Grievances or Complaints

When a student or their family has a complaint or feels that their rights have been violated the first step is to contact the student’s clinician to discuss the issue. If the clinician does not respond in a timely manner the lead clinician for the program should be contacted.

If this informal process does not resolve the issue, the formal grievance process should be followed. There is a process for students and a process for parents/guardians.

PARENT/GUARDIAN GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

Informal Procedure

Parents/guardians have rights as outlined in the Parent/Guardian Handbook. The handbook is distributed to Parents/Guardians when a student is admitted and any time upon request.

In the event that a Parent/Guardian feels that the student’s rights have been violated or compromised by a specific staff member or group of staff members, or in any other way while in the program, the Parent/Guardian should follow the steps outlined below:

• Discuss complaint/concern with the student’s Clinician.
• Should the Clinician not respond in a timely manner or should this present unusual discomfort or appear threatening to the Parent/Guardian, the Parent/Guardian should contact the Lead Clinician

Formal Procedure

If the Parent/Guardian is not satisfied after the informal procedure listed above, they have the right to file a formal complaint/grievance. The following procedure is the mechanism provided to do so.

All parents/guardians are informed at the time of student admission that they have a right and formal method for formally filing a complaint or grievance. This information is presented verbally and is also written in the Parent/Guardian Handbook.

Step 1:

The Parent/Guardian will submit a written complaint/grievance to the Program Director. The document will state the name of the student, staff (if this is a staff issue), and date and time of the incident which led to the grievance. The Parent/Guardian will also outline the specifics of what happened which gave the Parent/Guardian cause for concern and will also list the informal steps taken before pursuing the formal procedure.

The Program Director, or designee, will meet, or have a phone conversation with the Parent/Guardian within 5 working days of receiving the written complaint. The Program Director, or designee, will communicate a response in writing to the complaint within 5 working days of the meeting or conversation.

Step 2:

If the complaint is not satisfied at Step 1, the Parent/Guardian may send a copy of the original complaint, along with the response from the Program Director, to the Executive Vice President, requesting that the matter be further investigated. The Vice President, or designee, will meet, or have a phone conversation, with the Parent/Guardian within 10 working days of receiving the written complaint. The Vice President, or designee, will communicate a response in writing to the Parent/Guardian within 10 working days of the conference.

Step 3:

If the complaint is not satisfied at Step 2, the Parent/Guardian may send a copy of the original complaint and the response from both the Program Director and the Executive Vice President, to the President/CEO requesting that the matter be further investigated. The President/CEO, or designee, will meet, or have a phone conversation with the Parent/Guardian within 10 working days of receiving the written request. The President/CEO, or designee, will communicate a response in writing to the Parent/Guardian within 10 working days of the conference.

Step 4:

If the complaint is not satisfied at Step 3, the Parent/Guardian may send a copy of the original complaint, along with the responses from the Program Director, Executive Vice President, and President/CEO, to the Department of Early Education and Care (DEEC).

At any time in the process, the Parent/Guardian has the right to communicate their concern or complaint to his/her attorney or a representative of his/her custodial or funding agency.

STUDENT GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES

Hillcrest Educational Centers, Inc. has the legal and ethical responsibility to provide students with a procedure to follow in instances where they have a complaint/grievance that relates to any part of the program, it’s operation or staff or if they feel they have been subject to discrimination based on legally protected categories (race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation or disability).

In the event that a student feels that their rights have been violated or compromised by a specific staff member or group of staff members, or in any other way while in the program, the student should do the following:

Note: Because students in the ASD program may lack the necessary communication skills, it may be necessary for the parent / guardian to act as a surrogate for the student during this process.

Communicate their complaint/grievance to their clinician in writing, if possible. The clinician will review the complaint/grievance and within 24 hours will notify the appropriate Program Manager/Director who will then conduct the investigation of the complaint/grievance.

The student’s / surrogate’s clinician will submit the written complaint/grievance to the Program Manager/Director. The document will state the name of the student, staff (if this is a staff issue), and date and time of the incident that led to the grievance. The student will also outline the specifics of what happened which gave them cause for the complaint/grievance.

The Program Manager/Director, or designee, will meet with the student / surrogate within 5 working days of receiving the written complaint/grievance. The Program Manager/Director, or designee, will communicate a response to the complaint/grievance to the student within 5 working days of the meeting or conversation.

If the student / surrogate feels that the complaint is not satisfied, the student may send a copy of the original complaint, along with the response from the Program Manager/Director, to the Vice President of Residential Programs, requesting that the matter be further investigated. The Vice President, or designee, will meet, or have a phone conversation, with the student within 10 working days of receiving the written complaint. The Vice President, or designee, will communicate a response in writing to the student within 10 working days of the conference.

At any time in the process, the student has the right to communicate their complaint/grievance to his/her custodial or funding agency.