Appeal of Initial Complaint Dismissal

The Complainant may appeal a dismissal of their Complaint. The Respondent may also appeal the dismissal of the Complaint if dismissal occurs after the Respondent has been made aware of the allegations. All dismissal appeal requests must be filed within five (5) business days of the notification of the dismissal.

The Title IX Coordinator will notify the Parties of any appeal of the dismissal. If, however, the Complainant appeals, but the Respondent was not notified of the Complaint, the Title IX Coordinator must then provide the Respondent with a NOIA and will notify the Respondent of the Complainant’s appeal with an opportunity to respond.

Throughout the dismissal appeal process, the College will:

• Implement dismissal appeal procedures equally for the Parties;
• Assign a trained Dismissal Appeal Officer who did not take part in an investigation of the allegations or dismissal of the Complaint;
• Provide the Parties a reasonable and equal opportunity to make a statement in support of, or challenging, the dismissal; and
• Notify the Parties of the result of the appeal and the rationale for the result.

The grounds for dismissal appeals are limited to:

1. Procedural irregularity that would change the outcome;
2. New evidence that would change the outcome and that was not reasonably available when the dismissal was decided;
3. The Title IX Coordinator, Investigator, or Decision-maker had a conflict of interest or bias for or against complainants or respondents generally or the individual Complainant or Respondent that would change the outcome.
4. The dismissal was erroneously granted or denied

Upon receipt of a dismissal appeal in writing from one or more Parties, the Title IX Coordinator will share the petition with the other party and provide five (5) business days for other Parties to respond to the request. The appeal should specify at least one of the grounds above and provide any reasons or supporting evidence for why the ground is met. This appeal will be provided in writing to the other Parties, and the Title IX Coordinator, who will be invited to respond in writing. At the conclusion of the response period, the Title IX Coordinator will forward the appeal, as well as any response provided by the other Parties to the Dismissal Appeal Officer for consideration.

If the Request for Appeal does not provide information that meets the grounds in this Policy, the request will be denied by the Dismissal Appeal Officer, and the Parties, their Advisors, and the Title IX Coordinator will be notified in writing of the denial and the rationale.

If any of the asserted grounds in the appeal satisfy the grounds described in this Policy, then the Dismissal Appeal Officer will notify all Parties and their Advisors, and the Title IX Coordinator, of their decision and rationale in writing. The effect will be to reinstate the Complaint.

In most cases, appeals are confined to a review of the written documentation or record of the original determination and pertinent documentation regarding the specific appeal grounds. The Dismissal Appeal Officer has seven (7) business days to review and decide on the appeal, though extensions can be granted at the discretion of the Title IX Coordinator, and the Parties will be notified of any extension.

Determinations will be modified when there is a compelling justification to do so.

Appeal of the Final Outcome Determination

The Title IX Coordinator will designate a single Appeal Decision-maker chosen from the Pool, or other trained internal or external individuals, to hear the appeal. No Appeal Decision-maker will have been previously involved in the Resolution Process for the Complaint, including in any supportive measure or dismissal appeal that may have been heard earlier in the process. On occasion, the college may designate an Appeal Panel and if a panel is used, a voting Chair of the Appeal Panel will be designated by the Title IX Coordinator.

Appeal Grounds

Appeals are limited to the following grounds:

1. A procedural irregularity that would change the outcome
2. New evidence that would change the outcome and that was not reasonably available at the time the determination regarding responsibility or dismissal was made
3. The Title IX Coordinator, Investigator(s), or Decision-maker(s) had a conflict of interest or bias for or against Complainants or Respondents generally or the specific Complainant or Respondent that would change the outcome
4. The final determination by the Decision-maker is substantially contrary to the weight of the evidence in the record (applicable to sanctions of suspension, expulsion, or termination, only)
5. The sanctions fall outside the range of sanctions designated for this offense, considering the cumulative conduct/disciplinary record of the Respondent (applicable to sanctions of suspension, expulsion, or termination, only)

Request for Appeal

Any party may submit a written request for appeal (“Request for Appeal”) to the Title IX Coordinator within five (5) business days of the delivery of the Notice of Outcome.

The Request for Appeal will be forwarded to the Appeal Panel or Appeal Decision-maker for consideration to determine if the request meets the grounds for appeal (a Review for Standing). This is not a review of the merits of the appeal, but solely a determination as to whether the request could reasonably be construed to meet the grounds and is timely filed.

If the Request for Appeal does not provide information that meets the grounds in this Policy, the request will be denied by the Appeal Panel Chair or Decision-maker, and the Parties and their Advisors will be simultaneously notified in writing of the denial and the rationale.

If any of the grounds in the Request for Appeal meet the grounds in this Policy, then the Appeal Panel Chair or Decision-maker will notify all Parties and their Advisors, the Title IX Coordinator, and, when appropriate, the Investigator(s) and/or the original Decision-maker.

All other Parties and their Advisors, the Title IX Coordinator, and, when appropriate, the Investigator(s) and/or the Decision-maker will be provided a copy of the Request for Appeal with the approved grounds and then be given five (5) business days to submit a response to the portion of the appeal that was approved and involves them. The Appeal Panel Chair or Decision-maker will forward all responses, if any, to all Parties for review and comment.

The non-appealing party (if any) may also choose to appeal at this time. If so, that Request for Appeal will be reviewed by the Appeal Panel Chair or Decision-maker to determine if it meets the grounds in this Policy and will either be approved or denied. If approved, it will be forwarded to the party who initially requested an appeal, the Title IX Coordinator, and the Investigator(s) and/or original Decision-maker, as necessary, who will submit their responses, if any, within five (5) business days. Any such responses will be circulated for review and comment by all Parties. If denied, the Parties will be notified accordingly, in writing.

New Requests for Appeal after this time period will not be accepted. The Appeal Panel Chair or Decision-maker will collect any additional information needed and all documentation regarding the approved appeal grounds, and the subsequent responses will be shared with the Appeal Panel or Appeal Decision-maker, who will promptly render a decision.

Appeal Determination Process

In most cases, appeals are confined to a review of the written documentation or record of the original determination and pertinent documentation regarding the specific appeal grounds. The Appeals Panel or Appeal Decision-maker will deliberate as soon as is practicable and discuss the merits of the appeal.

Appeal decisions are to be deferential to the original determination, making changes to the finding only when there is clear error and to the sanction(s)/responsive action(s) only if there is a compelling justification to do so. All decisions are made by majority vote and apply the preponderance of the evidence.

An appeal is not an opportunity for the Appeal Panel or Decision-makers to substitute their judgment for that of the original Decision-maker merely because they disagree with the finding and/or sanction(s).

The Appeal Panel or Decision-maker may consult with the Title IX Coordinator and/or legal counsel on questions of procedure or rationale, for clarification, if needed. The Title IX Coordinator will maintain documentation of all such consultation.

Appeal Outcome

An appeal may be granted or denied. Appeals that are granted should normally be remanded (or partially remanded) to the original Investigator(s) and/or Decision-maker with corrective instructions for reconsideration. In rare circumstances where an error cannot be cured by the original Investigator(s) and/or Decision-maker or the Title IX Coordinator (as in cases of bias), the Appeal Panel or Decision-maker may order a new investigation and/or a new determination with new Pool members serving in the Investigator and Decision-maker roles.

A Notice of Appeal Outcome letter will be sent to all Parties simultaneously, or without significant time delay between notifications. The Appeal Outcome will specify the finding on each ground for appeal, any specific instructions for remand or reconsideration, any sanction(s) that may result which the College is permitted to share according to federal or state law, and the rationale supporting the essential findings to the extent the College is permitted to share under federal or state law.

Written notification may be delivered by one or more of the following methods: in person, mailed to the local or permanent address of the Parties as indicated in official institutional records, or emailed to the Parties’ College-issued email or otherwise approved account. Once mailed, emailed, and/or received in person, the Appeal Outcome will be presumptively delivered.

Once an appeal is decided, the outcome is final and constitutes the Final Determination; further appeals are not permitted, even if a decision or sanction is changed on remand (except in the case of a new determination). When appeals result in no change to the finding or sanction, that decision is final. When an appeal results in a new finding or sanction, that finding or sanction can be appealed one final time on the grounds listed above and in accordance with these procedures.

If a remand results in a new determination that is different from the appealed determination, that new determination can be appealed, once, on any of the five available appeal grounds.

Sanction Status During the Appeal

Any sanctions imposed as a result of the determination are stayed (i.e., not implemented) during the appeal process, and supportive measures may be maintained or reinstated until the appeal determination is made.

If any of the sanctions are to be implemented immediately post-determination, but pre-appeal, then the emergency removal procedures (detailed above) for a “show cause” meeting on the justification for doing so must be permitted within five (5) business days of implementation.

Continue to Conclusion of the Resolution Process.