Student Concerns & Complaints Procedures
SUNY Plattsburgh makes every effort to provide the best possible experience for students and to resolve student concerns and complaints in a timely and effective manner. In the event that something is less than satisfactory, students should initially attempt to resolve concerns and complaints with the appropriate campus department or office.
Specific procedures and guidance are available for the following situations:
- Report an Incident or Crime — Guidance for reporting sex and gender discrimination and violence, bias acts and hate crimes, discrimination or harassment, hazing and vandalism.
- Bias & Discrimination Reporting Form — Direct link to report being the target of or witness to a bias-related act.
- Grade Grievance Procedure — To request action when a student feels that an assigned grade is not consistent with the grading policy in the syllabus, or that the evaluation has been unjust.
Institutional Concerns & Complaints Contacts
Additional Guidance for Filing Complaints
If a student is dissatisfied with the campus-based resolution, a concern may be submitted to System Administration of the State University of New York as outlined in their Student Concerns page. And, if still not satisfied, a complaint may be submitted, within two years of the incident about which the complaint is made, to the New York State Education Department as outlined in the Filing a Complaint About a College or University webpage. As SUNY Plattsburgh is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), unresolved complaints may be submitted following the process outlined on the MSCHE Complaints webpage.
Out-of-State Distance Education Students
SUNY Plattsburgh is a member of the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA) and follows the complaint resolution policies and procedures outlined within the SARA Policy Manual and summarized here. Consumer protection complaints resulting from distance education courses, activities, and operations may be submitted to the SUNY Plattsburgh Office of the Provost ([email protected]) for investigation and resolution. If a student is dissatisfied with the campus-based resolution, a concern may be submitted to System Administration of the State University of New York as outlined here. And, if still not satisfied, a complaint may be submitted, within two years of the incident about which the complaint is made, to the SARA-Student Complaint Process, New York State Education Department, as outlined here. Please note, this does not include complaints related to grades or student conduct violations, both of which are to be fully addressed via campus processes, not through the NC-SARA complaint resolution procedures.