Suspected Discrimination Policy
If the Office of Disability staff suspect that a professor is showing signs of discrimination against a student, the Associate Director of Academic Support should be notified. The Associate Director of Academic Support will review the situation and any evidence available.
If the Associate Director agrees that discrimination is evident or potentially evident, the Associate Dean over the class in which the student is enrolled must be notified. Any evidence of discrimination or potential discrimination must be sent to the Associate Dean by the Associate Director of Academic Support.
If the Associate Dean agrees that there is discrimination or the potential for discrimination by a professor, the student will need to be removed from the class and moved into another section. The Associate Dean should be given a list of the professors that are teaching that class so that they can choose the professor to whom the student should be assigned.
The Associate Director of Academic Support will go into the student’s course and retrieve any work the student has submitted to the course. If a quiz or test has already been taken, the grade will simply be transferred into the new section. If any written work has been submitted, the Associate Dean or the newly assigned professor will review the work to ensure that a fair grade was provided. The student may not receive a lower grade than was assigned by their initial professor.
The Director of Academic Support will remove the student from his/her current class section and move the student to the new section, as assigned by the Associate Dean. The Director will ensure that the student’s work, along with any positive grade changes, will be added to the new section.
Should the Associate Dean not approve the removal of the student, the Office of Disability staff will email the professor, raise their concerns, and remind the professor to be cautious in responses with the student as discrimination is impermissible. When appropriate, an email monitor (such as the professor’s instructional mentor) will be copied in by the professor on any email correspondence with the student in question.
