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The Policy on Academic Appeals is designed to ensure students are afforded the opportunity to contest an academic decision that is believed to be inaccurate or unjust. Academic appeals must be initiated and submitted no later than 15 business days following formal (documented) notification of the decision by the individual responsible for the decision (i.e., the instructor who assigned a grade or the administrator who informed the student of the decision).  Students who are filing an academic appeal are encouraged to contact the individual responsible for the decision to informally resolve the matter prior to initiating a formal appeal.

Students who wish to initiate a formal appeal may do so using this form (see “FORM” button further below) and based on the following eligible academic issues:

• Graded assignments (e.g., quizzes, exams, papers, presentations, projects, and field experience) 
• Final grades
• Disciplinary actions related to disruptive classroom behavior

Admission and re-admission decisions are specifically excluded from the Policy on Academic Appeals. Additionally, charges of academic dishonesty are excluded from the Policy on Academic Appeals and are governed by the Academic Honesty Policy. 

Fairness of academic decisions shall be ensured by permitting a student to appeal an academic decision for any of the following reasons:

• The criteria and procedures for the decision were not published
• The published criteria and procedures were not consistent with college, school, division, department or program policy and procedures, or violate a student’s rights
• The published criteria and procedures were not followed in making the decision; this includes factual and calculation errors or major errors in judgment
• The decision was substantially influenced by factors other than published criteria

It is the student’s responsibility to furnish supporting evidence to substantiate their academic appeal; this is to ensure appeals are evidence-based and provide objective measures to review and reach a fair resolution for all parties involved in the academic appeal. As such, students are encouraged to include supporting evidence at every step of the academic appeal process. 

For more information about the Policy on Academic Appeals please refer to the current academic catalog. Please also refer to the Academic Appeals FAQs for important considerations and instructions regarding the appeals process (for language translation assistance, students can upload the Academic Appeals FAQ document to Google Translate). Additional questions or concerns can be directed to Provosts.Office@nl.edu for additional assistance.

FORM

In order to fulfill our mission, procedures have been established to foster open communication and ensure we drive continuous improvement by focusing on service excellence. As such, Student Affairs staff offer support to students and work collaboratively with faculty, staff, and administration to identify options and strategies for resolution. The Assistant Dean of Students (or designee), who serves in lieu of an Ombudsman, is the point of contact in Student Affairs for students who seek assistance in addressing student concerns, including academic appeals.

Contact Information:

• TJ Martin, Assistant Dean of Students and Title IX Coordinator (dos@nl.edu)
• Craig Nance, Director of Student Conduct & Compliance for the Office Community Standards

Complaint: A complaint is a concern about an action, practice, or decision within the control or responsibility of the University raised by a student that they believe should be changed to improve the overall quality of education and/or student experience.

Grievance: A grievance is a matter to be investigated according to formal grievance processes as outline in the Academic Catalog or Student Guidebook when a student believes a faculty member or administrator has made an error. This includes matters that are not able to be resolved through informal processes or mediation, and matters relating to allegations of misconduct where disciplinary action against a student or staff member may be an outcome of the investigation.

• Non-Academic Grievances include university error related to non-academic issues. File a non-academic grievance through the Issue Resolution Form to initiate contact with the Office of Student Affairs.

Form

Incident Reports should be completed for the following: 

• Bias Incident or Hate Crime
• Behavior/Misconduct of Student
• Club/Student Organization Matter
• Facilities Issue
• Health/Illness/Injury
• Mental/Emotional Health
• Missing Student
• Personal Issue/Family Matter
• Self-Harm/Suicidal Ideation or Action
• Substance Abuse/Misuse
• Theft/Missing Property/Vandalism
• Trespasser on Campus
• Violence/Threats
• Weapons

Form

Sexual Misconduct & Relationship Violence Form should be completed for the following:

• Sexual Harassment
• Sexual Violence
• Sexual Exploitation
• Domestic Violence
• Dating Violence
• Stalking

Form

Incident Reports for employees should be completed for the following:

• Behavior/Misconduct of Employee
• Health/Illness/Injury of Employee
• Violence/Threats

Form

Filing Complaints with the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE)

If you attempted to file a complaint at the institutional level and were not successful, you may file a complaint with the Illinois Board of Higher Education using the Online Complaint System. If you have questions please call (217) 557-7359.

Filing Complaints with the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE)

If you attempted to file a complaint at the institutional level and were not successful, you may file a complaint with the Florida Department of Education using the Online Complaint System. 

Submit A Complaint to Higher Learning Commission (HLC) About an Institution

Students, faculty, staff and members of the public may submit a complaint about an HLC-accredited or candidate institution. File a complaint.

Filing Complaints with Other States

Online distance education students unable to resolve complaints through NLU’s resolution process or with the Illinois State Portal Entity (IBHE listed above, sara@ibhe.org) may file a complaint with the State Agency in their state of residence.