Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean,

I am requesting to appeal the appeal deadline in order to late drop Math 120 (Winter, 2017) and Chemistry 112 (Winter, 2017).

The reason for this appeal is because I had been struggling for many years with an undiagnosed mental health condition which affected my academic performance. By the time I had reached out to Student Wellness Services, the deadline had already passed.

I only decided to seek help recently because I became so overwhelmed with my lack of success in school that I felt the need to speak with a professional who could help me make sense of why my performance was becoming increasingly worse, and perhaps guide me to resources that could help me. Due to the nature of the illness, it took much longer to reach out for support, compared to someone who was healthy. Upon meeting with the professionals at Student Wellness Services, it became increasingly clear that the reason for my poor performance was not due to poor time management or an inability to understand the material, but rather, undiagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder.

In order to regulate my condition and achieve academic success, I have begun meeting regularly with a doctor, psychotherapist, and an occupational therapist (who is assisting me with participating in academics). With this team, we have determined that a combination of medication and therapy would be the best course of action. To date, this has proven to be quite effective, since I find myself to be more functional in day to day activities, and capable of focusing on coursework in a way that I haven¿¿t been able to in a long time. For example, in first term (Fall 2017) I was receiving grades in the 50s to 70s range, and since starting this treatment plan, I have been receiving grades in the 80s and 90s. I am currently on a trajectory to academic success thanks to the help I have been receiving, and plan to continue seeing them.

For the above reasons, I have made the decision to appeal the deadline so that I can appeal to late drop Math 120 and Chemistry 112.

Sincerely,

Francesca de Vries