Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean (Studies),

My name is Anna Williams (student number 10111711) and I am submitting an appeal to request the erasure of late penalties that should have been accommodated in ENGL 273 W and HIST 209, as well as the late drops of FILM 260, ENGL 258 F, and GRMN 101 F. Please note, I submitted one paper that my ENGL 273 W professor forgot to add toward my final grade; he has acknowledged his mistake in an email to Haley Everson, and if the recalculation of the grade shows that I did indeed pass the course, I would like Aegrotat Standing as well as the erasure of my late penalty in the course. In addition, the online appeal form would not let me select ¿¿other¿ when categorizing my HIST 209 appeal, so I selected ¿¿late drop¿; I DO NOT want a late drop of HIST 209, but, as stated, request the erasure of late penalties which should have been accommodated.
The grounds concern a serious struggle with mental health that was repeatedly neglected by Queen¿¿s Counselling Services for three months. My goals entering counselling were to actively attend psychological counselling and to gain assistance navigating the labyrinth of resources at my disposal to pinpoint those that applied to me, such as academic accommodation. I requested help from late November to late February, and in that time, Queen¿¿s Counselling booked me in for five appointments with three different counsellors, which they cancelled each time. I informed these counsellors that I had two diagnosed chronic disorders and was wrestling in futility with one in particular, and it was not until my older sister had to come in with me for extra support that Queen¿¿s Counselling booked an appointment that they didn¿¿t cancel.
At that appointment, I was told they were unequipped to deal with mental illnesses that were diagnosed, and that they would be unable to see me more than once a month. This was particularly vexing, because I had informed the counsellors I had previously contacted of my diagnoses since I initially requested help in November, and not once was I told they were unequipped to help me; instead, they strung me along, booking future appointments they wouldn't keep. However, the single appointment I was granted in late February was helpful in one way: I was referred to a mental health nurse who would be able to see me once a week, a doctor she could converse with at LaSalle, and Queen¿¿s Accommodations.
Unfortunately, by the time I finally received academic accommodation, there were only two weeks left of the academic year before exams. Without accommodation up to that point, I was unable to hand in many assignments on time and received substantial late penalties ranging from twelve to thirty per cent which remain attached to my grades. This is something that was later accommodated for future such events, but which was not retroactively corrected. I request these late penalties be expunged, as they would not exist had I received help in a timely manner. I will enclose the math concerning ENGL 273 W and HIST 209 at the end of this letter.
One example of how accommodation would have truly helped me this year is the last grade I received in English: with accommodation finally in place at the end of the year which granted me an alternate method of grading for the in-class Quizzes portion of the course, worth twenty per cent, I wrote a short story that scored one hundred per cent. My professor even recommended I get it published. Currently, each course I am appealing displays a failing grade on my transcript.
To reiterate, my current SOLUS grade for ENGL 273 W is inaccurate; Professor MacFarlane forgot to count one of my assignments to the final grade. It is my understanding that he sent an email to Haley Everson acknowledging this mistake. I believe I just managed to pass the course (in which case I request Aegrotat Standing), however I would still like my late penalty for that class erased.
I also request a late drop in ENGL 258 F and GRMN 101 F, as I began my journey in November before the end of first term, and I no longer have the notes to retake any tests. I also request a late drop of FILM 260, as it was a condensed course which the ¿¿hangover¿ of this past year made incredibly difficult, and which I only discovered was impossible to pass very soon after the drop date. This ¿¿hangover¿ would not have even existed had I received counselling when I requested it.
This past year has been undeservedly arduous for both myself and my family, both emotionally and financially in the current context of my unchanged academic results. It would provide much comfort to have the requested adjustments made to my grades and credits.
Thank you for taking the time to go over my appeal, and enjoy your waning summer.

Sincerely,

Anna Williams (10111711)
P.S. Please find below the calculations of the individual HIST 209 and ENGL 273 W assignments I was able to assemble:

HIST 209:

HIST 209 Grades Including Late Penalty (LP) HIST 209 Grades Without Late Penalty Weight of Assignment
67-69, received in form of C+ letter grade (LP 12) 79-81 (B+ or A-) 23.33
45, F (LP 30) 75 (B) 33.33
¿¿awaiting information¿¿I will send it in when received ¿¿awaiting information¿¿ 43.34 (Exam)
Course Total With LPs: Course Total Without LPs: Difference ():

ENGL 273 W:
ENGL 273 W Grades Including Late Penalty (LP) ENGL 273 W Grades Without Late Penalty Weight of Assignment
100, A+ (LP 0) N/A 20
64-66 (From memory, grade not added to course total) 78 20
0, F (LP 100) N/A 30
55, D (LP 0) N/A 30

Course Total With LPs (): 55 (or 36.5 not including forgotten submitted assignment)
Course Total Without LPs (): 59.9
Difference (): 4.9 (or 23.4 higher than my grade as currently displayed on SOLUS without the forgotten submitted assignment)