II.C. FACULTY GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE FOR FACULTY MEMBERS
"Swarthmore College is committed to the principle of equal opportunity for all qualified persons without discrimination against any person by reason of sex, sexual preference, race, color, age, religion, national origin, or handicap.
In keeping with the long-standing traditions of the College and the spirit and letter of the federal and state equal opportunity laws, we affirm it the standing policy of the College to realize equality of opportunity in education and employment; to guard against discrimination contrary to that aim; and to correct discriminatory behavior if found to exist within the college community. Consistent with maintaining an educational program of the highest quality, our standing policy includes affirmative efforts to achieve the above goals in employment and education.
The above policy has been and shall be further implemented by the President and by members of the faculty and administration designated by the President for that purpose." (Adopted by the Board of Managers 1 March 1975, with amendments 24 April 1976,3 December 1977, and 7 December 1985.)
Equal Opportunity Officer
Inquiries concerning equal opportunity policies and practices should be addressed to the Equal Opportunity Officer of the College.
II.C. FACULTY GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE FOR FACULTY MEMBERS
A faculty grievance is an allegation of inappropriate discrimination or substantial unfairness, relating to one's work as a faculty member. Such a grievance may include but is not limited to discrimination on grounds of sex, sexual preference, race, color, age, religion, national origin, or handicap.
This grievance procedure applies to all faculty members of Swarthmore College including full-time and part-time, whether or not appointed to regular faculty rank. A faculty member who wishes to have a grievance considered by the College is required to follow this procedure, except for a complaint involving a reappointment decision or a termination; in which case, the procedure in the Faculty Handbook sections entitled "Review of Appointment Renewal Decisions" and "Termination of Appointments" shall be employed.
A faculty member who asserts a grievance is expected to make timely and good-faith efforts first to resolve that grievance through consultation without resort to the faculty grievance procedure. Among the steps deemed appropriate are: discussing the grievance with the person or persons who appear to be responsible for it; discussing the grievance with the Department Chair; discussing the grievance with the Provost.
The faculty member may consult the College Equal Opportunity Officer at any time, informally and confidentially, about grievance procedure and/or means available for mediation, conciliation, or formal investigation of a grievance, whether or not the grievance is technically concerned with equal opportunity.
The Procedure
1. The faculty member may initiate the grievance procedure, whether or not the grievance is an equal opportunity grievance, by notifying the Equal Opportunity Officer in writing of a desire to do so, setting forth the nature of the grievance and the measures taken to resolve it informally. The Equal Opportunity Officer may discuss the grievance with the faculty member, seek further information, or advise the faculty member of further steps that may be taken informally.
2. Policy Issue. Upon receiving written notification of a grievance, the Equal Opportunity Officer shall consult with the faculty representatives of the Equal Opportunity Advisory Committee to determine whether the grievance raises issues of policy. If the Equal Opportunity Officer and the faculty representatives of the Equal Opportunity Advisory Committee conclude that the grievance involves a policy issue, such that it might well be resolved by a change in College policy or procedure, the Equal Opportunity Officer shall then consult appropriate administrators concerning the current College policy. The Equal Opportunity Officer shall then notify the President in writing of the policy issue raised by the grievance and may recommend to the President changes in policy. The President shall initiate procedures in a timely fashion to provide for a review of the policy by the appropriate agencies of the College. The President may consult with the faculty member and with other affected parties about changes of policy or a remedy for the aggrieved party. The faculty member shall be notified in writing of the President's decision or decisions.
3. Individual grievance: informal disposition. If it is concluded that the individual grievance does not raise a policy issue or cannot be adequately resolved as such, the Equal Opportunity Officer may take steps directed toward its informal disposition. Such steps may include discussion of the grievance with the faculty member's Department Chair and with the Provost. The Equal Opportunity Officer may consult with others and may arrange a meeting involving the faculty member, the Equal Opportunity Officer, and others in an attempt to resolve the grievance.
The faculty member may seek or the Equal Opportunity Officer may recommend mediation or conciliation of the grievance. The faculty member may request mediation or conciliation either by the Equal Opportunity Officer or by another member of the Swarthmore College faculty. In the latter case, the parties to the dispute may agree among themselves upon such a person. If they do not agree, the Equal Opportunity Officer may suggest a method of selection or, failing acceptance of that, may ask the COFP to recommend a method of selection. In exceptional cases, the faculty member may request of COFP that an outside faculty member, acceptable to both parties, be appointed to act as mediator or conciliator.
In mediation or conciliation the primary aim is to resolve the grievance so as to restore or enhance conditions of professional collegiality and of productive professional work. This will normally entail taking steps toward achieving a common understanding by all parties to the grievance or the problems that gave rise to it.
4. Individual grievance: formal disposition. A formal disposition of an individual grievance entails a determination of the basic facts of the issue by a faculty committee, as provided for below, and a finding that the facts do or do not substantiate the grievance. The ultimate finding may be accompanied by a recommendation to the President for redress of the grievance. Final action is the responsibility of the President, even if the President is named as a party to the grievance.
A faculty member who concludes that he or she has a grievance and who has failed despite timely and good-faith efforts to resolve that grievance consultatively may invoke the faculty grievance procedure. This request should be made in writing to the Equal Opportunity Officer. The letter should include the following:
a. A statement of the particulars of the grievance, including a specification of the grievance itself and allegations with respect to the act or acts constituting the grievance and the person or persons responsible for those acts.
b. A statement detailing steps taken by the faculty member to resolve the grievance through consultation.
The faculty member may consult with the Equal Opportunity Officer or with anyone else for advice in preparing these statements.
Upon receipt of the request and supporting statements, the Equal Opportunity Officer shall notify the COFP of that request and include a copy of the faculty member's request. COFP shall as soon as possible but in any case within 30 days of receipt of the request appoint a committee of three to five faculty members of whom at least a majority shall be tenured. COFP shall appoint one of the tenured members to chair the Committee.
The committee will proceed in private as it deems best, resolving by majority vote any issues relating to procedure or its ultimate findings, with provision for minority reports. Counsel may be made available for consultation by the Committee upon approval by the President. The Committee may consult with or interview whomever it chooses in reaching its determinations.
If the Committee determines either that the faculty member has failed to make good-faith efforts to resolve the grievance through consultation prior to invoking the grievance procedure or that the faculty member has failed to establish a prima facie case of a grievance, it shall so notify the faculty member. The faculty member shall have an opportunity to respond within reasonable time; but if the Committee remains convinced either that good-faith efforts were lacking or that a prima facie case was not established, it shall so notify the faculty member in writing and terminate the grievance procedure. The Committee will also report its determination,with or without recommendations, to the President and to the Equal Opportunity Officer.
If the faculty member is not satisfied with this disposition and wishes to pursue the matter further, he or she may request information from the Equal Opportunity Officer about other remedies available from state or federal agencies.
If the Committee determines that the faculty member has made good faith efforts toward an informal resolution of the grievance and that a prima facie case for the grievance has been established, it shall proceed to a formal determination, to which the following provisions apply.
a. The Committee will proceed by considering the faculty member's allegations with respect to the grievance and determine whether the evidence, considered altogether, substantially establishes the grievance. Once submitted to the Committee, neither the grievance nor the allegations supporting it may be amended except following further attempts at conciliation or mediation or except when the Committee concludes that justice would not be served by denying the amendment(s).
b. The Committee need not adhere to strict rules of evidence and may consider any evidence of probative value with respect to the issues involved.
c. The burden of proof shall rest with the faculty member asserting the grievance; but the Committee shall not be foreclosed from seeking additional evidence, relating to the grievance, on its own initiative.
d. The Committee shall have the power to conduct the proceedings in an orderly manner. The Committee may secure the presentation of evidence and attendance of witnesses concerning facts in dispute and may expect to have the assistance of the College administration in obtaining the attendance of witnesses. The Committee may, at any time it deems appropriate, exclude any or all other persons and deliberate in private.
e. The faculty member and the person or persons complained againstshall each be permitted to choose a faculty colleague to serve in the capacity of adviser and to accompany them in their appearances before the Committee. A representative of the College administration may also be present, at the Committee's discretion, during the taking of testimony.
f. The faculty member and the person or persons complained against shall, at some stage or stages of the proceedings, appear together before the Committee, testify, and respond to one another.
g. The deliberations of the Committee and testimony given before the Committee shall be confidential but for the specific exceptions provided below. Obligations to respect the confidentiality of the testimony, the proceedings, and the recommendations and reports of the Committee extend to all members of the College community and to all persons involved in the proceedings. Violations of confidentiality by any party may be considered with prejudice by the Committee.
h. At any point in its proceedings the Committee, on its own initiative or in response to the parties, may recommend further efforts at conciliation or mediation and may suspend its proceedings during this period.
The Committee shall formulate an initial determination as to whether the evidence, considered altogether, substantially establishes the grievance. Its determination shall include a statement, with appropriate specificity, of the facts and the conclusions from these facts that support their decision. This statement shall be given to the faculty member, to the person or persons complained against, to the Equal Opportunity Officer, and to the President. Within a reasonable time, but not more than 30 days, either the faculty member or the person or persons complained against may:
a. initiate further attempts at conciliation or mediation;
b. make a request for amendments in the determination of the facts or conclusions from those facts. This request should be in writing and may be supported by oral argument.
In discussing the interim report with the faculty member or with the person or persons complained against, the Committee will strive at all times to preserve confidentiality, especially with respect to those not parties to the dispute, except that confidential information may be divulged by the Committee with the consent of the affected parties, or after notification of the affected parties and insofar as necessary to procedural fairness.
After the Committee has received and considered the faculty member's comments and those of the person or persons complained against, it shall proceed to a final determination. Its final determination shall include an explicit and reasoned statement of the Committee's conclusion with respect to the merits of the grievance.
Copies of the Committee's statement shall be given to the faculty member, to the person or persons complained against, to the President, and to the Equal Opportunity Officer.
Whether or not the Committee finds merit in the complaint, it may make recommendations for disposition of the complaint or for dealing with the circumstances that gave rise to it, in writing, to the President.
The President shall decide what further steps to take, either to redress the grievance or to act upon advice given by the Committee, informing the Committee and the parties of the decision and giving the reasons for it.
Approved by the Faculty, 26 May 1987
Approved by the Board of Managers, 19 September 1987