Grievance Policies and Procedures
Cayuga Community College’s policy is to protect the rights and freedoms of students and other campus community members. The College has created internal policies and procedures to address student and consumer complaints and grievances. Policies exist for academic and consumer discrimination and sexual harassment complaints.
Policies and grievance forms are available in designated offices and on the College website: https://www.cayuga-cc.edu/academics/policies/grievance.
Academic Grievance
If a student has an academic complaint or believes that he or she has been harmed by an inequitable or inappropriate implementation of the College’s academic regulations and procedures, the academic grievance procedure shall be followed.
Students are encouraged to discuss academic concerns with their instructor first. If not satisfied with the outcome of these discussions, the student may appeal the decision to the instructor’s division chair or immediate supervisor. While the policy allows for informal and formal complaint procedures, it’s important to note that there are time limits designated in the policy. By seeking assistance in resolving an academic conflict as quickly as possible, you can take an active role in your academic journey, feeling empowered and proactive.
Consumer Complaint
The College has adopted an internal grievance procedure for the equitable resolution of complaints that do not relate to any other internal grievance procedure. The Consumer Complaint Procedure does not include academic complaints (Academic Grievance Procedure), or related to any form of discrimination as defined in the Discrimination Grievance Procedure, or related to sexual harassment, as defined in the Sexual Harassment Policy, or any other complaint for which the College has established a more specific complaint or grievance process. The Consumer Complaint Procedure and submission form are available in the Office of Human Resources, the Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement on the Auburn campus, and the Fulton campus’s campus administration office.
Discrimination Grievance
The College has adopted an internal grievance procedure providing for prompt, equitable, and confidential resolution of complaints alleging discrimination based on age, color, disability, national origin, race, religious creed, gender, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Complaints emerging from the Auburn campus, Fulton campus, or any other operation of the College should be addressed either to the affirmative action officer for employees (Director of Human Resources) or to the affirmative action officer for students (VP of Student Affairs and Chief Diversity Officer). The discrimination grievance policy and submission form are available in the Office of Human Resources in the Academic and Student Affairs Office on the Auburn campus and the Fulton campus administration office.
