Number: COMM.A.10.030

Scope. The Commission, aware of the value of information from the public, shall review complaints regarding an affiliated institution’s ability to meet the Criteria for Accreditation or other Commission requirements in a timely, fair, and equitable manner. The complaint process is intended to address only those matters that suggest substantive non-compliance. As such, the Commission generally expects individuals to attempt to resolve personal issues through the institution’s own published grievance procedures for its stakeholders, as appropriate—students, faculty, staff or members of the public—before submitting a complaint to the Commission. In no case will the Commission complaint process be used to obtain an individual remedy with an institution on behalf of a complainant.

Contents, Presentations, and Processing. The Commission will not generally review complaints that concern facts or circumstances that took place more than two years from the date the complaint was received by the Commission. All complaints must be submitted according to Commission procedures. The Commission will acknowledge a complaint promptly and, within thirty working days of receipt, will advise the complainant whether or not the complaint will be further reviewed by the Commission. If the Commission determines a complaint will be further reviewed, the Commission will give the institution named in the complaint sufficient opportunity to respond to the complaint before the Commission completes its review and makes a decision about next steps regarding the complaint.

In accordance with Commission policies and procedures, the Commission may require further follow-up.

When the Commission receives a complaint(s) about an institution that has an impending site visit and that raises questions about the compliance of the institution with Commission requirements, it may also forward the complaint(s) to the attention of the chair of the on-site team for consideration instead of, or in addition to, any regular review the Commission might undertake regarding such complaint(s). The team will notify the Commission staff of its findings.

Other Information. In addition to pursuing complaints, the Commission may initiate any of the procedures related to complaints in response to any information regarding an affiliated institution’s ability to meet the Criteria or other Commission requirements.

Complaints Against the Commission. The Commission, aware of the value of information from the public, shall review complaints regarding the Commission in a timely, fair, and equitable manner. Complaints regarding the Commission must involve issues broader than a concern about a specific institutional action or a specific on-site evaluation and must state clearly the nature of the complaint. The President, on behalf of the Commission, shall respond to each complaint made against the Commission within 30 days of receipt; report regularly to the Executive Committee and the Board of Trustees on the nature and disposition of complaints against the Commission; and compile annually a list, available to the public on request, that summarizes the complaints against the Commission and their dispositions. The Commission retains the right to withhold public disclosure of information regarding complaints if, in the Commission’s discretion, circumstances warrant.

Policy History

Last Revised: November 2019
First Adopted: August 1996, February 1996, June 2004 
Revision History: February 1998, May 2002, October 2002, June 2008, February 2010, June 2012, November 2012, November 2019
Notes: Policies combined in November 2012 – 13.1, 13.1(a), 13.1(b), 13.1(c), 13.2