The purpose of MiraCosta College's Student Rights and Grievances Procedure (Administrative Procedure 5530) is to provide an efficient and equitable means of resolving student grievances. This procedure is available to students who believe a decision or action by an instructor, a college official, or another student has adversely affected their status, rights, or privileges as a student.

The college has a central point of contact on all three campuses. Please use the CARE Referral Form, found on the Student Affairs webpage, if you are in need of support or have a concern about anyone's behavior. If it is an emergency or related to immediate safety, please call College Police at 760.795.6640.

Grievances related to course grades are addressed in MCCD Board Policy 4231: Grade Changes, and Administrative Procedure 4231: Grade Changes.

For grievances related to sexual harassment, sexual assault, or discrimination (i.e., age, ancestry, citizenship status, color, physical disability, mental disability, ethnic group identification, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, parental status, race, religion, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status, or because they are perceived to have one or more of the foregoing characteristics), students should contact the Title IX Coordinator, Deputy Title IX Coordinators, and/or the MiraCosta College Police Department. Staff members in those areas will assist students with the correct processes for resolution.

Complaint and investigation policies and procedures related to harassment and discrimination (including sexual assault, sexual violence, dating violence, stalking, and domestic violence) can be found in Board Policy 3433: Prohibition of Sexual Harassment under Title IX, Administrative Procedure 3433: Prohibition of Sexual Harassment under Title IX, Administrative Procedure 3434: Responding to Harassment under Title IX, and Administrative Procedure 3435: Discrimination and Harassment Complaints and Investigations.

This procedure does not apply to the following:

• Student conduct procedures, which is covered under Administrative Procedure 5500: Standards of Student Conduct and Administrative Procedure 5520: Student Conduct Procedures.
• Traffic tickets. Those complaints must be made to the local courts.
• Parking tickets. Those complaints must be made at the College Police Office.
• Grievances related to sexual harassment, sexual assault, or discrimination.

Definitions

• The college: This means MiraCosta Community College District.
• Grievance: A statement of a complaint about something believed to be wrong or unfair. 

A student who has a concern or complaint must first follow the conflict resolution process, which is described below. The Student Affairs Department can assist a student with this process.

Conflict Resolution

To resolve any issues with a faculty member, the student should make a reasonable effort to follow the steps listed below:

1. Contact the instructor in person, by email, or by telephone, unless there is a valid reason (student feels intimidated, instructor unavailable after several attempts, etc.) to omit this step.
2. If the concern or complaint is not resolved satisfactorily by contacting the faculty member, contact the faculty member's department chair in person, by email, or by telephone. The department chair will determine if the student contacted the faculty and, if applicable, explore their reasons not to do so. 
3. If the concern or complaint is still not resolved, contact the faculty member's dean in person, by email, or by telephone. The dean will determine if the student contacted the faculty and/or department chair and, if applicable, explore their reasons not to do so. 
4. If the concern or complaint is still not resolved, contact the dean of Student Affairs, the director of Student Life & Leadership at the Oceanside Campus, the director of Student Services at the San Elijo Campus, or the director of Student Services at the Community Learning Center to explore other possible options to address the concern.

To resolve any issue with a staff member or administrator, the student should make a reasonable effort to follow the steps listed below:

1. Contact the staff member or administrator with whom the student has the grievance in person, by email, or by telephone, unless there is a valid reason (student feels intimidated, staff member or administrator unavailable after several attempts, etc.) to omit this step.
2. If the concern or complaint is not resolved satisfactorily, contact the appropriate supervisor in person, by email, or by telephone.
3. If the concern or complaint is still not resolved, contact the appropriate dean or department head in person, by email, or by telephone.
4. If the concern or complaint is still not resolved, contact the dean of Student Affairs, the director of Student Life & Leadership at the Oceanside Campus, the director of Student Services at the San Elijo Campus, or the director of Student Services at the Community Learning Center to explore other possible options to address the concern.

To resolve a conflict with another student, the student with the complaint should make a reasonable effort to follow the steps listed below:

1. If appropriate, discuss the issue with the other directly in person, by email, or by telephone unless there is a valid reason (student feels intimidated, other student unavailable after several attempts, etc.) to omit this step.
2. Meet with the dean of Student Affairs, the director of Student Life & Leadership at the Oceanside Campus, the director of Student Services at the San Elijo Campus, the director of Student Services at the Community Learning Center, or designee in person to explore other possible options to address the concern.

*All MiraCosta College board policies and administrative procedures are located on the Board of Trustees webpage.