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COMPLAINANT INFORMATION (All fields are required)
Name of Complainant:
Affiliation with the college or university named below:
Current Student
Former Student
Address:
Phone Number:
Email:
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota
Portal Agency: South Dakota Board of Regents
306 E. Capitol Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501
This form is for any current student or former student enrolled in an online degree program
who is filing a complaint against a South Dakota-based degree-granting institution
approved under the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA). Complaints that
can be resolved under this process include:
An allegation that a postsecondary institution does not meet the state authorization
requirements in SDCL ch 13-48 (will be forwarded to Secretary of State);
An allegation that a postsecondary institution violated deceptive trade practices and
consumer protections guaranteed by SDCL ch 37-24 (will be forwarded to Consumer
Affairs Division of the Office of the South Dakota Attorney General), or;
An allegation raised by a distance education student that a SARA institution does
not meet standards established by the institution’s accrediting agency or SARA.
Note: Complaints involving student grades or student conduct violations are governed entirely
by institutional policy.
Complainants must first go through the institution’s complaint process before the
complaint is brought to the SARA Coordinator.
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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SCHOOL INFORMATION
Name of Institution:
Location of Institution:
Address City State Zip Code
Degree Level and Major (Example: Bachelor of Science in Accounting) of affected Student:
Degree:
Major:
Dates of Attendance at Institution
Start Date:
End Date:
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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COMPLAINT INFORMATION
Have you gone through the institution’s formal complaint process?
Yes
No
Section A: If you answered “Yes,” please explain in your detailed complaint description how you exhausted
the complaint process. Please attach documentation showing that you have exhausted your appeals at the
institutional level.
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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Section B: If you answered “No,” please explain below why you were unable to complete the complaint
processes. Note that SDBOR will only address complaints after a student has exhausted his/her appeals the
institutional level. Please attach documentation if necessary.
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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Section C: Please describe your complaint in detail, including the names of any college or university faculty or
staff you spoke to about the complaint. Please attach existing documentation that may substantiate the
complaint, which may include: institutional documents, catalogs, transcripts, contracts, brochures, course
syllabi, or correspondence regarding the complaint between the complainant and the institution.
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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Section D: Please give the titles and contact information for the individuals (if any) you mentioned in
Section C.
SARA Complaint Resolution Form
South Dakota Board of Regents
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Please send this form and copies of any documents that support your above complaint and/or
show that you have gone through your institution’s complaint procedures to
Katie.Boehnke@sdbor.edu
or mail them to:
South Dakota Board of Regents
ATTN: Katie Boehnke
306 E. Capitol Avenue, Suite 200
Pierre, SD 57501
By submitting this form, I affirm that I am a current or former student of the institution named
above. I agree to allow the South Dakota Board of Regents to submit a copy of my complaint
and supporting materials to the above-named institution for a response. I further authorize
the institution to transmit student records related to me affected by the institution’s actions
to the Board of Regents for review. I understand that I may have to submit an information
release form to the institution. I certify that the information I have provided to the Board of
Regents is complete, true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Name:
Date:
Signature: