Saint Augustine’s University (SAU) is committed to serving all students in a fair and respectful manner. While the administration continually seeks to improve the student experience; we recognize a student’s right to raise concerns about academic issues, campus life, or any other policy, procedure, or action of the University. The student complaint policy covers any academic or non-academic services provided by SAU and aims to assist the University to improve its processes.

If an issue should arise, students are encouraged to make reasonable efforts to seek resolution informally by discussing it with the involved parties. If a satisfactory resolution is not reached, the student may complete a student complaint form.

Saint Augustine’s University (SAU) is committed to serving all students in a fair and respectful manner. While the administration continually seeks to improve the student experience; we recognize a student’s right to raise concerns about academic issues, campus life, or any other policy, procedure, or action of the University. The student complaint policy covers any academic or non-academic services provided by SAU and aims to assist the University to improve its processes.

If an issue should arise, students are encouraged to make reasonable efforts to seek resolution informally by discussing it with the involved parties. If a satisfactory resolution is not reached, the student may complete a student complaint form.

Written formal complaints are defined as any complaint made by a student, received in writing, and concerning incidences that occurred no more than 30 days prior to the date of the complaint. So that complaints are addressed in a consistent, fair, and timely manner, compliance with the formal complaint procedures outlined below is mandatory. Any complaint submitted to the University outside of the following process will be treated as an informal complaint and therefore not subject to the referenced timeframes.

Step 1: Students should attempt to resolve the complaint by speaking directly with the parties involved. If a resolution is not possible the student may complete the Student Complaint Form available electronically via the SAU website. All complaints will be delivered to a centralized database monitored by the Office of the Dean of Students and Integrity.

Step 2: All written student complaints submissions will be acknowledged within a reasonable timeframe and forwarded to the appropriate Administrative Office for processing.

Step 3: The Administrative Office receiving the formal complaint will review the complaint, gather the appropriate information and documentation to address the complaint, reach a resolution, and provide a written response to the student via the student’s SAU email account. To the extent possible all formal complaints will be addressed within 30 calendar days after receipt of the complaint has been acknowledged.

The following items may not be the basis for a Written Student Complaint:

• test grades or partial (not final) course grades;
• claims not directly related to an administrator, faculty, staff member or employee’s status as an employee at SAU;
• claims based on purchases or contracts.

If you have filed a complaint through the process outlined above and feel the issue has not been resolved, you may request to have the complaint heard by the Vice President of the Administrative Office responsible for resolving the complaint. Students must document all previous attempts at resolution and include a copy of any response they have received from the responding Administrative Office. To the extent possible all appeal decisions will be rendered in writing within 30 calendar days. If, after the respective vice president has responded to the appeal and rendered a decision, the student still believes the issue has not been resolved satisfactorily, they may request to have the decision reviewed by the Office of the President.

Per state regulations and the rules promulgated by the US Department of Education, if the student complaint cannot be resolved within the university, students may contact the Licensure Division of the University of North Carolina System Office, which serves as the official state entity to receive complaints concerning post-secondary institutions that are authorized to operate in North Carolina.

The contact information to file a complaint directly with this office is:

North Carolina Post-Secondary Education Complaints
c/o Student Complaints University of North Carolina System Office
910 Raleigh Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27515-2688 For more information, send an email to studentcomplaint@northcarolina.edu

To access the North Carolina Post-Secondary Education student complaint process and form click the link below: https://www.northcarolina.edu/stateauthorization

The US Department of Education (DOE) requires all higher education institutions to advise students of their right to file a complaint and speak with a DOE official about issues related to your institution. Below is information advising you of those rights, specific complaints, and a link to file a complaint. You may need to “right click” on the link for it to open.

How to File a Complaint with the U. S. Department of Education

The U.S. Department of Education has a complaint system and dedicated employees to talk with you if you have a complaint about your school. You may file complaints with the Department of Education about things related to recruitment and marketing, program cost and financial aid, employment and job prospects, educational services, and accreditation and licensure. You may file a complaint at this website: https://studentaid.gov/feedback-center/.