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Complaints against Faculty Members

A person who believes they have been aggrieved by a faculty member may refer a complaint to the dean of faculty at any time. The complaint must be written, and it must state that it is a “formal complaint.” A record of the complaint and any subsequent action will be kept in a file in the dean of faculty’s office and not in the faculty member’s official Trinity College personnel file, which is usually maintained in the Human Resources Office. This file will be destroyed by the dean of faculty three years from the date of a final resolution of the complaint. The final resolution date of a complaint that goes to a hearing panel occurs on the date an appeal is completed or on the date of the deadline for filing an appeal if one is not filed. The final resolution date of a complaint resolved informally by the dean of the faculty is 14 days after the date of the letter from the dean to the parties describing the solution to the complaint.

While there is no established time limit within which a complainant must make a formal complaint, it should be done as promptly after the alleged violation as possible. One consequence of the failure to present a complaint promptly is that it may preclude recourse or legal remedies should the complainant decide to pursue them at a later time.

Upon receiving the complaint, the dean of faculty will immediately inform the alleged offender of the complaint and ensure that both parties have the formal, written statement of the complaint.

The dean of faculty will discuss the complaint separately with both the complainant and the respondent in order to determine whether an informal resolution of the complaint can be reached.

If after these discussions both parties and the dean can agree on a resolution of the matter, the complaint process may end. In this case, the dean of faculty will communicate the understanding reached to both parties in writing, and both parties will accept the resolution in writing within 14 days of the date of the dean’s letter to the parties communicating the understanding. The dean, the complainant, and the respondent all agree not to make public the content of the conversations that led to the resolution.

If a penalty is voluntarily accepted by the respondent, the penalty cannot be appealed by either party at a later time, and if the respondent agrees voluntarily to a temporary or permanent separation from the College, the penalty does not require review by the Academic Freedom Committee.

If the parties and the dean of faculty cannot agree on a resolution, the matter will be resolved either by arbitration or by formal hearing. A formal hearing will be held unless the parties both agree to a hearing by an arbitration panel. The dean of faculty will be responsible for aiding both the complainant and the respondent in preparing for the hearing. The hearing, whether by an arbitration panel or by a formal hearing panel, will be scheduled for no later than 30 days after the dean of faculty determines an informal resolution cannot be reached.

Procedures for Complaints Against Faculty Members

The dean of faculty will appoint a three-member arbitration panel selected from members of the pool appointed by the Faculty Conference to adjudicate complaints against faculty members. The panel will consist of one person nominated by the complainant, one person nominated by the respondent, and a chairperson selected by the dean of faculty. The dean will attempt to appoint the first-choice selection of the complainant and the respondent, but members of the pool may recuse themselves without being challenged and the dean may need to appoint an alternate choice of either party to make up the panel. The dean will take all due care not to bias panel members with respect to the merit of the complaint. Potential panel members need to know the names of the parties and the specific complaint so they may have enough information to consider a recusal for cause. However, beyond this information, the dean should not discuss the case with the panel members. It is a preferable that appointments be made by mail.

The dean will forward the complaint to the appointed panel, and the panel will meet as soon as possible with the complainant and respondent together. No formal record of the proceedings will be kept; factual finding will be based entirely on statements of the parties; there will be no external witnesses; and no outside counsel will be permitted. The proceedings may be recessed if more than one session is needed to hear the matter. It is expected that participants in the arbitration process will not make the proceedings public. Within 30 days of the close of the hearing, the panel will submit its findings of fact and a penalty (see below), if one is merited, to the parties and to the dean of faculty. The dean of faculty is bound by the finding of the panel and shall facilitate the penalty assigned by the panel if one is assigned.

The dean of faculty will appoint a five-member hearing panel and name one-member chairperson from members of the pool appointed by the Faculty Conference to adjudicate complaints against faculty members. This panel will hear the complaint against the faculty member following the hearing procedures outlined in this section. The panel will submit its findings of fact and a penalty, if one is merited, to the parties and to the dean of faculty. The dean of faculty is bound by the finding of the panel and shall facilitate the penalty assigned by the panel, if one is assigned.

  1. Neither the complainant nor the respondent may peremptorily disqualify a member of the hearing panel, but if either party objects to one of the dean’s selections for the panel, that person may state their reasons in writing and the dean shall have the discretionary authority to replace the person objected to with another person from the faculty pool. Pool members may recuse themselves from hearing the case without challenge.
  2. The complainant and the respondent are expected to attend all sessions of the hearing, except that either may be excused by the hearing panel at their own request. No hearing session will be held without the complainant and the respondent having been given ample notice and opportunity to attend.
  3. The hearing panel will summon all witnesses, and any and all members of the student body, the faculty, and the administration are expected to respond affirmatively to such a summons. From time to time other members of these groups may be called for consultative purposes, and they too are expected to respond affirmatively.
  4. The hearing panel chairperson will serve to initiate a hearing, to summon all parties to it, and to summon witnesses and, when needed, consultants. It will be the panel’s joint responsibility to interpret appropriate faculty rules and procedures, to rule on the relevance of questions asked by parties to the case, to rule on questions that are redundant, and to see that fair treatment and an opportunity for civil and orderly participation are accord to all parties.
  5. A tape recording of the sessions will be made and kept during the duration of the hearing and deliberations of the panel by the hearing panel chairperson. The tape will be retained by the dean of faculty until the matter is concluded and no further appeals are possible, after which it will be immediately destroyed.
  6. Each party may be accompanied by one adviser during each hearing session. Advisers may not participate directly in the session, but they may consult freely with the person whom they are advising. Ordinarily, the adviser will be a member of the College, but an outside adviser may be present at the request of the complainant or the respondent if the panel agrees, but no adviser may have formal legal training.
  7. Hearings will be private, and it is expected that no participants in the hearings will make the proceedings public. Witnesses will appear individually, as will consultants; the latter may appear at whatever time in the proceedings the panel thinks proper.
  1. At the outset, the chairperson of the hearing panel will state aloud for the tape the persons present in the room and will then read aloud the complaint and any response, written copies of which will be provided to the members of the panel and to the complainant and respondent. The chairperson will then offer the complainant and the respondent opportunity to comment on their statements.
  2. The panel will then hear testimony from the parties to the case. During this phase of the hearing, only the complainant, the respondent, and their advisers shall be present. First the panel will question the complainant; then the respondent will be given an opportunity to question the complainant. Next the panel will question the respondent, and then the complainant will have an opportunity to question the respondent. In the event that there is more than one complainant and/or more than one respondent, the panel will determine the order in which parties are to be questioned. Re-questioning, in the same order, will be permitted until no party and no panel member have any further questions.
  3. If witnesses have been summoned, they will next appear, one by one and in an order determined by the panel in consultation with the complainant and the respondent. Normally the complainant will present their witnesses first, then the respondent will present their witnesses, and then the panel may call such witnesses or consultants as it deems necessary. Each witness will be questioned first by the party who called the witness, then by the other party and then by the panel. Witnesses may be re-questioned and/or recalled as required.
  4. After all witnesses have appeared and been questioned, the complainant and respondent will be provided a final opportunity to question one another after which the panel will have the opportunity to re-question the complainant and the respondent.
  5. The hearing will then recess to permit both the complainant and the respondent to prepare a summary of their positions or such statement as they think appropriate. The length of the recess will be agreed on among the parties except that it may not exceed two weeks. The summary statements will be written and distributed by each party to the other party and to the members of the panel no later than 10 days after the recess.
  6. The hearing will then resume with the presentation of the summary statement of the complainant followed by the summary statement of the respondent. After the panel has had an opportunity to ask final questions, the hearing will adjourn.
  7. Within 30 days after the hearing adjourns, the panel will, in writing, report its findings of fact and a penalty, if one is merited, to the parties and to the dean of faculty.
  8. Any records that are collected as evidence during the hearing will be held in the dean of faculty’s file of the case and will be destroyed with the file after the final resolution of the complaint. The final resolution of the complaint occurs after an appeal is completed or after the deadline for filing an appeal has passed.
  1. A finding of no merit to the charge: Such a finding will be reported to the parties by the dean, and a copy of the finding and any reports made to the dean by a panel will be made a part of the record of the complaint.
  2. A finding of guilty of the charge: Such a finding will result in one of the following actions or sanctions:
    1. Treatment: Medical or psychological treatment may be indicated. The matter may be considered closed when the faculty member is verified by a competent professional to be able to resume their duties, or this action may be coupled with admonition, censure, or suspension.
    2. Admonition: This penalty is a letter of admonition sent to the respondent by the dean. In addition, a copy of the letter of admonition will be placed in the respondent’s personnel file.
    3. Censure: This penalty is a letter of admonition sent to the respondent by the dean. In addition, the fact of the admonition will be published in the Faculty Minutes and a copy of the letter of admonition will be placed in the respondent’s personnel file.
    4. Suspension: This penalty is a temporary separation from the College. The conditions for the return of the faculty member to the College will be stipulated as part of the penalty. Notice of this penalty will be placed in the respondent’s personnel file. This penalty must be referred to the Academic Freedom Committee for hearing in accordance with the procedures of dismissal of a tenured faculty member or a faculty member before the end of their appointment (Faculty Manual Appendix B).
    5. Dismissal: This penalty is a permanent separation from the College. Notice of this penalty will be placed in the respondent’s personnel file. This penalty can be imposed only by the Board of Trustees on the recommendation of the AFC. The AFC does not re-determine the findings of the case, but it does determine whether the suggested penalty should be recommend to the Board.

Appeals to arbitration and formal hearing findings may be made to the president and must be made within three months of the receipt by the respondent and the complainant of the hearing panel’s report of its findings.

In accordance with federal law and Department of Education regulations, Trinity students are welcome to file a grievance or bring an unresolved grievance to the State of Connecticut Office of Higher Education or the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The contact information is listed below:

 

Connecticut Office of Higher Education
61 Woodland St.
Hartford, CT 06105
(800) 842-0229
www.ctohe.org/studentcomplaints.shtml

 

New England Commission of Higher Education
3 Burlington Woods Dr.
Suite 100
Burlington, MA 01803
(855) 886-3272
http://www.neche.org/