Relay provides to its students a student grievance policy so that students have a process for seeking to resolve alleged violations of a written Relay policy that directly affect students, where the violation is caused by any member of the Relay community while acting in an official capacity (e.g. faculty member, administrator, staff member). Students have the right to file a grievance without fear of unfair treatment from Relay faculty or staff.
When a student has a grievance, the first thing a student should attempt is to address the faculty or staff member directly and see if a prompt and fair resolution is feasible. Where the discussion with the faculty or staff member is not successful, or the student feels they cannot raise the issue directly with the person, the grievance should be raised in writing with the faculty member’s program director or staff member’s supervisor. If no satisfactory resolution is made through these means, the student may file an official grievance by submitting a student grievance form to support@relay.edu. The campus Dean's Office will respond to grievances generally within 10 business days. The campus Dean's Office will share the grievance with the Office of Student Affairs, where a copy of it will be maintained.
Please note that the details of the grievance, including any written statement, may have to be disclosed in whole or in part with the person against whom the grievance has been raised in order to resolve the grievance.
If any person involved in the grievance is not satisfied with the Dean’s Office response to the grievance, he or she may file an appeal, in writing to the regional dean, within 10 days of receiving the outcome.
In the event that an individual has exhausted the institutional grievance policy and believes that their issue has not been resolved, the student has the right to contact Relay’s accrediting bodies and/or the relevant state agency. See Appendix A Consumer Information for a listing of accreditors and state authorization agencies and their contact information.
For complaints related to educator preparation, students should contact the relevant state licensing agency.
Students in online courses or programs may direct complaints to the New York State Education Department’s Office of College and University Evaluation as Relay’s SARA Portal Entity. OCUE will only consider complaints that were previously unresolved by the institution and may refer a complaint to another agency for investigation. More information can be found at http://www.nysed.gov/college-university-evaluation.