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This month, I wanted to take the opportunity to talk about complaints, the policies that you must adhere to, and how to address complaints as a board.
All CSI schools have their own grievance policy and procedures that have been approved by your board. Although schools have the autonomy to set these up in a manner that works best for them, they are required to ensure that their policy adheres to the CSI Grievance Policy, which follows a tiered system that requires:
- Complaints/grievances start with the person they are addressed to at the school level and then move up through the chain of command at the school level up to the school leader.
- If the complainant believes there has not been a sufficient resolution at the school leadership level, they are then directed to submit the complaint to the school’s board.
- If the complainant believes there has not been a satisfactory resolution from the school board, then a grievant can submit their complaint to CSI, specifically the Executive Director.
Complaints are reviewed by CSI only after all other remedies have been exhausted through the school’s Grievance Policy. Although complaints do not make it to CSI often, the majority that do are because the grievant feels as though their complaint was not sufficiently considered and addressed by the school board. Typically, this is because the complainant is seeking redress in an open meeting or a response from the entire board rather than one member.
One way to address this issue is to include them as an agenda item, which the board can review and discuss and then request follow up if needed. Additionally, if responding by email or letter to a complaint, ensure that the entire board reviewed the complaint and responded as a group rather than allowing only one individual to address it. This approach has been effective at resolving complaints quickly and seamlessly for boards.
Should others from your school wish to be included in these monthly emails, they are more than welcome and can sign up here.
Anastasia
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