The accreditation standards are located on ACPE Web site (www.acpe-accredit.org). Comments or complaints regarding program compliance with the accreditation standards should be submitted to the office of the dean in writing. Complaints will be reviewed on a timely basis, and a response or plan of resolution will be communicated to individuals interested in the issue. Programmatic comments and complaints are kept on file in the office of dean and are available for review by ACPE.
ACPE has an obligation to assure that any program that seeks or holds an accreditation status remains compliant with the standards and conducts its affairs with impartiality, non-discrimination, honesty, and frankness. Any complaints from institutions, students, faculty, or the public against an accredited pharmacy program or institution housing an accredited pharmacy program must be based upon the fact that such program or institution is not in compliance with a standard or standards as established, from time to time, by ACPE.
Any complaint must be submitted to ACPE within one hundred and eighty (180) days from the date the complainant knew or should have known of the occurrence of facts on which the complaint arose. Any complaint not filed with ACPE within the time limitations set forth above shall not be considered by ACPE, except when: 1) the Executive Director determines the matter’s seriousness warrants investigation to ensure continued compliance with one or more accreditation standards; or 2) any complaint held in abeyance by ACPE by reason of threatened or existing legal challenge before a court of law or governmental agency as provided in the last paragraph may be reinstituted by the complainant by written notice to ACPE within thirty (30) days after the latter of (a) a final judgment by the court of law or governmental agency or (b) finalization of any appeal of such judgment. The Executive Director may proceed with the investigation of the complaint held in abeyance without notice by the complainant if the Executive Director determines, in his or her discretion, that such is warranted due to the severity of the complaint and potential impact on the quality of the program and the effect on students.
ACPE will consider formal complaints about Doctor of Pharmacy programs (PharmD) that allege a program is either (a) not in compliance with one or more of ACPE's Standards and Key Elements, or (b) has violated any of ACPE's expectations related to academic integrity. The complaint must specify which Standard(s) or Key Element(s) are implicated or how the program violated expectations of integrity. Complaints fall into one of two categories: (1) those that involve situations subject to formal institution/program due process policies and procedures and (2) those that involve situations not subject to formal due process procedures: 1) If the complainant is involved with an institution/program grievance subject to formal due process and procedure, ACPE requires that the process be completed prior to initiating ACPE's formal complaint process, unless the complaint includes an allegation that the institution/program process has not been handled in a timely manner as defined in the institution/program policy. In such cases, ACPE will consider the complaint prior to completion of the grievance process. Evidence of completion of the institutional process or of the untimely handling of such must be included in the complaint materials. 2) If the complaint is related to situations that fall outside of formal due process policies and procedures, the complaint may be filed at any time.
ACPE does not: 1) consider complaints that fall outside its jurisdiction/authority as expressed in the Standards and Key Elements and the academic integrity statements. When appropriate, complainants will be referred to other organizations to pursue their concern(s); 2) intervene on behalf of individuals or act as a court of appeal for faculty members or students in matters of admission, retention, appointment, promotion, course grading, or dismissal unless such practices or conditions indicate that the program may not be in compliance with the Standards and Key Elements; and 3) promise that it will force programs into specific resolutions requested by the complainant, but may instead require the program to comply with Standards and Key Elements. Such is in the sole discretion of ACPE. All complaints must be filled using the link found here:
(https://acpe-accredit.formstack.com/forms/complaint_form)
Complaints that are submitted anonymously will not be considered by ACPE. Depending on the circumstances and severity of the complaint, it may or may not be forwarded to the program for information purposes only. The decision to forward a complaint is made by the ACPE Director of Program Accreditation or the ACPE Executive Director. During the eight-year cycle between each program’s self-studies, a record of anonymous complaints received for the program will be maintained by ACPE.
ACPE will proceed expeditiously in the investigation and resolution of complaints in a manner that is fair and equitable to all parties. The ACPE Executive Director, or his/her designate, shall have the authority to: (i) review the complaint in order to determine relevance to the standards, policies, or procedures; (ii) dismiss a complaint if it is determined that such complaint has no merit or is outside the scope of ACPE accreditation activities; (iii) forward relevant complaints to the dean of the program for a response to ACPE; and (iv) conduct any further investigation deemed necessary to promptly determine the facts surrounding the issue and the validity of the complaint. ACPE shall diligently investigate and resolve complaints in a timely manner, taking into consideration all parties involved the severity and complexity of the allegations, and pursuant to any legal obligations.
If, on the basis of such investigation, after notice to the program and opportunity for response from the program, the Executive Director finds a complaint to be extremely serious in nature, charging egregious conduct that may warrant adverse action by ACPE, or involve an interpretation that the Executive Director believes should be made by the Board, the complaint will be submitted to the Board for consideration at the next regular meeting. Where the Board finds that a program has violated the standards, engaged in unethical conduct, or that its integrity has been seriously undermined, the Board will either: (A) request that the program show cause, within a stated time period, as to why adverse action should not be taken; or (B) in extreme cases, immediately discontinue its relationship with the program by denying or withdrawing the offending program’s accreditation status.
A record of complaints regarding a specific college or school is maintained in perpetuity at the ACPE office for future consideration. The complaint file will be reviewed as a component of the on-site evaluation process. Site team leaders will review all complaints received against a program since the time of the program’s last comprehensive on-site evaluation with all members of the team. Information provided to the evaluation team will include the following for any complaint: (1) the nature of each complaint; (2) the process used to review the complaint; and (3) the status of the complaint. The evaluation team’s review of complaints will be documented in the Evaluation Team Report. Any complaints received since the prior on-site evaluation and the related investigative materials will be provided to the ACPE Board of Directors as a component of the review process. The Board will also conduct a general review of all open complaints at each meeting, including those against a program not being considered for initial or continued pre-accreditation or accreditation at a given meeting.
Where a complainant has threatened or filed legal action in a court of law or before a governmental agency against a program or institution housing said program, ACPE reserves the right to hold such complaint in abeyance until after a final judgment by a court of law or governmental agency or finalization of any appeal of such judgment.