Student Handbook

Manhattan School of Music is committed to fairness and transparency.  To live up to those values, we have created policies and procedures to address student concerns.  In addition to our Title IX & Non-discrimination Policies, through which MSM addresses sexual misconduct allegations, and to the Judicial Hearing Process, through which MSM addresses violations of our Student Code of Conduct, the following procedures have been put in place:

Academic Grievance Process:

We recommend that a student wishing to register a complaint about course instruction or grading should first discuss the matter with the course instructor or department chair.  The student may turn to the Dean of Students to help facilitate the conversation with the faculty member or department chair.  The student can alert the Dean to the situation through a face to face meeting, an email or through filling out the Grievance Report Form.

If a student contacts an instructor, the course instructor must address the inquiry within three (3) business days (note: faculty are not required to respond during the Winter Break, but are required to respond to any initiated discussion filed within two weeks of the issuance of the grade at the end of the spring semester even though this is during the summer holiday). If the matter is not resolved in a discussion with the faculty member, the student may address the complaint to the department chairperson via email; the student has five (5) business days to initiate a discussion with the department chairperson, who has five (5) business days to respond following the same guidelines as those pertaining to the faculty member.

If neither step resolves the complaint, the student may make a formal statement, in writing, within five (5) business days of receiving communication from the department chairperson to the Dean of Academic Affairs for final review and decision. The Dean of Academic Affairs has five (5) business days to respond following the same guidelines as those pertaining to the faculty member. The Dean of Academic Affairs’ decision shall be final.  One exception to this procedure is if the student filing the grievance is a doctoral student.  In that case, the request for final review and decision should be submitted to the Provost, and the Provost’s decision is final.

Appealing an Academic Dismissal

The Committee on Academic Progress reviews students’ academic progress each semester.  The Committee reviews sanctions for unsatisfactory academic progress up to and including dismissal.  On the rare occasion that a student is dismissed, any appeal may be directed to the Provost at provost@msmnyc.edu for final decision. 

Non-Academic Grievance Process:

A student wishing to register a complaint about a non-academic matter should fill out a Grievance Report Form including a) the nature of the problem(s), (b) the name of the individual(s) involved, and c) the result of any previous effort made to resolve the matter informally. The Dean of Students responds to the Grievance Report, contacts the student, and the person(s) named in the statement and attempts to resolve the matter informally. If informal discussion fails to resolve the problem, the grievance and any supporting documentation are submitted to a panel consisting of the Dean of Students, the Dean of Performance and Production Operations, the Dean of Academic Affairs and the Associate Vice-President of Finance and Controller.  (Note: any of these officials whose direct reports are key figures related to the disputed matter will recuse themselves from decision-making in the matter).  The student initiating the grievance procedure is notified by the Dean about the issue’s resolution, normally within two (2) weeks of the abandonment of informal resolution efforts. Students who are dissatisfied with the decision of the Dean of Students have three (3) business days to appeal to the Provost (appeal may be in the form of an email, with the word “Appeal” in the subject line). The student initiating the appeal is notified by the Provost, normally within two (2) weeks of the receipt of the appeal.

Students may seek guidance from appropriate administrative officers or faculty on how to resolve minor issues that may arise, but are not grievances.

Twice a year, the Committee on Academic Progress reviews all grievance resolutions to make sure the processes are functioning as intended.

Submit a Grievance Form

For Students enrolled in a distance education (i.e., online or remote learning) course/program:

For any student who is residing outside of the State of NY  and was unable to resolve a non-academic grievance related to an online or remote learning course to their satisfaction, they may file a complaint with the New York State Education Department (NYSED). The Office of College and University  Evaluation (OCUE) serves as the State Portal Entity for distance education offered to out-of-state students under the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA). Complaints must be filed within two years of the incident about which the complaint is made. An overview of the SARA complaint procedures are viewable here. Students may access the State Portal Entity’s (NYSED’s) complaint information page here.

Andrea Richards

Supervisor of Higher Education Programs

518.474.1551

IHEauthorize@nysed.gov

New York State Education Department
89 Washington Ave
Albany, NY 12234