Student Appeal Procedures

There are several types of student appeals at Eastern Florida State College. Check below for information and procedures for each type. In any appeal, the burden of persuasion lies with the student, as the original result(s) shall be presumptively reasonable and appropriate.

Trespass Appeals

In the event a student has been trespassed from college property, any appeals will be handled in accordance with the process defined by college procedures related to trespass in Section 201.7.

Code of Conduct Appeals

The process for Student Code of Conduct appeals is set forth throughout Section 201.5 in the College Procedures. Refer to the Conduct process outlined in the EFSC Catalog for details. Any disciplinary sanctions will not be held in abeyance during the appellate process.

Academic, Administrative and Financial Appeals

Definitions as outlined in Section 201.6 in the College Procedures:

Academic Appeals: Academic appeals are any appeals concerning final grade or final activity within the classroom.

Administrative Appeals: Administrative appeals include issues with administration, registration, and late withdrawals or drops due to medical problems or other extenuating circumstances.
Financial Appeals: There are two kinds of Financial Appeals:
- Tuition Refund or Credit - Students may appeal through the Collegewide Chair for a tuition refund, credit or exemption to full cost tuition.
- Hardship Appeals for Financial Assistance - Related to awarding of Federal, state, institutional or private financial assistance. Students are required to have completed a FAFSA for the term being appealed with the Financial Aid Office.

how to submit: academic, administrative or financial appeals

Prior to submitting the formal appeal form, students must address the concern as soon as possible in a non-confrontational manner with the appropriate faculty or staff member.
- Academic: Discuss with instructor. If not resolved, discuss with Collegewide Chair
- Administrative/Tuition Refund or Credit: Discuss with Collegewide Chair
- Tuition Credit or Refund: Apply for the tuition credit/refund with the appropriate Collegewide Chair. The student must fill out the Collegewide Tuition Credit Request Form (Form SCA 087). Documentation must be provided with the form in order for it to be processed.
- Hardship Appeals for Financial Assistance: Students are required to have completed a FAFSA for the term being appealed. Discuss specific hardship concerns with a Financial Aid Office staff member.

If not resolved through Step 1, the student may submit a formal appeal form with attached documentation to support extenuating circumstances to the appropriate office. (See more about extenuating circumstances below). The student should use the appropriate form based on the type of appeal, with forms available through the college website or from the Collegewide Chairs.
- Student Appeal Form for academic or administrative issue (Form SCA-074A)
- Student Appeal Form Late Add/Schedule Adjustment Form (Form SCA-074B)
- Appeal for Exception to Maximum Attempts per Course (4th attempt by exception: Form SC-111)
- Appeal for Exemption to Full Cost Requirement for 3rd/4th Course Attempt (Form SCA-080)

Information about appeal forms, as well as additional information regarding the appeal process, is available through each Collegewide Chair's office. Appeals will only be accepted within two years from the date of the incident or issue on which the appeal is based. Documents can be submitted to the appropriate collegewide chair through the secure, electronic Student Document Dropbox available after logging in to the myEFSC Portal. Each academic discipline is listed in the "Select Office" dropdown section of the dropbox. View details on using the dropbox.

Academic, Administrative or Tuition Credit/Refund Appeals: Submit through the appropriate Collegewide Chair using the Secure Dropbox process described above.

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Chair:
Dean is interim contact: Dr. Phil Simpson
Email: simpsonp@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5150

Career & Technical: Computer Science and Advanced Technology Chair: Dr. Michael Daniels
Email: danielsm@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5205
(Includes Aerospace, Computer Science and Cybersecurity A.S. and BAS, Culinary, Drafting, Engineering Technology, Graphics, TV/Digital Media)

Career & Technical: Business and Applied Technology Chair: Mr. Andrew Lieb
Email: lieba@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5411
(Includes Accounting, Aviation, Business & Entrepreneurship A.S., Organizational Management BAS, Cosmetology, Economics, HVAC, Legal Assisting/Paralegal, Office Administration, and Welding)

Communications and Library Science Chair: Dr. Sharon Cronk-Raby
Email: cronk-rabys@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5703

Education, Human Services, Behavioral Science, Criminal Justice & Crime Scene Technology Chair:
Dr. Holly McKnight
Email: mcknighth@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5355

Health Sciences: Hospital-Based Chair: Dr. Karen Spurlock
Email: spurlockk@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5042

Health Sciences: Community-Based Chair: Ms. Marianne D'Altilio
Email: daltiliom@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-7151

Mathematics and Engineering Chair: Ms. Beth Rountree
Email: rountreeb@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-7183

Natural and Physical Sciences Chair: Mr. Jimmy Gamez
Email: gamezj@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-7653

Public Safety Dean and Chair: Mr. Steve Salvo
Email: salvos@easternflorida.edu Phone: 321-433-5775
Hardship Appeals for Financial Assistance: Contact the Financial Aid Office to submit a Financial Hardship Appeal form.

What are extenuating circumstances? Examples of extenuating circumstances include, but are not limited to: Student suffered serious illness, injury, or disability; loss due to natural disaster; involuntary call to active military duty; victim of crime or abuse; significant breakdown of family relationship or serious illness, injury or death of immediate family member; administrative error made by an EFSC employee or, in the case of a dual enrolled student, the high school administrator.

Extenuating circumstances do not include issues such as transportation, roommate problems, incompatibility with faculty, difficult course load, dislike of a course, short term problem such as a cold that occurred during the course, technical problems such as a corrupted disk or lack of printer, personal disruptions or events which could have been anticipated, pressures of study workload, etc.

Documentation to confirm any extenuating circumstances is required and must include specific dates and time periods. It may include, but is not limited to: Statement from medical or mental health provider, on letterhead and signed, that confirms student’s medical condition and that student is able to return to school without restrictions.; Death certificate or obituary.; Court documents, police reports, insurance damage reports.; Letters from clergy or lawyer on letterhead and signed.; Letters from faculty, advisor, or others who are aware of the situation; must be signed and include name, title, address and telephone number.
If the concern is not resolved at Step 2,
1. For academic or administrative concerns, the student may request in writing, through the Collegewide Chair's office, a review by the Dean of Arts and Social Sciences/Eastern Florida Online, the Dean of Career and Technical Education and Applied Technology, the Dean of Nursing and Applied Health Sciences, or the Dean of STEM and Business. The request must be received within ten days of student notification of the resolution and must contain additional documentation that is pertinent to the appeal. The decision of the Dean is final.
2. For Financial concerns, the student may request an appeal to the Student Financial Appeals Committee (SFAC). The SFAC is comprised of the EFSC Controller, Director of Financial Aid, Registrar, and Advising Coordinator. The SFAC will evaluate the student’s need, academic and financial history with EFSC, as well as the student’s compliance and responsiveness to college financial aid policies and procedures. The SFAC will make recommendations to the Chief Financial Officer. The decision of the Chief Financial Officer is final.
If the student feels that the established procedures were violated, the student may request an administrative review by the Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs. This is NOT a re-trial of the incident, but a procedural review. The request for administrative review must be made in writing through the Dean's office within five days of receiving notification of the resolution. The decision of the Associate Vice President is final, except as to matters involving suspension or expulsion.

If the student feels that the complaint has not been resolved he/she may visit the Florida College System Complaint Procedure Information webpage for information on how to file a complaint if it is believed that the complaint warrants additional investigation.

Distance Education students who have completed the internal institutional grievance process and the applicable state grievance process may appeal non-instructional complaints to the Florida State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (FL-SARA) Postsecondary Reciprocal Distance Education Coordinating (PRDEC) Council. For additional information on the complaint process, please visit the FL-SARA Complaint Process Page.

Inquiries regarding the College’s Equal Opportunity Policies, including Title IX (gender discrimination) and Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (disabled discrimination) and equity issues in general may be directed to:
Ms. Darla Ferguson, Chief Equity and Diversity Officer
Cocoa Campus, George Washington Carver Administration Building 2
1519 Clearlake Road, Cocoa, FL 32922
Email: fergusond@easternflorida.edu
Phone: 321-433-7080