Student Complaint Policy and Procedures

Kalamazoo College is committed to providing opportunities for students to express concerns and complaints about elements of their experience. This page is designed to provide an overview of the various options for sharing issues of concern.

Students who have concerns or complaints about a particular campus office are encouraged to go directly to the person they have been interacting with in that office or to the unit or department leader, usually identified on the office/unit’s webpage. If the concern is not addressed at that level, it should be elevated to the person supervising that office. Students who are unsure of where to go with a particular concern are welcome to contact the Dean of Student’s Office in Hicks Student Center or the Provost’s Office in Mandelle Hall to understand which reporting options are most relevant and who to go to with a specific complaint.

For issues that go beyond a single office, the following mechanisms are in place to share concerns or complaints:

  • To report sexual harassment
  • To report a bias incident
  • To report a grievance about requested disability services accommodations
  • To report academic complaints (e.g. specific course or instructor): The first step is to discuss the concern with the faculty member involved. If that does not address the concern, the student should reach out to the department chair (the department chair is typically identified as such on the departmental webpage or you can reach out to the Provost’s Office). If the issue is not addressed there or if the faculty member involved is the department chair, students should reach out to the Associate Provost.

If a concern is received via one of the mechanisms above and it needs to go through a different process, the staff/faculty responsible for the mechanism will route it to the appropriate person or office.