Older college student - Grievance Procedure Mishandled

[robinkieck]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Iowa

I don’t know what happened. I was a good student and was in the Elementary Education program at Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I was in the program in the fall of 2008, my grades were good and I was enjoying my classes. I was in classes for two years and was basically told to leave the program. It is now May 9, 2011; I am not in school now, I want to complete this degree with a few classes to go but I was told by Mount Mercy I had to go through the whole registration process again. I received a BA in Psychology in June of 1983 from Mount Mercy, but that is not taken into consideration by the school.
It is now May 9, 2011, and I am not in school. I was told by Mount Mercy I had to go through the whole registration process again. I received a BA in Psychology in June of 1983 from Mount Mercy, but that is not taken into consideration by the school.
I am now 56 years old with a $40,000 debt from this school and struggling to get employed. I don’t know where to go for assistance since I have already spent a sizable amount of money for an attorney to represent me in a case which accomplished nothing and to this day this whole matter has me completely befuddled since he wouldn’t even represent me at our meeting.
If you are interested, I have outlined the course of events below for you to peruse. If you can recommend another approach to this difficult issue, I certainly would be most grateful. I feel I have so much to offer as an intelligent person but time goes by without resolution on this issue and without the knowledge of how I can get this matter settled, there is not much I can do.

The following is in a timeline format to simplify the details of issues between Mount Mercy College and me:
Sep. – Dec. 2009
I had a field experience with the Reading and Language Arts Methods course at St. Joseph Elementary in Marion, Iowa with a first year teacher.
October
Neither the cooperating teacher nor my course instructor gave me a mid-term evaluation for the Reading and Language Arts course as it is outlined in the Teacher’s Education Preparation manual.
November 30, 2009
Head of Education came into a lecture during a Reading and Language Arts class at Mount Mercy and handed me the form “Student Screening Fall 2009 forms” and verbally said to complete by first week of classes in January.
December 2009
At the end of the year, I was told I had failed the field experience but passed the class.
January 2010
Month of January - I took an interim class in Diagnostic Reading.
Jan. 8 – Received letter from Education Dept. stating I missed the deadline for student screening form on Jan. 4
Jan. 14 – Head of Dept. and my academic advisor met with me to inform me I was no longer in the Education Program.
February
Feb. 1 Began classes in math and science methods.
Feb. 3 Head of the Education department informed me I had to drop the education courses I was currently enrolled in.
Feb. 5 Dropped courses in Elementary Education courses and enrolled in courses unrelated to the education courses. Courses were not required to complete degree.
Feb. 11 Discussed with husband about tuition costs and decided to discontinued classes altogether.
Feb. 12 Withdrew from Mount Mercy College.
Feb. 15 I attempted to arrange to meet with the Head of the Department and the instructor for the course to discuss the details surrounding the issue regarding the field experience. Head of Education department denied me a meeting.
March 16 I sought assistance in getting this matter resolved through the college counseling services but was denied assistance since I was no longer a student.
April 7 I sent a letter outlining the details of the situation to the president of Mount Mercy College.
Apr. 9 Received a response from president stating a brief meeting would be arranged with him and key personnel.
Apr. 12 President’s secretary schedules meeting for May 15th.
Apr. 15 President’s secretary sent me an email correcting herself saying the meeting was intended for April 15th so meeting was rescheduled for May 12th.
May ? Received call from President’s secretary to cancel meeting. President was going to be out of town.
May 24 I emailed the provost to reschedule for sometime in early June.
May 25 Provost responded with no knowledge about the issues.
June 1 I sent an email stating I had called and emailed him on several occasions to settle on a date for the meeting with no response in return.
June 1 I sent another email and on my own, set a day and time.
June 2 The secretary responded by confirming June 8 at 3:00 as I requested.
June 8 We had the meeting. Those present were the head of the Education Department, the provost, my mother (act on my behalf as a witness and support) and myself. The Department Head had said prior to the beginning of the meeting that the meeting would not accomplish anything. Neither she nor the provost would hear or look at evidence I had prepared to support my position. The meeting ended with no resolution.

I HAD AN ATTORNEY WHO I PAID A LOT OF MONEY WHO DID VIRTUALLY NOTHING TO HELP ME!

 

[Zigner]

This forum is not a place to get referrals.

Would you like to ask a question about your specific situation?

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Iowa

My story is lengthy and therefore beyond the scope of this forum.

This is a summary of what happened: it can be very challenging on a collaborative level (social) when working with the school staff. I have concluded instructors can get intimidated by older students in a classroom setting.
I have been told I am a kind and intelligent person. I loved my classes and worked very hard to do well but I was just short of finishing my degree in the fall of 2010 when the head of the Education department forced me out of the program in the spring of 2010.
I now have a $40,000 tuition debt and am struggling to get employed to pay off this debt.
The school would not give me a voice as the Grievance procedure was not properly executed. I paid for legal counsel from an attorney with little experience with matters of this sort.
I have asked many people and agencies for help but so far no one has taken the time to listen to my side of the story. Perhaps you can recommend or refer to me a person or agency that has dealt with matters such as this?
I appreciate your time in assisting me with this terrible problem.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

This is a place to ask questions, I'm sorry but we don't do referrals here. Even if we did without more clarity no one would be able to offer you much of anything.

 

[Humusluvr]

Jan. 14 – Head of Dept. and my academic advisor met with me to inform me I was no longer in the Education Program.

Why were you removed? For missing a deadline on the school survey? Were you terminated in writing, by email, or have some specific reason?

Can you enroll elsewhere? Transfer your credits?

Is there something you aren't saying here about why your CAN'T be employed as a teacher?

 

[robinkieck]

Questions answered - thanks for asking them!

Why were you removed? For missing a deadline on the school survey?

​

In the fall of 2008, I was diagnosed with ADHD and was trying to arrange for accommodations with the school's Academic Center for Excellence (ACE). Like most things, it dragged out until January. And yes, I did miss a deadline but in that same week, I had arranged to meet with the director at the ACE office to put together a plan to make my last year successful. I was getting good grades but I was having problems with staying focused. I had tried on several occasions to contact the head of the Education department to discuss this with her prior to the deadline for the student teacher's application.

Were you terminated in writing, by email, or have some specific reason?

​

I finally managed to arrange to meet with the head of Ed. with the intention to explain to her I was working with the ACE department. When I went into the meeting with the Ed. Head, she and my advisor had already made up their minds about 'encouraging' me to retake the class in which I failed the field experience. I would have had to wait another year to retake it and with the instructor's inconsistent teaching performance, there were no guarantees I would have passed that one. I actually did very well in the course work and unfortunately the department had assigned as a cooperating teacher, a first year teacher. That concerned me along with the fact my instructor didn't meet with the teacher and me for a midterm evaluation as outlined in the Teacher's Education Preparation manual. I was never given an opportunity to explain any of this at the Grievance meeting. I have so much documentation from emails to my instructor, the first year teacher, the ACE director and didn't get to share any of it because the grievance procedure was so casual; the only two staff members that did attend, the Ed. Head and a Provost, said before the meeting, that the meeting was a waste of time because the department head had already made up her mind. (By the way, I personally like the course instructor, but I feel she does not have the competency to teach on the college level.)

Can you enroll elsewhere? Transfer your credits?

​

I cannot transfer credits because the school's policy states you have to complete the final 30 credits at Mount Mercy.

Is there something you aren't saying here about why your CAN'T be employed as a teacher?

​

No. All the other field experiences were successful. Many of the teachers said I would make a great teacher as indicated on the evaluation forms.

In addition I had been a piano instructor for 24 years prior to returning back to school. I had already received a psychology degree from this school in 1983 with a minor in piano pedagogy. All I wanted was to be able to work outside the home in the school system but now I have to figure out how to get employed and also pay off this $40,000 tuition debt.

It sounds like I'm playing the victim role but I am making every effort to search for and explore any sources that can help me figure out some kind of solution, such as:

​

some kind of restitution,

​

getting me back into the program without having to reapply to the school (which I shouldn't have to since I am an alumna)and the ed. program

​

take the field experience with a seasoned cooperative teacher with the supervision outlined in the TEP manual minus taking the class again.
__________________

 

[robinkieck]

Questions answered - thanks for asking them!

Why were you removed? For missing a deadline on the school survey?

​

In the fall of 2008, I was diagnosed with ADHD and was trying to arrange for accommodations with the school's Academic Center for Excellence (ACE). Like most things, it dragged out until January. And yes, I did miss a deadline but in that same week, I had arranged to meet with the director at the ACE office to put together a plan to make my last year successful. I was getting good grades but I was having problems with staying focused. I had tried on several occasions to contact the head of the Education department to discuss this with her prior to the deadline for the student teacher's application.

Were you terminated in writing, by email, or have some specific reason?

​

I finally managed to arrange to meet with the head of Ed. with the intention to explain to her I was working with the ACE department. When I went into the meeting with the Ed. Head, she and my advisor had already made up their minds about 'encouraging' me to retake the class in which I failed the field experience. I would have had to wait another year to retake it and with the instructor's inconsistent teaching performance, there were no guarantees I would have passed that one. I actually did very well in the course work and unfortunately the department had assigned as a cooperating teacher, a first year teacher. That concerned me along with the fact my instructor didn't meet with the teacher and me for a midterm evaluation as outlined in the Teacher's Education Preparation manual. I was never given an opportunity to explain any of this at the Grievance meeting. I have so much documentation from emails to my instructor, the first year teacher, the ACE director and didn't get to share any of it because the grievance procedure was so casual; the only two staff members that did attend, the Ed. Head and a Provost, said before the meeting, that the meeting was a waste of time because the department head had already made up her mind. (By the way, I personally like the course instructor, but I feel she does not have the competency to teach on the college level.)

Can you enroll elsewhere? Transfer your credits?

​

I cannot transfer credits because the school's policy states you have to complete the final 30 credits at Mount Mercy.

Is there something you aren't saying here about why your CAN'T be employed as a teacher?

​

No. All the other field experiences were successful. Many of the teachers said I would make a great teacher as indicated on the evaluation forms.

In addition I had been a piano instructor for 24 years prior to returning back to school. I had already received a psychology degree from this school in 1983 with a minor in piano pedagogy. All I wanted was to be able to work outside the home in the school system but now I have to figure out how to get employed and also pay off this $40,000 tuition debt.

It sounds like I'm playing the victim role but I am making every effort to search for and explore any sources that can help me figure out some kind of solution, such as:

​

some kind of restitution,

​

getting me back into the program without having to reapply to the school (which I shouldn't have to since I am an alumna)and the ed. program

​

take the field experience with a seasoned cooperative teacher with the supervision outlined in the TEP manual minus taking the class again.
__________________

 

[Humusluvr]

Why were you removed? For missing a deadline on the school survey?

​

In the fall of 2008, I was diagnosed with ADHD and was trying to arrange for accommodations with the school's Academic Center for Excellence (ACE). Like most things, it dragged out until January. And yes, I did miss a deadline but in that same week, I had arranged to meet with the director at the ACE office to put together a plan to make my last year successful. I was getting good grades but I was having problems with staying focused. I had tried on several occasions to contact the head of the Education department to discuss this with her prior to the deadline for the student teacher's application.

Do you have those attempts in writing, as in via email or letter?

Were you terminated in writing, by email, or have some specific reason?

​

I finally managed to arrange to meet with the head of Ed. with the intention to explain to her I was working with the ACE department. When I went into the meeting with the Ed. Head, she and my advisor had already made up their minds about 'encouraging' me to retake the class in which I failed the field experience. I would have had to wait another year to retake it and with the instructor's inconsistent teaching performance, there were no guarantees I would have passed that one. I actually did very well in the course work and unfortunately the department had assigned as a cooperating teacher, a first year teacher. That concerned me along with the fact my instructor didn't meet with the teacher and me for a midterm evaluation as outlined in the Teacher's Education Preparation manual. I was never given an opportunity to explain any of this at the Grievance meeting. I have so much documentation from emails to my instructor, the first year teacher, the ACE director and didn't get to share any of it because the grievance procedure was so casual; the only two staff members that did attend, the Ed. Head and a Provost, said before the meeting, that the meeting was a waste of time because the department head had already made up her mind. (By the way, I personally like the course instructor, but I feel she does not have the competency to teach on the college level.)

I would contact the ACE Department, as they may have resources or personnel that can help you fight against what the admin did.

Can you enroll elsewhere? Transfer your credits?

​

I cannot transfer credits because the school's policy states you have to complete the final 30 credits at Mount Mercy.

Probably correct.

Is there something you aren't saying here about why your CAN'T be employed as a teacher?

​

No. All the other field experiences were successful. Many of the teachers said I would make a great teacher as indicated on the evaluation forms.

In addition I had been a piano instructor for 24 years prior to returning back to school. I had already received a psychology degree from this school in 1983 with a minor in piano pedagogy. All I wanted was to be able to work outside the home in the school system but now I have to figure out how to get employed and also pay off this $40,000 tuition debt.

Being an alumni might count for something, but your coursework that is more than ten years old wouldn't help yo at this point.

It sounds like I'm playing the victim role but I am making every effort to search for and explore any sources that can help me figure out some kind of solution, such as:

​

some kind of restitution,

Not likely.

​

getting me back into the program without having to reapply to the school (which I shouldn't have to since I am an alumna)and the ed. program

More likely.

​

take the field experience with a seasoned cooperative teacher with the supervision outlined in the TEP manual minus taking the class again.
__________________

[/QUOTE]

Not likely. Likely you will have to take the coursework again.

What did the attorney say? Can you ask the attorney to provide an outline of what they did for the fees you paid?

I can understand your frustration, but likely this is just a case of you needing to repeat the course. Not fun, but the hoop you'll have to jump through to get the credentials you need to teach.