Complaints Policy
Complaint Form

The following is an outline of the West Linn-Wilsonville School District complaint process. The District seeks prompt and equitable resolution of all complaints. Please refer to Board Policy KL for the official district policy. If you have any questions regarding the district's complaint process, please contact Kelly Douglas Director of the Superintendent's Office or 503.673.7034.

A complaint is a concern, problem, or difficulty related to district educational process, services, personnel, and/or operational actions and/or decisions presented to the district by an employee, student, parent/guardian, or member of the public. Complaints must relate to concerns and/or events that have occurred or been discovered within the past 24 months. If an alleged concern and/or event is continuing in nature, the complaint must be made 24 months since the most recent incident. If the concern and/or event is made by, or on behalf of, a student who has graduated from, moved away from, or otherwise left the school district, the complaint must be made within 12 months of the student's departure.

Although no community member will be denied the right to petition the Board for redress of a complaint, complaints will be referred through the proper administrative channels for solution before investigation or action by the Board. Complaints that concern Board actions or Board operations shall be presented to the Superintendent. Complaints that concern employees must be processed according to any applicable agreement between the district and either employee association.

Board members shall refer the public to the proper channel of communication for complaints involving instruction, discipline, learning materials, and/or services such as transportation, food service, etc. Any complaint about school personnel that cannot be resolved informally between the complainant and the district employee shall be submitted in writing to the Superintendent’s Office, where it will be passed on to the appropriate administrative channel. 

The Board advises the public that the proper channeling of complaints around instruction, discipline, or learning materials is as follows:

1. Teacher or employee
2. Principal or supervisor
3. Appropriate Central Office administrator
4. Superintendent
5. Board

Complaint Process Channel

Teacher or Employee

For specific classroom complaints, issues should first be raised with the complainant’s teacher. This includes incidents involving other students. WLWV teachers are the first line of implementation to make changes that can address particular issues. Many issues can be resolved at the teacher level. If the complaint is not resolved informally by the parties, the complainant may submit the matter to the principal (or immediate supervisor) within 10 working days of the informal conference.

Principal or Supervisor

If an issue cannot be resolved at the teacher level, complainants are encouraged to contact the building principal or assistant principal. Building leaders can evaluate issues in the context of district direction and policy. The principal or supervisor will set up a conference with the complainant and, if need be, the teacher. The principal may attempt to resolve the complaint during the conference. If additional investigation is needed, a second conference may be scheduled. Following the completion of the investigation, the principal or supervisor will render a decision within 10 working days.

Appropriate Central Office Administrator

If issues cannot be resolved at the building level, the complainant may, within 10 working days, directly contact district administration. The district office employee for complaints is Kelly Douglas. Complainants will be directed to the proper member of the district leadership team. The district office administrator will schedule a conference in an effort to resolve the conflict. Following the completion of an investigation, the district office administrator will render a decision within 10 working days.

Superintendent

If the issue remains unresolved, or there is a dissatisfaction with the resolution, complainants may contact the Superintendent. The Superintendent will schedule a conference and render a decision within 10 working days of that conference. Refusal of any party to attend a conference shall not prohibit the Superintendent from meeting with other parties or from making an independent judgment about the validity of the complaint.

School Board

If the complainant is dissatisfied with the decision of the Superintendent, he/she may file a written complaint (or request for appeal) to the School Board within 10 working days. The Board Chair will act on behalf of the Board to hear the complaint. The Superintendent shall provide the Board Chair with copies of the written complaint and any other accompanying documents. If the Board Chair chooses not to hear the complaint, the Superintendent's decision is final (the Superintendent's written decision must meet the requirements of OAR 581-022-2370(4)(b)).

The Board Chair may bring the complaint to executive session if the subject matter and nature of the complaint qualifies under Oregon Law. The Board Chair will meet with the Superintendent prior to executive session to gather information from the investigation. [The Board will discuss a complaint against an employee only in executive session as provided in Oregon Revised Statutes.] The final determination shall be made within 20 working days from the meeting between the complainant and the Board Chair.

Complaints against the superintendent should be referred to the Board Chair on behalf of the Board. The Board Chair shall present the complaint to the Board. If the Board decides an investigation is warranted, the Board may refer the investigation to a third party. When the investigation is complete, the results will be presented to the Board. After receiving the results of the investigation, the Board shall decide in open session what action, if any, is warranted.

Complaints against the Board as a whole or against an individual Board member should be made to the Board Chair on behalf of the Board. The Board Chair shall present the complaint to the Board. If the Board decides an investigation is warranted, the Board may refer the investigation to a third party. When the investigation is complete, the results will be presented to the Board. After receiving the results of the investigation, the Board shall decide in open session what action, if any, is warranted.

Complaints against the Board Chair may be made directly to the Board Vice Chair on behalf of the Board. The Board Vice Chair shall present the complaint to the Board. If the Board decides an investigation is warranted, the Board may refer the investigation to a third party. When the investigation is complete, the results will be presented to the Board. After receiving the results of the investigation, the Board shall decide in open session what action, if any, is warranted. 

For complaints that may be appealed to the Oregon Department of Education pursuant to Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 581-022-1940, the complainant shall be given notice of the right to appeal the final decision to the Oregon Department of Education under OAR 581-022-1940.

Public Complaint Form

Students, parents, or members of the public may submit a formal complaint in writing to the West Linn-Wilsonville School District at any time during the complaint process. Formal complaints should be designated as such and written in the form of an email, letter, or complaint form. Formal complaints shall be submitted to the District Office, Attn: Kelly Douglas Director of the Superintendent's Office where they will be directed to the appropriate administrator to handle. Formal complaints will be handled and resolved as close to their origin as possible, following the Complaint Process Channel outlined above.