the end of the semester (excluding summer session) following that in which the grade is received. (Note: If the department chair is the instructor whose grade is being appealed, the departmental executive committee shall designate another member of the departmental executive committee to assume the department chair's role in this process.) If the course in question is housed in an academic center, the center director shall assume the department chair's role prescribed for this process; the center advisory committee shall assume the departmental executive committee's role prescribed for this process. In the case of a grade given in a course housed neither in a department nor in an academic center, the student may, after conferring with the instructor, submit a claim in writing to the Academic Actions Committee.

3. If steps one or two do not resolve the problem, the chair shall submit the student's written claim to the instructor, who shall prepare a written response. A copy of this response shall be furnished to the student by the department chair.

4. If, after receipt of the instructor's response, the student is still dissatisfied, the student shall notify the department chair of this within seven working days.

5. The department chair, in consultation with the department executive committee, shall appoint a grade review committee consisting of three faculty members and one student. The student member shall be recommended by the Parkside Student Government Association.

6. The student and the instructor shall provide the review committee and each other with access to any of the student's course work in their possession. Both the student and the instructor shall be given an opportunity to appear before the committee and present evidence to support their positions. In this process, the burden of proof is upon the student, and the committee shall recommend a grade change only if clear and convincing evidence of misgrading has been presented.

7. The review committee shall decide either that the grade was appropriate and shall stand as assigned, or that the grade was inappropriate and should be changed to the grade stipulated by the review committee. The review committee shall present its decision to the department chair, who shall inform both the student and the instructor of the review committee's decision and initiate a grade change if appropriate.

8. If the student wishes to appeal the decision of the Department Grade Review Committee, s/he shall submit a letter to the Dean of the appropriate college within five working days. The Dean shall then appoint an ad-hoc grade review committee of 3 faculty from outside the Department in question, and 1 student representative recommended by the Parkside Student Government Association. The Committee shall report its decision to the Dean, who shall direct a grade change if necessary.