Grievance procedures and due process exist to maintain a healthy environment in which students, faculty, and staff may study and work in an environment that is safe and compassionate. WHU strives to provide a nurturing Christian environment for its students. A student that has a complaint may do the following: 

• Use the suggestion box provided on campus. 

• Meet with the Admissions Office. 

• File a complaint with the Dean of Students.

• Submit an Informal or Formal Grievance against the parties involved in a particular conflict.

Please note that each complaint/grievance is addressed on a case-by-case issue in order to ensure that a satisfactory conclusion is reached for all parties involved. Due to the fluctuating nature of resolving conflicts, only Informal and Formal grievances have specific procedures which the seminary will strictly adhere to. Please address any questions about this to the Student Services Department.

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Informal Grievance Procedure

WHU's informal grievance procedure is a voluntary method to resolve any complaints and/or dispute between involved parties before moving on to making a Formal Grievance. The seminary recommends that conflicting parties begin attempting to resolve their conflict through an informal procedure first. The seminary's Human Resources Department is available for consultations and mediations during Informal Grievance procedures. However, it is always up to the student(s) involved in a dispute to determine how they would like to seek resolution. 

Students must submit the names, contact information, and a full description of the dispute when filing an informal grievance. Students may request the Student Grievance Form from the Administrative Office. That form will be destroyed once the dispute is resolved, unless student(s) involved wish to take their grievance to the formal level. 

For filing specific grievances, please see the following personnel: 

• Academic Dean for academic disputes.

• Student Service Coordinator for non-academic disputes.

• For any other type of dispute, any other appropriate school personnel may be available for consultation or mediation.

If an informal grievance does not resolve the dispute, the student(s) involved may make a Formal Grievance.

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Formal Grievance Procedure

Students wishing to submit a formal grievance must provide the seminary with the names of student(s) involved, contact information, and a description of the incident. Students may request a Student Grievance Form from the Administrative Office. That form will be destroyed once the dispute is resolved.

The Dean of Students is responsible for examining grievances and for meeting with the involved parties on a one-on-one basis. Students with academic grievances may consult the individual faculty members involved and then, if necessary, the Chief Academic Officer. If a grievance not satisfactorily resolved, the student may appeal directly to the seminary administration for a final hearing. 

Students who find that their concerns have not adequately been addressed or solved by the school administration may contact the following agencies: 

State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) James Monroe Building 
101 N. 14TH St., 10TH FL., Richmond, VA 23219 - 3659 
Tel: (804) 225-2600 / Fax: (804) 225-2604

Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS)
15935 Forest Road, Forest, Virginia 24551 
Tel: (434) 525-9539 / Email: info@tracs.org