Student Grievance Policy and Procedure Form

​Student Grievance Policy

Virscend University aims to educate students in a safe atmosphere.

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It is generally recognized that in any human group complaints may originate because of misunderstandings, missed communications, perceived injustices, unanswered or incorrectly answered questions, or minor problems that have been neglected. Effective communication techniques are the tools by which one builds good human relations and accomplishes the objectives of the institution.

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Sometimes effective two-way communication is not possible in a time of conflict. These Grievance Procedures have been developed in the hope that their accessibility and standard of fairness will encourage students, faculty, and staff to utilize them as an internal forum for the resolution of such conflicts. These Procedures allow both sides of a disagreement to be fairly considered, and permit disputes to be resolved in a timely and constructive manner. Each grievance is to be treated seriously.

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The purpose of this policy is to provide a mechanism for individual students to raise a grievance arising from their educational experience. The policy will also ensure that such grievances are dealt with promptly, fairly, and in accordance with other related policies of the Organization.

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Problems or complaints that students may have about students, faculty, staff, or the institution can be resolved by directing the concern to the Grievance Committee (composed of one faculty and one staff). The Grievance Committee is in charge of investigating and providing a resolution to the grievance. Only one grievance procedure may be used for the same grievable issue. A grievance submitted under the formal procedure must be in writing. To the extent possible, strict confidentiality will be maintained regarding all matters relevant to grievances on a criterion of “need to know.” All grievances will be promptly, thoroughly, and impartially investigated and decided within reasonable time frames at each stage of the grievance process.

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The formal grievance process may generally be activated only after an effort has been made to resolve an issue through an informal process and when discussions between the parties to the disagreement have been exhausted and left unresolved. The desire to prevent or to anticipate or to register mere unhappiness over a particular decision or action does not, alone, justify a grievance.

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The University expressly forbids anyone to take any form of retaliatory action against any member of the Virscend community who in good faith voices concerns, seeks advice, files a complaint or grievance, testifies or participates in investigations, compliance reviews, proceedings or hearings, or opposes actual or perceived violations of Virscend’s University’s policy or unlawful acts.

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Student Grievance Procedure

In order to process their formal grievance/complaint, the grievant must complete the form provided on the website by clicking on the link below, which will ask for your name and email. Form submission will trigger an automated response via email, which will allow the student to explain their grievance. The email will be received by the Office of Student Success (Allison McInnis), who shall forward it to the committee chair. The committee will send an acknowledgment by email/mail and schedule a meeting with the student within 10 days from which the email was received.

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After a meeting is held, the committee will decide the proper action. All involved parties will be notified via email or phone call of the committee’s decision.

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However, if the grievant disapproves of the Committee’s response, the grievant may submit a complaint to the Director of Academic Programs. The complaint may be sent via email to admission@virscend.com

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The written complaint must contain a statement of the nature of the problem, the date the problem occurred, the names of the individuals involved, copies of documents, if any, which contain information regarding the problem, evidence (if any) demonstrating that the institution’s grievance/complaint procedure was properly followed, and the student’s signature. Upon review, the Director of Academic Programs will send a written response to the individual within 10 business days.