Grade changes appeal to students

 Last year, 4,125 students attended CSU-Pueblo; of that number, a mere 12 students requested their grades be changed.

Barbara Painter of the provost’s office and a representative of the Academic Appeals Board can only come up with two reasons why most students don’t seem to know how to change their grades.

“It could be that, maybe - perhaps, some students aren’t aware that they can appeal grades, but the other issue could be the ground on which they are trying to appeal the grade is poor,” Painter said.

She went on to explain how students can justify wanting a grade change.  The Academic Board says in the 2007-2008 catalog that there’re four acceptable reasons why a grade can be changed.

The first reason for a grade change is, an error by the instructor in calculating the original grade. Reason number two, a grading decision is based on something other than performance and academic dishonesty.

The third reason a student can request a grade change is that the grade is based on an unreasonable evaluation and different rules were applied to a single student. The final reason is an unannounced or unreasonable change in the grading scale. Such as a change that was not stated in the syllabus on the first day.

When students believe they are a victim of one of the four circumstances given, they must submit a grade appeal to the department chairperson. The letter must identify on what ground they are appealing. The letter also needs to be submitted or postmarked no later than 20 days after the start of the next semester.

Painter and the CSU-Pueblo 2007 catalog strongly recommend that a student discuss the grading decision with the instructor and chairperson before making an appeal to the Academic Board. If the student is not satisfied with the result, then an appeal can be made.

If an appeal is granted, it’s the responsibility of a student to provide evidence of mistreatment. Changing a student grade, however, is not easy and is rare that the student wins the appeal.

In the fall of last year, three students requested a grade change and in the spring nine asked. Only two people were successful in their appeal. Painter advises students to monitor their grades during the semester. If they become concerned about their grade, they need to get in touch with the instructor throughout the semester.

“In my opinion - I think for the most part, the grades that are given are pretty fair.  I think that’s why we don’t have a substantial amount of appeals,” Painter said.

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