Filing Complaints with Accreditor, State Agency, or Other Relevant Official

Initially, a student should pursue any concern about Hawkeye Community College through the formal resolution processes that Hawkeye provides. Administrative Guideline 101 outlines the process for governing discipline, grievances and complaints, appeals and remedies related to academic integrity.

Students wishing to file complaints with Hawkeye’s accreditor may contact the Higher Learning Commission.

The Iowa Department of Education accepts questions from the public and complaints from students concerning unresolved issues with schools in the following categories:

• Schools that are physically located in Iowa.

• Schools that are registered in Iowa, including schools that are registered in Iowa only to provide programs via distance education.

• Any school in the U.S., if the party registering the question or complaint with Bureau of Iowa College Aid is an Iowa resident. The Bureau of Iowa College Aid may refer the inquiring party to or request the assistance of the regulatory authority in the state in which the school is located.

Complete the Bureau of Iowa College Aid Complaint Form to file a complaint with the Iowa Department of Education.

A student or the public may also wish to consider the following additional resources for vetting concerns about a school:

• The state agency that licenses or otherwise approves a school to offer specific occupational program (for example, a board of cosmetology for cosmetology school and barbering schools, or a board of nursing for schools that offer nursing programs).

• If the school is not located in Iowa, the regulatory authority in the State in which the school is located. The State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) provides a contact list of state regulators.

• For issues relating to federal student aid program eligibility or the school's management of federal student aid funds, the U.S. Department of Education's regional School Participation Team that serves the state in which the school is located. The U.S. Department of Education provides a list of School Participation Teams and the states that each Team serves.

• If the issue relates to the quality of the school's program or instruction, the school's nationally recognized accrediting agency. The U.S. Department of Education provides a website that permits the user to search on a school name to obtain the name of national, regional, and/or programmatic accrediting agency or agencies that have approved the school's programs. By clicking on an accrediting agency's name, the user may obtain the web address for the accrediting agency, where more information may be located about the accrediting agency's process for handling student complaints.

• The Consumer Protection Division of the Iowa Attorney General's Office.

Online Students—Out of State Complaint Contacts

Institutions offering distance education must provide enrolled and prospective students with contact information for filing complaints with its accrediting agency and with the appropriate state agency for handling complaints in the student's state. For information concerning filing a complaint with Hawkeye’s accrediting agency, please see the paragraph above.

Students enrolled in online classes at Hawkeye Community College who reside out-of-state should follow the formal resolution process noted earlier in this section of Consumer Information. Online students have the same rights and responsibilities as those students enrolled in on-campus courses.

Complaint Contacts by Location

Alabama—Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education

Alaska—Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education

Arizona—Arizona State Board for Private Postsecondary Education Student Grievance Procedure

Arkansas—Arkansas Department of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

California—Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education

Colorado—Colorado Department of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

Connecticut—The Office of Financial and Academic Affairs for Higher Education

Delaware—Delaware Department of Education

Florida—Florida Department of Education Student Grievance Procedure

Idaho—Idaho Board of Education Student Grievance Procedure, page 8.

Indiana—Indiana Commission on Proprietary Education

Kansas—Board of Regents Student Grievance Procedure

Kentucky—Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education Student Grievance Procedure

Louisiana—Louisiana Board of Regents Student Grievance Procedure

Maine—Maine Department of Education

Maryland—Maryland Higher Education Commission Student Grievance Procedure

Massachusetts—Massachusetts Board of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

Michigan—Michigan Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth Student Grievance Procedure

Minnesota—Minnesota Office of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

Mississippi—Mississippi Commission on College Accreditation

Missouri—Missouri Department of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

Montana—Montana University System, Montana Board of Regents

Nebraska—Nebraska Department of Education, Private Postsecondary Career Schools Complaint Form

Nevada—Nevada Commission on Postsecondary Education Student Grievance Procedure

New Hampshire—New Hampshire Postsecondary Education Commission Student Grievance Procedure

New Jersey—New Jersey Commission of Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

New Mexico—New Mexico Higher Education Department Student Grievance Procedure

North Carolina—North Carolina Community College System, Office of Proprietary School Services Student Grievance Procedure

North Dakota—North Dakota State Board for Career and Technical Education

Ohio—Ohio State Board of Career Colleges and Schools Student Grievance Procedure

Oklahoma—Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education

Oregon—Department of Education - Private and Career Schools Office

Pennsylvania—Pennsylvania Department of Education Student Grievance Procedure

Puerto Rico—Puerto Rico Council on Higher Education

South Carolina—South Carolina Commission on Higher Education Student Grievance Procedure

South Dakota—South Dakota Board of Regents Student Grievance Procedure

Tennessee—Tennessee Higher Education Commission Complaint Form

Texas—Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Student Grievance Procedure

Utah—Utah Division of Consumer Protection Student Grievance Procedure

Vermont—Vermont State Board of Education Student Grievance Procedure

Virginia—Private and Out-of-State Postsecondary Education, State Council of Higher Education for Virginia Student Grievance Procedure

Washington—Washington Student Achievement Council

Washington DC—Education Licensure Commission

West Virginia—West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission Student Grievance Procedure, Section 14 of Series 20

Wisconsin—Wisconsin Educational Approval Board Student Grievance Procedure

Also see the Student Complaint Policy.