Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean,

I am appealing to late drop MATH 121 (Summer, 2023,) as well as appealing for Aegrotat standing in MATH 121 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023) and MATH 111 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023). I’m also requesting help from the Associate Dean in being placed back into my major: Bachelor of Computing Honours.

This is a very long letter, as it has to deal with multiple classes and interconnected situations stemming throughout the year. Around September 18th 2022, I quickly became ill with adenovirus, commonly associated with the symptoms of pink eye, and cold symptoms including extreme fatigue, greatly affecting not only my social anxiety, but the whole of my mental health, as I also ran out of antidepressants while struggling to navigate through a foreign medical system. Moreover, around the 25th of October, I experienced greater setbacks with another sickness as a result of not being used to the Viruses in Canada, which furthered the mental struggles I was facing. I attempted to reconcile such by getting in contact with Queen’s Student Wellness services, where I was placed with my first therapist, who helped in my application for academic consideration, after the MATH 121(Fall-Winter, 2022-2023) Teaching assistant requested I do so. Sadly, my consideration request was denied due to the fact I was already under QSAS, despite my struggle being both Mental Health and Physical extenuating circumstances. From this point on, due to the denial letter, I was under the impression that QSAS students could not apply for consideration, a fact I would later find out to be in violation of the Ontario Commission for Human Rights Guidelines. This led to roughly a month of emails and effort in getting academic consideration for deliverables to all go down the drain. Soon after, before my second appointment, my counselor had a death in the family, leading to a long pause in access to mental health services. I faced further struggles in other classes due to multiple assistants and professors not understanding the QSAS system as well. For example, with the class of CISC 102 in November, I went through a month long email communication chain beginning on November 17, just to explain the accommodation procedure and my struggle in getting academic consideration that hampered my ability to turn in deliverables, which was seemingly lost in translation until after Dr Chen, the School of Computing Undergraduate Chair, stepped in to help proceed the situation, with it finally being resolved on the 15th of December, nearly a month later. All of these affected my mental health greatly, to the point I was forced to delay two exams. My Math 121 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023) Fall 2022 Exam, and CISC 121 Fall Exam. While also seriously hampering my ability to complete my deferred exam for MATH 111 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023), and greatly under-representing my knowledge during such.

As illustrated, these numerous issues and especially the Academic Consideration Request dilemma, greatly hampered my educational performance, took up many hours with long correspondences, and even continued into the next semester as I still couldn’t get consideration for later circumstances and suffered from a still floundering mental health that was struggling to navigate a foreign school system. Additionally, the overwhelming struggle I faced greatly impacted my grades in all of my classes, but especially MATH 111, and MATH 121, as math is already a subject I face great anxiety with, and also hurt the first semester exam grades, leading to tremendous pressure to do well in Winter. As it was never explained that appealing a grade or requesting aegrotat grading was an option.

Continuing into the second semester, my CISC 121 Deferred Exam wasn’t scheduled until after the deferred exam period started and was also canceled twice, leading to multiple changes in studying plans, extreme anxiety that was still prevalent from the last semester, and greatly impacted my ability to perform in the other exam I had scheduled, my MATH 121 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023) Fall 2022 Deferred Exam. I would end up doing extremely poorly on my MATH 121 exam as a result, to the point I could barely answer any questions due to the overwhelming anxiety. I contacted the Assistant Teacher on such and was told there was nothing that could be done except for a reweighting. I also contacted my then current QSAS advisor, who recommended that I speak to an Academic Advisor but provided little assistance in actually scheduling an appointment. It was also never mentioned that I could appeal a grade or request an aegrotat grade. Unfortunately due to the rolling appointment booking schedule, I was unable to even speak to an advisor until July, when my QSAS Advisor was changed to a faculty specific QSAS Advisor, Caitlin Bruce, who instantly put me into contact with an Academic Advisor, something that should have been done much sooner. This exam and the grade that followed greatly impacted my stress throughout the entire year and all of my classes as there was immense pressure to ace the final exam, due to not being able to be even advised properly on the entire situation and aforementioned issues. Moreover, I had great difficulties with class of CISC 124, with my advisor not being able to tell me for sure whether my extension could be applied after a grace period 1 week grace period imposed on the entire class. And had great difficulties establishing connection with Professor Samir Mohammad, who did not CC my former QSAS advisor in emails. Additionally, I still couldn’t use academic consideration, and due to his “grace period” my accommodation of a one week extension was moot, according to the QSAS team. This is despite a very extreme lack of communication from said professor and QSAS, that led to 3 assignments being missed, because no one could tell for sure whether they could be extended, and the professor adamantly refused. I could not even get academic consideration to fix this issue, an issue that was supposedly out of QSAS’s control. Lastly, I even had a quiz that was supposed to be deferred, but was denied at first until my former QSAS advisor stepped in. This communication caused great, continued stress due to a lack of response from either party, as I didn’t know Professor Mohammad did not CC my former QSAS advisor in our communication, despite myself doing so and explicitly requesting that if he had concerns, to talk to said advisor. This quiz, along with the other 3 assignments would never be made up, impacting my GPA from what was an A all the way to a C. I received an email stating I would have a follow up quiz date emailed to me shortly. After nearly 5 months, I can confidently say I have never received such. Moreover, during the time I was in correspondence with professor Mohammad and once I found out they did not CC my advisor, I promptly emailed my former advisor such, yet they were out of the office for the next week. For the MATH 111 Winter Final Exam, I completely forgot my antidepressants and ADHD medication, but was unable to leave to get them as I was already in the exam, and had to take nearly a zero because I couldn’t muster any focus nor stop the constant stream of negative thoughts. This usually isn’t a problem, but the multiple extenuating circumstances and the major culmination of stress reaching a crescendo in the winter term caused many problems for me with mental health, academia, and academic performance. A fact I did write down on the exam, but had no idea who to contact about such. After this school period, I would go on to live in Ottawa for a month with friends. Enrolled in summer classes, thinking all was in vain, due to not knowing that I could appeal for aegrotat standing. I was forced to leave my friend's home due to a lack of procuring a job and my friend’s mother’s dementia rapidly declining. Then, I stayed in Edmonton for two weeks to live with family, until returning to California for a medication reevaluation for my antidepressant and anxiety medication due to the extreme impact these events and school year had on myself. Thus, I was unable to drop MATH 121 (Summer, 2023), because I wasn’t aware of how to do so without an academic advisor, I had many ongoing medical factors as well as constant relocation that barred me from completing coursework. It was also unbeknownst to me that I could appeal for aegrotat grade and not take a summer course. Since no one was able to advise me on dropping class or appeal. All in all, due to the great misunderstandings between QSAS and instructors on what could even be provided as accommodations, the many personal circumstances, the two emergency room visits, having to re explain my illness to some professors just to be accommodated, and being denied academic consideration, due to a disability that went hand in hand with the non-disability related medical issues. My GPA and academic performance greatly suffered. My GPA suffered so greatly that I can't even apply for my major, as it is now full. An issue I couldn’t rectify before it filled, due to the lack of academic advising available to me. Nor can I receive student loans and just barely have enough money for September’s rent, because I have no classes and Queen’s will not approve my loans due to the fact that I have no classes. I also had to pay for summer classes that I possibly could have appealed for and now I can't apply for classes because I have no major. Thus I'm forced to change my major which I painstakingly struggled and strived for because it is full. All due to circumstances mostly out of my control, be it correspondence issues, my former SAS advisor being out of office when I needed them most, a lack of academic advising, etc.

Once again, I am appealing to late drop MATH 121 (Summer, 2023,) and appealing for aegrotat standing in MATH 121 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023) and MATH 111 (Fall-Winter, 2022-2023). As well as for any help to fit me back into my major so that I may sign up for classes and receive my loans. Thank you for taking the time to read my appeal.

Sincerely,

John Williamson