Grade Appeal

The College recognizes the legal right of faculty to set standards of performance and to apply those standards to individual students. Therefore, the instructor is the final authority in evaluating students' performance against those standards and assigning the grade that appears in their permanent academic records. 

Student Grade Change/Appeal Intake Form

In general, all course grades are final when filed by the instructor. Students have access to view their final grades on InsideBC after the course ends. These grades become a part of the student's official record. Students have the right to inquire how a grade has been determined and may formally appeal the final grade in a course. Students have the right to have someone accompany them throughout the process. As per California Education Code Section 76232, any student may file a written request with the chief administrative officer of a community college district to correct or remove information recorded in his or her student records which the student alleges to be: (1) inaccurate; (2) an unsubstantiated personal conclusion or inference; (3) a conclusion or inference outside of the observer's area of competence; or (4) not based on the personal observation of a named person with the time and place of the observation noted. The determination of the student's grade by the instructor is final in the absence of mistake, fraud, bad faith, or incompetence. When grades are given for any course of instruction taught in this community college district, the grade given to each student shall be the grade determined by the instructor of the course and the determination of the student's grade by the instructor, in the absence of mistake, fraud, bad faith, or incompetency, shall be final.

Per KCCD Board Policy 4231, a student must initiate a request for a grade change of receiving the course grade. If the instructor determines that there is a valid basis for the change, the instructor must complete a Grade Change Card form and submit it to the Office of Admissions and Records. If the instructor determines there is not a valid basis for the change and denies the student's request, the student may follow the formal Grade Change Process, which may take up to months to resolve.  The formal process is as follows:

• Submit a Grade Appeal Intake form: Within 30 days of receipt of the request, the Office of Student Life will contact the student and schedule a meeting to discuss the intake form. 
• Meet with the Dean of Students: The student should meet with the Dean of Students to discuss the grade change procedure and attempt to resolve the grade dispute informally. Failing to meet with the Dean of Students by the deadline may result in the loss of a potential formal appeal. Students bear the burden of proof and are solely responsible for meeting stated deadlines as these will not be changed.
• Submit Written Complaint to the Office of the Vice President of Instruction: If further action is necessary, the Dean of Students will advise the student to complete the formal written request for a Grade Change and present the documents to the Office of the Vice President of Instruction (VPI). Once the grade change request has entered the formal process, grade changes can still be resolved informally.
• Complaint Review by the Dean of Instruction: Students' written grade change complaints may be reviewed by the appropriate Dean of Instruction first. Unless the appeal lacks substantive evidence in support of the appeal, it will be forwarded to the instructor, the department chair, and the Vice President of Instruction for review and comment. 
• Meeting with the Vice President of Instruction, or designee: Once the Office of the Vice President of Instruction receives comments from the instructor, department chair, and dean, the VPI's office may contact the student to set up an appointment to review their feedback. The student will meet with the VPI, or designee, to present the outcome.

Refer to KCCD Board Policy 4231 for further steps or appeals.