Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1720-02-05-.12 - APPEALS

(1) Appeal of Decisions of Hearing Officers and Student Conduct Boards.

(a) Appeal Period. Except as provided in Section .13(3) of this Chapter, the decision of a Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board may be appealed to the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs by submitting a Notice of Appeal to the Office of Student Conduct in accordance with Section .12(1)(b) of this Chapter within five (5) business days of the effective date of the Notice of Decision to the appealing party. A Notice of Appeal not submitted within five (5) business days of the effective date of the Notice of Decision to the appealing party will not be considered.

(b) Notice of Appeal. A Notice of Appeal must state:

(i) the name of the party appealing the decision; and

(ii) the specific grounds for the appeal. Appeals not based on one (1) or more of the grounds provided under Section .12(1)(c) will not be considered.

(c) Grounds for Appeal. Appeals are limited to the following grounds:

1. The party's rights were violated in the hearing process;

2. New relevant and material information has become available that could not have been discovered at the time of the hearing;

3. The information presented did not support the decision by a preponderance of the evidence standard; or

4. The sanction(s) imposed were not appropriate for the violation.

(d) Response to Appeal by Non-Appealing Party. Upon receipt of a timely-submitted Notice of Appeal, the Office of Student Conduct will provide a copy of the Notice of Appeal to the non-appealing party, if applicable. The non-appealing party may respond to the appeal by submitting a written response to the Office of Student Conduct within three (3) business days of the effective date of the Notice of Appeal to the non-appealing party.

(e) Decision on Appeal.

1. Within ten (10) business days of the Office of Student Conduct's receipt of the Notice of Appeal or the non-appealing party's response to the appeal, whichever occurs later, the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs (or his or her designee) will provide notice to the parties of his or her decision.

2. The Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs (or his or her designee) may (i) uphold, amend, or overturn the decision of the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board; or (ii) return the case to the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board for reconsideration.

3. If the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs decides to uphold, amend, or overturn the decision of the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board, the decision of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs is final.

4. A decision by the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs to return the case to the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board for reconsideration may not be appealed. Any decision by the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board on reconsideration may be appealed in accordance with this Section .12.

(2) Any disciplinary sanction(s) issued by the Hearing Officer or the Student Conduct Board will remain in force throughout the pendency of an appeal, unless the Respondent requests that the disciplinary sanction(s) be stayed pending the Respondent's appeal and such a request is granted by the Hearing Officer or Student Conduct Board, as applicable.

(3) Appeal of Decisions of Title IX Hearing Officers.

(a) Appeal Period. The Complainant and the Respondent may appeal the decisions of the Title IX Hearing Officer to the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs by submitting a Notice of Appeal to the Office of Student Conduct in accordance with Section .12(3)(b) within five (5) business days of the effective date of the Notice of Decision. The Office of Student Conduct will notify a party in writing when an appeal is received from the other party. A Notice of Appeal not submitted within five (5) business days of the effective date of the Notice of Decision will not be considered.

(b) Notice of Appeal. A Notice of Appeal must state:

(i) the name of the party appealing the decision; and

(ii) the specific grounds for the appeal. Appeals not based on one (1) or more of the grounds provided under Section .12(3)(c) will not be considered.

(c) Grounds for Appeal. The Notice of Appeal shall explain the grounds for the appeal, which shall be limited to one (1) or more of the following grounds:

1. A procedural irregularity affected the outcome of the matter.

2. New evidence that was not reasonably available at the time the determination regarding responsibility was made, that could affect the outcome of the matter.

3. The Title IX Coordinator, the investigator(s), or the Title IX Hearing Officer had a conflict of interest or bias for or against complainants or respondents generally or the individual Complainant or Respondent that affected the outcome of the matter.

4. The party's rights were violated in the hearing process;

5. The sanction(s) imposed were not appropriate for the violation.

6. The information presented did not support the decision by a preponderance of the evidence standard.

(d) Effective Date of Sanction. The sanction(s) imposed by the Title IX Hearing Officer shall not be effective during the pendency of an appeal.

(e) Appeal Statements. Each party may submit a written statement in support of or challenging the outcome of the Title IX Hearing. The written statement must be received by the Office of Student Conduct within five (5) business days of the date on which the Notice of Appeal was filed, or within five (5) business days of the date on which the non-appealing party received notice that the other party filed a Notice of Appeal.

(f) Decision on Appeal. Within five (5) business days of the receipt of the last timely submitted appeal statement from a party, the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs will provide notice to the parties of his or her decision. The written notice will describe the result of the appeal and the rationale for the result, which will be provided simultaneously to both parties. The decision of the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs is final and not subject to further appeal.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1720-02-05-.12

Original rule filed May 27, 1986; effective August 12, 1986. Amendment filed March 12, 1987; effective June 29, 1987. Amendment filed June 22, 2006; effective October 27, 2006. Repeal and new rule filed April 17, 2012; effective September 28, 2012. Repeal and new rule filed September 30, 2019; effective December 29, 2019. Rule was previously numbered 1720-02-05-.11 but was renumbered 1720-02-05-.12 with the introduction of emergency rule 1720-02-05-.10 filed August 13, 2020; effective through February 9, 2021. Emergency rules filed August 13, 2020; effective through February 9, 2021. Emergency rules expired February 10, 2021, and the rules reverted to their previous statuses and numbering. Rule was previously numbered 1720-02-05-.11 but was renumbered 1720-02-05-.12 with the introduction of new rule 1720-02-05-.10 filed December 17, 2020; effective March 17, 2021. Amendments filed December 17, 2020; effective 3/17/2021.

Authority: T.C.A. § 49-9-209(e); Public Acts of Tennessee, 1839-1840, Chapter 98, Section 5; and Public Acts of Tennessee, 1807, Chapter 64.