Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am requesting to appeal for a retroactive withdrawal from PHIL 247 and PHIL 256, and remove both courses from my transcript. I took these courses in the fall semester of 2015, with Professors Phil Smolenski and Deborah Knight. Due to extenuating circumstances, outlined in my supporting documentation, I was unable to complete these courses. The professors involved were aware of my circumstances, and granted me incomplete grades. The intention behind the incomplete grades was that I would be able to finish my outstanding assignments and pass the courses. I was unable to finish the assignments; thus, the incomplete statuses were changed to failures. My circumstances were at their worst during the Fall 2015 semester; I was very close to dropping out of university completely. I was unable to eat and sleep during the night, causing me to miss several classes, lose motivation and concentration, and hand in assignments. I contacted my family doctor, who prescribed me with medication. I also started seeing a counselor on campus during that semester, and a different counselor off campus during the winter term. While I did improve during the winter semester, I had a full course load and needed to put all of my effort into passing those courses and managing my condition, resulting in my inability to finish the outstanding assignments.

Both professors have indicated their support of my appeal.

Please contact me if further clarification is required.