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The San Luis Obispo County Community College District/Cuesta College has strict policies which prohibit discrimination based upon race, color, religious beliefs, gender, gender identity/expression, national origin, ethnicity, age, mental or physical disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or marital status.
If you believe that you have been discriminated against, it is important to report the matter to the proper persons so that your complaint can be investigated and resolved.
It is important for students to understand the difference between a student grievance and a complaint of discrimination. A grievance is a dispute where the issue does not involve any allegation of discrimination, sexual harassment, or retaliation related to discrimination or sexual harassment.
A good example of a grievance is a dispute regarding a grade received in a class (as long as the grade dispute does not relate to discrimination, sexual harassment, or retaliation). Student grievances are handled by the process described in Board Policy 6205.
Discrimination complaints are completely different than a student grievance. A DSPS student may believe that he/she has been discriminated against because of his/her disability.
Generally, discrimination complaints may be about issues such as:
Also, the Board Policy and the law prohibit discrimination based upon a variety of other reasons, such as race, religion, skin color, national origin, and other classifications more fully described in Board Policy 1565.
You can file a complaint if you feel you have been discriminated against because of your disability.
Generally, discrimination complaints related to persons who have physical or mental disabilities may be about issues such as:
Complaints should be filed as soon as possible, in accordance with the filing instructions described in Board Policy 1565. The summary below provides an overview and Board Policy 1565 provides complete filing timelines. (http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/DSPS/0bdpol.htm)
You may want to discuss your complaint with Cuesta College first; sometimes this can expedite a resolution. However, you are not required to discuss your complaint with Cuesta College first.
Board Policy 1565 describes how you can file a complaint with Cuesta College and/or the State Chancellor's Office, and a form (for filing a complaint) appears as the last page of Board Policy 1565.
You may also file a non-employment-based complaint with the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education (OCR) where such a complaint is within that agency's jurisdiction.
If your complaint is employment-related, you may also file a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and/or the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) where such a complaint is within that agency's jurisdiction.
Cuesta College Board Policy 1565 (http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/DSPS/0bdpol.htm ) provides complete instructions regarding the process, the summary below provide an overview of the process.
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(This is only a summary; please see Board Policy 1565)
INFORMAL/FORMAL COMPLAINT PROCEDURE:
1) You have the right to request that the charges be resolved informally, at which time the District will undertake efforts to informally resolve the charges. TO START THE INFORMAL COMPLAINT PROCESS, PLEASE CONTACT THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES AND LABOR RELATIONS IN THE ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, ROOM 8003, OR BY PHONE AT (805) 546-3129.
2) You do not need to participate in informal resolution;
3) You have the right to file a formal complaint (see below for the procedure in doing so);
4) You will not be required to confront or work out problems with the person accused of unlawful discrimination;
5) You may file a non-employment-based complaint with the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education (OCR) where such a complaint is within that agency's jurisdiction.
6) If your complaint is employment-related, you may file a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and/or the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) where such a complaint is within that agency's jurisdiction.
PURPOSE OF THE INFORMAL RESOLUTION PROCESS
The purpose of the informal resolution process is to allow an individual who believes she/he has been unlawfully discriminated against to resolve the issue through a mediation process rather than the formal complaint process. Typically, the informal process will be invoked when there is a simple misunderstanding or the complainant does not wish to file a formal complaint. Resolution of an informal complaint may require nothing more than a clarification of the misunderstanding or an apology from the respondent and an assurance that the offending behavior will cease. You will be notified of the outcome of the investigation in the informal process, and will also be notified of the resolution proposed by the District.
If you pursue the informal process, you should note the following important points:
1) You will need to sign a document which indicates that you have selected the informal resolution process.
2) The District will complete its investigation within the time required by Board Policy 1565 (attached) unless you voluntarily rescind your complaint prior to completion.
3) Selecting the informal resolution process does not prevent you from later deciding to file a formal complaint (subject to all of the rules for filing a formal complaint). For example, if you are not satisfied with the outcome of the informal investigation or the District's proposed resolution, you may elect to file a formal complaint.
HOW TO FILE A FORMAL COMPLAINT:
1) A FORMAL COMPLAINT MUST BE INITIATED BY FILLING OUT THE FORM APPROVED BY THE STATE CHANCELLOR'S OFFICE. That form is attached as the last page of board policy 1565, and has the title heading of "Unlawful Discrimination Complaint Form." YOU MUST SEND THAT COMPLETED FORM TO EITHER: (A) SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT, ATTN: EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES AND LABOR RELATIONS, ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, ROOM 8003, SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA 93403-8106; OR (B) CHANCELLOR'S OFFICE, CALIFORNIA COMMUNITY COLLEGES, 1102 Q STREET, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA 95814-6511, ATTENTION: LEGAL AFFAIRS DIVISION
2) The complaint must allege unlawful discrimination prohibited under Title 5, section 59300.
3) The complaint must be filed by one who alleges that he or she has personally suffered unlawful discrimination or by one who has learned of such unlawful discrimination in his or her official capacity as a faculty member or administrator.
4) In any complaint not involving employment, the complaint must be filed within one year of the date of the alleged unlawful discrimination or within one year of the date on which the complainant knew or should have known of the facts underlying the specific incident or incidents of alleged unlawful discrimination.
5) In any complaint alleging discrimination in employment, the complaint shall be filed within 180 days of the date the alleged unlawful discrimination occurred, except that this period will be extended by no more than 90 days following the expiration of that 180 days if the complainant first obtained knowledge of the facts of the alleged violation after the expiration of 180 days.
The District will then complete an "Administrative Determination." Within 90 days of receiving an unlawful discrimination complaint filed under Title 5, sections 59300 et seq., the District will complete the investigation and forward a copy of the investigative report (containing the administrative determination) to the State Chancellor, a copy or summary of the report to the complainant, and written notice setting forth all the following to both the complainant and the State Chancellor:
1) The determination as to whether there is probable cause to believe discrimination occurred with respect to each allegation in the complaint;
2) A description of actions taken, if any, to prevent similar problems from occurring in the future;
3) The proposed resolution of the complaint; and
4) The complainant's right to appeal to the District Board of Trustees and the State Chancellor.
Complainants have appeal rights that they may exercise if they are not satisfied with the results of the District's administrative determination. At the time the administrative determination and summary is mailed to the complainant, the responsible District officer or his or her designee shall notify the complainant of his or her appeal rights as follows:
ALL APPEALS MUST BE IN WRITING (e-mail is not a satisfactory method).
First level of appeal: The complainant has the right to file an appeal to the District's Board of Trustees within 15 days from the date of the administrative determination. The District's Board of Trustees will review the original complaint, the investigative report, the administrative determination, and the appeal.
In order to appeal to the Board of Trustees, please send a written request within the required time period to the attention of: "President, Board of Trustees, Cuesta College, P.O. Box 8106, San Luis Obispo, CA 93403."
The District's Board of Trustees will issue a final District decision in the matter within 45 days after receiving the appeal. Alternatively, the District's Board of Trustees may elect to take no action within 45 days, in which case the original decision in the administrative determination will be deemed to be affirmed and shall become the final District decision in the matter. A copy of the final decision rendered by the District's Board of Trustees will be forwarded to the complainant and to the State Chancellor's Office.
Second level of appeal: The complainant has the right to file an appeal with the California Community College Chancellor's Office in any case not involving employment-related discrimination within 30 days from the date that the District's Board of Trustees issues the final District decision or permits the administrative determination to become final by taking no action within 45 days. The appeal must be accompanied by a copy of the decision of the Board of Trustees or evidence showing the date on which the complainant filed an appeal with the Board of Trustees, and a statement under penalty of perjury that no response was received from the Board of Trustees within 45 days from that date.
If you have a question about the Rehabilitation Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act:
Contact DSPS:
DSPS (dspsinfo@cuesta.edu) can provide you with information about your rights and may be
able to help you resolve a problem.
Contact Cuesta College's ADA Coordinator:
All public colleges are required to have an ADA Coordinator. The Coordinator
will provide you with information about the ADA and give you information
on how to file a complaint or seek an informal resolution.
The San Luis Obispo County Community College District/Cuesta College designated officer for handling any complaints regarding discrimination (including ADA complaints) or sexual harassment is the Executive Director of Human Resources and Labor Relations. The designated officer can be reached as follows:
San Luis Obispo County Community College District/Cuesta College
Executive Director of Human Resouces and Labor Relations
J. Vard and Gladys Loomis Administration Building, Room 8003
P.O. Box 8106
San Luis Obispo, CA 93403-8106
(805) 546-3129
The summary of rights for making unlawful discrimination claims on this
webpage is only a summary. Please see the District's formal policy, available
at this link: http://academic.cuesta.edu/president/BP/BP1000/1565.pdf
This link below is part of the official site for the ADA. On this site you can order/download many materials regarding the ADA for free.
Warning! "The following links will take you to sites outside the Cuesta College web server. Cuesta College has no control over the content or availability of these sites."
