College can be a rough time for young people, as they encounter new responsibilities and challenges they may not be well equipped to handle. A student of decent character may find themselves suspended or dismissed due to a brief lapse in judgment or because they're going through a rough patch in their personal lives. If you or someone you know has found themselves in this situation, academic attorney Joseph D. Lento is the lawyer to call at 888.535.3686. The Lento Law Firm has built a national reputation helping college students resolve serious misconduct issues, enabling them to graduate and go on to good careers.
Dismissal Due To Failure To Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress
Most students attending Florida's public, private, four-year, and community colleges utilize federal loans to pay for their educations. All schools offering federal loans are required to have policies providing for the dismissal of students who don't achieve satisfactory academic progress (SAP). Federal law prohibits colleges and universities from extending loans to students whose poor grades, course failures, or course withdrawals suggest that the student won't graduate in good standing with the knowledge and skills that higher education offers. The SAP policies at the University of Florida, Florida A&M University, the University of West Florida, and the 28 public community colleges and state colleges comprising the Florida College System are examples.
Challenging Academic Progress Dismissal
SAP policies are not self-enforcing–they are interpreted by school administrators, who don't always apply them correctly. Florida college and university administrators sometimes dismiss or suspend students whose academic performances would be considered acceptable if the rules had been properly applied.
But all Florida colleges and universities offer students an opportunity to appeal dismissals for failure to maintain satisfactory academic progress. Appeals may be based on extenuating circumstances such as a personal crisis, including emotional and mental problems; traumatic incidents such as being a victim of a serious crime; the illness of a family member; or the death or illness of a close friend or relative, all of which can divert a student's focus from their schoolwork. In order for the appeal to be considered, it must include supporting documentation, including a detailed explanation of the circumstances and how they negatively affected the student's academic progress, along with other proof such as a physician's statement, a police report, or an obituary.
It's important that a student who receives a letter imposing sanctions take note of the deadline for appealing and act promptly. Retaining national academic attorney advisor Joseph D. Lento and his expert team can help the student ensure that the appeal is filed in a timely manner and that it meets the criteria schools look for in determining whether to retract academic progress dismissals.
Challenging Misconduct Dismissal Or Discipline
All U.S. colleges and universities receiving federal funding are required to have in place a discipline system to satisfy federal laws, including Title IX (which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex) and state and local laws. The purpose is to protect students, faculty, and administrators, as well as to avoid school liability for on-campus incidents where someone gets injured or worse. Disciplinary rules are laid out in student codes of conduct such as those at the University of Florida, the University of West Florida, the University of Central Florida, Florida International University, Jacksonville University, and the University of Miami.
Unfortunately, Florida colleges and universities don't always apply the rules fairly. Discipline can occur against hardworking, committed, honest students of good character. Schools are run by fallible human beings who can make mistakes in the discipline process. They may also act on false or exaggerated accusations and to serve other interests–even to carry out hidden agendas. National academic attorney Joseph D. Lento can help preserve your good college record by acting as an intermediary between you and the school so that your Florida college or university won't ruin your educational record with unfair discipline. You can contact the Lento Law Firm at 888.535.3686.
The Consequences of Dismissal
Being dismissed from a Florida college or university is a serious matter. Left unchallenged, expulsion for failure to make satisfactory academic progress or for misconduct prevents you from completing your degree at that school. It can also make you ineligible to transfer to or enroll in other schools, leaving a black mark on your record that will follow you for years and haunt your job prospects.
Being placed on probation is another form of discipline that is often imposed. Though less drastic than dismissal, probation can also seriously harm your possibilities for future success. Florida's colleges and universities reserve the right (and indeed, are required) to place students on probation for lack of satisfactory academic progress. Being on probation can make you ineligible for scholarships or student aid. Probation prevents you from participating in the kinds of school organizations and activities that are important for impressing potential employers. It also bars you from receiving class honors, awards, scholarships, internships, recommendation letters, references, and job and career opportunities. In short, probation can close the doors to opportunities that might never be available again.
Even a lesser penalty, such as having a letter of reprimand placed in your student file, can close doors to opportunity and be a serious impediment to future success. So don't ignore SAP warnings or probation or misconduct charges that may lead only to modest discipline. Get a national academic attorney advisor's expert help by calling 888.535.3686 or going online.
Appealing SAP Dismissal or School Discipline
If you have already been placed on probation or been dismissed by your Florida college or university for unsatisfactory academic progress, or if you've received some other form of disciplinary action, you generally have a right to appeal the school's action and restore your good standing. To be sure that your academic, administrative appeal is effective, you need assistance from an experienced academic attorney advisor. The Lento Law Firm has assisted students all over the U.S. to deal with suspensions or dismissals, enabling them to graduate and go on to good careers.
Alternative Avenues for Relief
What if you have already appealed your dismissal based on failure to maintain SAP or misconduct discipline but lost? Your school may not tell you this, but you very well may have additional grounds for relief, most effectively sought with the help of an experienced, nationally renowned law firm such as the Lento Law Group.
Retain a National Academic Attorney
Some students or their families make the mistake of hiring local defense lawyers to help them. But student discipline defense is a specialized area of law. Most lawyers aren't familiar with how college disciplinary systems work. They may make critical errors such as threatening a lawsuit, which puts the student in a worse position with school administrators. The Lento Law Group team has found that negotiations generally lead to better outcomes than threats. For one thing, a lawsuit against your school will become a matter of public record–something that can be easily discovered by future employers who conduct background checks on you. Joseph D. Lento prefers to start with negotiations rather than threats. He has good working relationships with general counsels at colleges and universities all over the United States. These relationships can help in negotiating a resolution that is acceptable to both the school and the student, allowing the student to graduate and move on in their career with a clean record.
If you are a Florida college or university student who has suffered academic progress or misconduct discipline or dismissal, don't turn to a local lawyer who handles many different types of cases, for whom student discipline defense is only one aspect of their practice. You need a national academic attorney-advisor with the knowledge, skills, and reputation to gain you special relief. Your academic record is too important to risk antagonizing college or university administrators with even the threat of litigation. And if a local lawyer were to file a lawsuit, it could drag on for a year or more, putting your educational progress in limbo until the case was resolved. Yet even a positive outcome would not erase the antagonistic relationship with your college or university. You might be forever known among faculty and administrators as “the student who sued the school.”
National academic attorney Joseph D. Lento's focus is helping students dealing with student discipline matters achieve a positive outcome without resorting to the judicial system, if at all possible. Your goal should not be to engage your school in litigation, except as a last resort. Your goal should be to gain prompt, private, negotiated relief that gets you back in school to complete your degree and move on to your chosen career.
If you know of a college student who has been disciplined, suspended, or dismissed based on academic or behavioral misconduct, let them know they can discuss their options with an experienced academic defense attorney by calling the Lento Law Group at 888.535.3686 or going online.
