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6520 |
Student Grievances |
6520 |
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A student, parent, or guardian may initiate the grievance
procedure to appeal any final decision of school personnel within the school
system, except as provided in section A below. Grievances that involve an alleged violation
of board policy or state or federal law or regulation by a final
administrative decision may be appealed to the Board of Education. All other grievances may be appealed to the
Superintendent/Designee but are only appealable to the Board in its discretion
as outlined below. |
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A. |
This policy does not apply in the case of long-term
suspension or expulsion where the provisions of the sections 6530C – 6530H of
policy 6530 apply or in the case of alleged sexual harassment where the
provisions of section 6415.D of policy 6415 apply. |
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B. |
Step I - Conference
Except in the case of grievances involving transportation
issues as listed in Policies 7105 or 7125, a student, parent, or guardian
wishing to invoke the grievance procedure shall make a written request for a
conference with the principal to discuss the grievance and seek
resolution. The request shall detail
the basis for the grievance, name the specific policy, rule or law
believed to have been violated, and specify the relief being sought. The following additional guidelines shall
be observed in Step I. |
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1. |
No grievance shall be heard unless it has been filed in
writing within thirty
(30) calendar days after the act or
condition giving rise to the grievance and states with particularity the
basis for the grievance, the policy, regulation and procedure, rule or law
believed to have been violated, and the remedy being sought. |
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2. |
The principal shall grant the conference within five (5) school days following receipt of the request. The
principal will state in writing his/her position on the question to the
student or parent within five (5) school days following the conference. |
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3. |
Only the parent, guardian, or
someone acting in loco parentis shall be permitted to join or
represent the student in the conference with the principal. |
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4. |
If the grievance involves a
transportation issue as listed in Policies 7105 or 7125, the student, parent,
or guardian wishing to invoke the grievance procedure shall make a written
request for a conference with the Senior Director of Transportation
Operations and Finance to discuss the grievance and seek resolution. |
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C. |
Step II - Appeal to the Superintendent If the grievance is not resolved
at Step I the student, parent, or guardian may appeal the decision in writing
to the superintendent. The appeal must
be made within five (5) school days following receipt of the written response
in “B” of Step I. The Superintendent or his/her designee shall review the
grievance within five (5) school days following receipt of the appeal. If the Superintendent or his/her designee
determines that additional time is needed to develop the factual record, the
grievance may be put on hold for fifteen (15) additional days (or longer if
by mutual agreement) to allow time for investigation. A written response shall be made to the
student, parent, guardian, and principal from the superintendent or his/her
designee within ten (10) school days following the review. |
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D. |
Step III - Appeal to Board of Education If the grievance is not resolved at Step II,
and it involves an alleged violation of state or local board policy or state
or federal law or state rule by a final administrative decision, it may be
appealed in writing to the board of education. This written appeal must be made within ten
(10) school days following the written response from the superintendent at
Step II. The board’s consideration of
these appeals will take place in closed session and will be limited to the
written record unless the board determines that additional information is necessary.
The board may affirm, reverse, or modify the decision of the
Superintendent. The Level Two decision
will be reversed if the board determines that there has been a material
violation of board policy or state or federal law or regulation, or that the
decision is unsupported by substantial evidence in view of the entire record
as submitted. The board shall offer a
final written decision within thirty (30) days. |
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E. |
A grievant who is not entitled to
appeal to the Board may seek discretionary review by submitting a written
appeal to the superintendent’s office within ten (10) school days following
the written response from the superintendent at Step II. The Chair and Vice-Chair of the Board shall
review the request and notify the grievant within ten (10) school days from
receipt of the request whether the Board will grant a hearing. If the Chair and Vice-chair do not agree on
whether to grant the request, a Board hearing will be allowed. The procedures outlined in section 6520D
will be followed in any hearing granted under this section. |
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F. |
The Superintendent shall
disseminate policy 6520 to students at the beginning of each school year. |
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G. |
If the school system fails to
comply with the time periods or other procedures outlined in this policy, the
grievant may advance the grievance to the next level. If the grievant fails to comply with the
time periods or other procedures outlined in this policy, the grievant waives
any further rights of appeal and the grievance will be considered resolved. |
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H. |
The grievance may be voluntarily
withdrawn at any level. Once a
grievance is withdrawn it cannot be re-opened. If at any time during the grievance process
the school system grants the grievant the relief requested, the grievance
shall be terminated at that time. |
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Legal Reference: Title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972, G.S. 115C-45(c) |
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Adopted: |
August 9, 1976 |
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Revised: |
May 20, 1991 |
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Revised: |
June 26, 2000 |
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Revised: |
June 25, 2001 |
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Revised: |
December 4, 2001 |
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Revised: |
November 15, 2002 |
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Revised: |
February 18, 2003 |
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Revised: |
August 10, 2010 |