Ohio Administrative Code › Title 3364 - University of Toledo › Chapter 3364-72 - Faculty Qualifications › Section 3364-72-51 - Faculty grievance and appeals

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1, 2024
(A)
								Policy
			 statement
To complement the principles of
				academic freedom faculty are to be protected from adverse decisions or actions
				resulting from or associated with unfair practice(s) or failure of due process
				that are clearly erroneous, arbitrary or capricious.
(B)
								Purpose of the
			 policy
To provide a forum for due process
				concerning faculty grievance and appeals.
(C)
								Scope
This policy applies to occupational
				therapy and physical therapy faculty of the Judith Herb college of education,
				health science and human service, and all faculty in the college of medicine
				and life sciences, college of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences and college
				of nursing, and that are not bound by a collective bargaining agreement. The
				term "grievant" refers to a university faculty member not bound by a collective
				bargaining agreement (salaried only) in the colleges of education, medicine,
				pharmacy and nursing. Issues that are grievable under this policy include
				adverse actions that directly affect the grievant and that may include matters
				relating to the promotion, tenure or renewal of a faculty member subject to
				this policy, to the extent that an unfair practice or failure of due process
				has occurred to the grievant that is clearly erroneous, arbitrary or
				capricious. Community, volunteer, adjunct and emeritus faculty are not entitled
				to the rights set forth in this rule.
(D)
								Procedure
(1)
									Prior to filing a
			 grievance, the grievant should pursue every possible means of resolving the
			 issue in question by consultation with party or parties involved and with the
			 chair and the dean. To that end, all faculty staff and administrators are
			 encouraged to engage in free and open communication in the airing and
			 resolution of differences.
(2)
									If unresolved,
			 the grievant will set forth in writing the scope and nature of the grievance
			 and the alleged violation (initial letter). The initial letter will summarize
			 all efforts made from time to time to resolve the issue by the affected
			 parties, including consultation with the pertinent university offices such as
			 institutional diversity, human resources, or compliance. The initial letter
			 must be filed with the department chair of that faculty member within forty
			 working days of the date on which the grievant knew or should have known of the
			 grievable adverse decision or action. Whenever the chair is a party to the
			 grievance, the initial letter will be submitted directly to the dean. Whenever
			 the dean is a party to the grievance, the initial letter will be submitted
			 directly to the chancellor and executive vice president for biosciences and
			 health affairs ("chancellor") or provost and executive vice president for
			 academic affairs ("provost"), whichever is the governing level above the party
			 in grievance. Whenever the chancellor or provost is a party to the grievance,
			 the initial letter will be submitted directly to the president. Whenever the
			 president is a party to the grievance, the initial letter will be submitted
			 directly to the chair of the board of trustees.
(3)
									The appropriate
			 recipient of the letter will have the opportunity to resolve the grievable
			 issue(s) to the satisfaction of all parties, using existing administrative
			 structure and authority. If not resolved to the mutual satisfaction of all
			 parties within twenty working days of receipt of the initial letter, the
			 initial letter and any further relevant information may be referred by the
			 grievant to the chair of the faculty grievance committee. As used in this
			 policy, the term "working days" means calendar days except Saturdays, Sundays,
			 and legal holidays as observed by the university.
(4)
									Faculty grievance
			 committee ("FGC")
(a)
										The FGC will be a standing group of the faculty of the
			 university of Toledo and will consist of fifteen full time faculty members
			 holding regular appointments at the rank of professor or associate professor
			 and who are not bound by a collective bargaining agreement. Excluding the
			 college of graduate studies, FGC representation will correspond to the relative
			 number of faculty in each college who are not bound by a collective bargaining
			 agreement, with each college having at least one faculty representative. The
			 faculty of each college will elect the members for staggered terms of four
			 years. The elections will be organized each year by the faculty committee on
			 rules and regulations. The FGC will report to the chancellor or
			 provost.
(b)
										The members of the FGC will annually elect a chair and
			 vice chair. The membership of the FGC will be communicated to the applicable
			 faculty annually by the faculty committee on rules and
			 regulations.
(c)
										Any member of the FGC who has a grievance pending
			 before the FGC will be removed from all FGC activities until the grievance is
			 resolved. FGC members who cease to be full-time members of university faculty,
			 or whose duties become primarily administrative at a level higher than chair,
			 will be ineligible to continue serving. The dean of that college will appoint a
			 new FGC member to serve until the next scheduled election.
(d)
										FGC members will
			 maintain confidentiality with regard to all deliberations and recommendations
			 to the extent permitted by law, and except that items reduced to writing are
			 subject to the Ohio public records act, section
			 149.43 of the Revised
			 Code.
(e)
										For each grievance, the chair of the FGC will appoint
			 four members from the FGC pool to a hearing committee, and will attempt to
			 include at least one from the same college as the grievant ("hearing
			 committee"). The FGC chair (or vice chair, at the chair's designation) will
			 chair this five member hearing committee. When the grievant believes a conflict
			 exists between the grievant and an appointed member to the hearing committee,
			 the grievant may send a request in writing to the chair of the FGC that the
			 member be replaced. Brief rationale for the request must be included. The chair
			 will have the discretion to determine whether the member is replaced as long as
			 the chair is not the member that the grievant has asked be replaced, in which
			 case the determination will be made by the vice chair.
(5)
									Prior
			 to the hearing, the hearing committee will:
(a)
										Fix the time and
			 place for each hearing and, at least five working days prior thereto, will
			 deliver written notice of the time and place of hearing to the grievant and to
			 the director of faculty affairs.
(b)
										In
			 addition:
(i)
											The grievant may not be represented at the hearing by an
			 attorney unless waived by the chair, in which case university legal counsel may
			 also be present;
(ii)
											The grievant is entitled to attend all hearings.
			 However, the hearing committee will have the power to excuse from the
			 proceeding any witness or witnesses during the testimony of other witnesses. It
			 will be discretionary with the hearing committee to determine the propriety of
			 the attendance of any other persons; and
(iii)
											A record of the
			 proceedings will be made, including the collection of all testimony presented
			 and evidence provided to the hearing committee.
(c)
										The hearing
			 committee will:
(i)
											Determine whether the issues raised are grievable under
			 the standard of review set forth in paragraph (C) of this rule;
(ii)
											Review the
			 evidence, testimony and other information it deems relevant and
			 deliberate;
(iii)
											Make separate findings of fact on the substantive
			 issues presented; and
(iv)
											Issue recommendation(s) of the hearing committee, as to
			 corrective action, if any, that might be imposed.
(6)
									The
			 recommendation(s) of the hearing committee will be made by majority vote in
			 writing, as certified by the committee chair's signature. Recommendation(s) of
			 the hearing committee will not consider any evidence, documentation or
			 testimony taken outside the hearing unless agreed to by mutual consent of the
			 grievant, the university and the hearing committee. If agreement is not
			 reached, a new hearing may be held.
(7)
									The hearing
			 committee will complete its deliberations and render its recommendation(s)
			 within twenty working days of completion of the deliberations to the level of
			 administrator above involved party or parties, beginning with the chancellor or
			 provost, with a copy to the dean of the appropriate college and to each party
			 to the dispute. If the chancellor or the provost is a part of the grievance,
			 recommendations of the committee will go to the president. If the president is
			 a part of the grievance, recommendations and decisions of the committee will go
			 to the board of trustees, through the appropriate board
			 committee.
(8)
									The final decision will be made by the chancellor or
			 the provost or the president, whichever is the governing level above the
			 parties in grievance, within fourteen working days from the date upon which the
			 recommendation of the hearing committee is received. The grievant and all other
			 affected parties will be informed in writing of the final
			 decision.
(9)
									The grievant may appeal the decision in writing within
			 twenty working days of the date in which notice was given of the final decision
			 to the next level of governance above the decision maker. The matter will be
			 reviewed on the basis of the existing record and no new evidence or arguments
			 will be heard. A decision will be made within twenty working days of the
			 appeal. If the appeal is submitted to the academic committee of the board of
			 trustees, the final decision will be made within twenty working days of receipt
			 of the appeal, or within one week of the next regular appropriate board of
			 trustees academic affairs committee meeting. The decision by the board of
			 trustees committee will be final.