College of Optometry (CO) 2025–2026 114 shall consist of five voting members. All members, except the ex officio member and the chair of the SPC, are voting members. The committee shall generate its rules of procedure and transmit them to the dean. The dean will notify the committee of the dean’s decisions concerning cases heard by the committee, including the disposition of appeals. The SPC hearing will proceed under the direction of the chair, and summary notes of the meeting must be taken. The student will be notified of the date, place, and time of the hearing via the student’s NSU email account. Any student who fails to appear at the designated place, date, and time will automatically waive the right to appeal. The student will be present only during the student’s testimony. At this time, the student will have the opportunity to present the student’s position and provide statements and evidence in support of the problem(s) leading to the academic or behavioral issue. Procedure to Appeal Mandated Academic Dismissal The associate dean for Academic Affairs will monitor the academic progress of all individual students, and, when a student incurs a mandate for academic dismissal, the associate dean will notify that student—in writing, via hand delivery, or via mail to the student’s last official address on file with NSU—that the student is dismissed. The first step in the chain of appeals for a student who wishes to dispute a mandated academic dismissal is the SPC. To implement this appeal, the student must submit a letter to the chair of the SPC within five business days of the date that the notification of dismissal was sent by the college. This letter must specify the basis for the appeal. The chair of the SPC will schedule a hearing on the student’s appeal in a timely fashion. The student will be permitted to present the case to the SPC in person. This hearing shall be closed to everyone except the SPC membership and the petitioning student, although witnesses may be called by either side. The SPC will reach a decision and make a recommendation to the dean, who may endorse or modify the outcome. The student will be notified of the dean’s decision, in writing, either via email to the student’s NSU email address, certified mail to the student’s address on file, or via hand delivery with receipt. The petitioner may appeal the dean’s decision to the Appeals Board of the CO (see the following Appeals Board section). A student may not introduce new issues or evidence that was available or should have been available at the time of the initial appeal to the SPC at any stage of the sequence of appeals. While a student’s appeal is under consideration, the student may not attend classes, laboratories, or engage in the delivery of clinical care during the appeal process. In appealing a mandated academic dismissal, a student may not bypass any element in the chain of appeals. The initial appeal must be directed to the SPC, and all subsequent appeals must follow the sequence outlined above. Procedure for Review of Alleged Violations of the CO Code of Behavioral Conduct In cases of an alleged violation of the CO Code of Behavioral Conduct, the chair of the SPC may conduct a preliminary investigation in order to determine if an SPC meeting is warranted. If it is decided that a meeting is warranted, then the chair will convene the SPC and notify the student of the alleged violation and the date, time, and location of the scheduled meeting using the methods described above.
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