State and Federal Programs

Williams Uniform Complaints

Types of Williams Complaints

The district shall use the following procedures to investigate and resolve complaints when the complainant alleges that any of the following has occurred: (Education Code 35186; 5 CCR 4681, 4682)

Textbooks and instructional materials

A pupil, including an English learner, does not have standards-aligned textbooks, instructional materials, state or district-adopted textbooks, or other required instructional materials to use in class.
A pupil does not have access to textbooks or instructional materials to use at home or after school.
Textbooks or instructional materials are in poor or unusable condition, have missing pages, or are unreadable due to damage.

Teacher vacancy or misassignment

A semester begins and a teacher vacancy exists.
A teacher who lacks credentials or training to teach English learners is assigned to teach a class with more than 20 percent of English learner pupils in the class.
A teacher is assigned to teach a class for which the teacher lacks subject matter competency.

Facilities

A condition poses an emergency or urgent threat to the health or safety of pupils or staff. Emergency or urgent threat means structures or systems that are in a condition that poses a threat to the health and safety of pupils or staff while at school, including but not limited to gas leaks; nonfunctioning heating, ventilation, fire sprinklers, or air-conditioning systems; electrical power failure; major sewer line stoppage; major pest or vermin, infestation; broken windows or exterior doors or gates that will not lock and that pose a security risk; abatement of hazardous materials previously undiscovered that pose an immediate threat to pupils or staff; or structural damage creating a hazardous or uninhabitable condition. (Education Code 17592.72)

Complaint Process and Forms

A complaint alleging any condition(s) specified above shall be filed with the principal or designee at the school in which the complaint arises. The school shall have a complaint form available for Williams complaints. The complainant need not use the Williams Complaint Form to file a complaint. The principal or designee shall forward a complaint about problems beyond his/her authority to the Superintendent or his/her designee in a timely manner, but not to exceed 10 working days. (Education Code 35186; 5 CCR 4680). The principal or designee shall make all reasonable efforts to investigate any problem within his/her authority. He/she shall remedy a valid complaint within a reasonable time period not to exceed 30 working days from the date the complaint was received. (Education Code 35186). Complaints may be filed anonymously. If the complainant has indicated on the complaint form that he/she would like a response to the complaint, the principal or designee shall report the resolution of the complaint to him/her within 45 working days of the initial filing of the complaint. If a response is requested, the response shall be made to the mailing address of the complainant as indicated on the complaint form. If Section 48985 of the Education Code is applicable, the response, if requested, and report shall be written in English and the primary language in which the complaint was filed. At the same time, the principal or designee shall report the same information to the Superintendent or his/her designee. (Education Code 35186; 5 CCR 4680)

Appeals Process

If a complainant is not satisfied with the resolution of a complaint, he/she has the right to describe the complaint to the Board of Trustees at a regularly scheduled meeting. (Education Code 35186; 5 CCR 4686). For any complaint concerning a facility condition that poses an emergency or urgent threat to the health or safety of pupils or staff as described in item #3 above, a complainant who is not satisfied with the resolution proffered by the principal or Superintendent or his/her designee may file an appeal to the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) within 15 days of receiving the district’s response. The complainant shall comply with the appeal requirements specified in 5 CCR 4632. (Education Code 35186; 5 CCR 4687)

AR 1312.4