EIU Grade Appeal

If no mutually agreeable decision is reached as a result of the Department Chair Review, the student may request review by the University Grade Appeal Committee, only by signing and submitting a copy of Form 2, Part B, "Request for Review by University Grade Appeal Committee," to the dean of the appropriate college or school. Appeals for undergraduate students are submitted to the dean of the college in which the course was offered. Appeals for graduate students are submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School. Appeals for courses offered through the IDS (B.A in Interdisciplanary Studies) program are submitted to the Dean of the College of Education. (Go to the list of Deans and Departments.)

Deadline for Request Review by the University Grade Appeal Committee. The student must provide Form 2, Part B, to the dean of the appropriate college or school no later than five (5) working days after the student received Form 2. If, within five (5) working days after receipt of Form 2, the student does not request review by the University Grade Appeal Committee, formal review of the grade will terminate.

University Grade Appeal Committee Review

Purposes

• To provide a fair and unbiased fact-finding meeting;
• To determine whether the grounds for the grade appeal are supported by facts;
• To determine whether the student’s grade should be changed and, if so, to request change of grade by the dean; and
• To communicate the results of the review to the parties.

Procedures

Upon timely receipt of the Request for Review by the University Grade Appeal Committee, the following procedures will be used:

1. The dean will notify the chair of the University Grade Appeal Committee (UGAC) of the request for review.
2. The UGAC chair will:
• Notify the student, the faculty member, and the department chair that the UGAC has received the request.
• Secure copies of all grade appeal documents from the department chair and distribute copies of the documents to the UGAC members.
• Schedule a UGAC Fact Finding Meeting at a time when both the student and faculty member are able to attend. The Fact Finding Meeting will occur no earlier than five (5) working days after the UGAC chair distributes copies of the documents to the UGAC members.
• Notify the student and faculty member in writing of the date, time, and place of the Fact Finding Meeting.
• Notify the student and faculty member in writing that they may bring additional persons who may provide relevant information to the meeting but only if the name(s) of the person(s) and their relationship to the grade dispute is provided to the UGAC chair at least 48 hours prior to the Fact Finding Meeting. (Email notification to the student and faculty member will satisfy the writing requirement.)
3. The UGAC will conduct a Fact Finding Meeting at which both the student and the faculty member have the opportunity to present relevant information through oral statements and/or written documents.
• The Fact Finding Meeting shall not be open to the public.
• Individuals other than the student or faculty member will be allowed to present relevant information only if adequate notice was received as provided in 2. e., above.
• At the Fact Finding Meeting, the UGAC may request additional relevant materials from the student or faculty member.
• Following the Fact Finding Meeting, the UGAC chair will convene a meeting or meetings as needed with the members of the UGAC and the committee will determine whether the grounds for the grade appeal were supported by evidence presented at the Fact Finding Meeting.
4. The UGAC chair will complete Form 3, "Summary of Fact Finding,"in accordance with the UGAC's determination.
5. The UGAC chair will notify the student and faculty member within ten (10) working days of the final meeting of the UGAC that Form 3, "Summary of Fact Finding," and Form 4, "Receipt of the Summary of Fact Finding" are available at the Dean's office and will arrange for signing and distribution in accordance with the directions on Form 4. If neither party fails to acknowledge receipt of the Summary, the UGAC chair will so note on the form.

Subsequent to this review, the student or faculty member may request the dean to determine whether the procedures used by the UGAC were in compliance with the Grade Appeal Policy. See Dean Review.