Student Complaint and Appeal Process

The University of St. Francis is concerned with how students are treated, wants to help them understand process and procedures, and wants to hear and resolve student concerns and grievances. A “Complaint” is defined as an expression of serious dissatisfaction concerning a university employee, department, service, process or a university administrative action that requires clarification, investigation and/or resolution because the student believes the result to be unfair or inconsistent with USF policy or usual practices. The processes for filing complaints/grievances are described below.

Students can also file an appeal for academic probation or academic dismissal or to appeal an alleged violation of academic integrity by following the processes in the catalog which are also described below.

Both complaints and appeals are initiated through the Student Complaint and Appeal Form.

Academic Issues

Appeal Process

Other Issues

How do I file a disability accommodation complaint?

If a student has a complaint regarding USF’s accommodations for students with disabilities, the Office of Disability Services (ODS) is located in the Library inside the Academic Resource Center L-214.  ODS is responsible for coordinating efforts to comply with disability laws and accommodation implementation. This includes investigating any student complaint alleging noncompliance. Current ODS Grievance Procedures can be found in the ODS Student Handbook. In addition, there is an electronic complaint form: Student Complaint and Appeal Form.

Please note: While a grievance is being reviewed by these policies, the decision made by ODS will remain in effect until such time as that decision is altered or overruled through the grievance process.

What options do ONLINE students have if their complaint is not resolved by going through the USF process?

 


What if an ON-CAMPUS student cannot get a complaint resolved going through the USF process?

If an on-campus student does not feel that their complaint has been resolved through the USF Complaint Process, they can contact the Illinois Board of Higher Education through the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) Institutional Complaint System (https://complaints.ibhe.org/).

If a student has exhausted all of the University of St. Francis options and their state options for handling complaints, the student may contact our accreditation organization, the Higher Learning Commission (www.hlcommission.org), through their online complaint system (https://www.hlcommission.org/Student-Resources/complaints.html).