Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: August 7th 2018
Dear Associate Dean Bénard,

I am appealing to receive aegrotat standing in GPHY 307, 304 and 351.

I took GPHY 307 in fall semester, and had an informal agreement with the professor, Scott Lamoureux, to finish the course work by the end of Winter Semester as a result of mental health issues I was having at that time (see Verification of Personal Health Condition from Dr. LaCaparara). As a result of this, I hope to appeal GPHY 307 in the same manner as the other courses I took this semester.

My difficulties last semester began shortly after the announcement of Jordan Peterson¿¿s talk on campus (during reading week). As a non-binary individual, his presence and support by the student body at large made me feel unsafe and unwelcome on campus, making attending class hard, and studying on campus even harder. Not only did this effect myself, but it affected my entire social circle. As the co-chair of the Education on Queer Issues Project, a committee under the AMS, I found myself doing a lot of emotional labour in order to support those in my community. The stress and exhaustion my community and I were facing after these events lead to a significant interpersonal conflict between myself and a few others. This left me without an immediate support system, thus most of my energy was devoted to survival and attempting to maintain my mental health, with very little left for school work. At this time, I was only able to complete three to four hours of class work a day, and the amount of work I could complete in that time was significantly diminished (for example, by week 12 it took me about 10 hours over three days to complete a relatively simple 500-word paper). This lasted well into exams, and really only started getting better during the final week. During this time, I learned that another good friend of mine was very sick and was having difficulty accessing treatment, in a way that could result in her death. Considering that I was already emotionally vulnerable, I found myself being unable to cope with this possibility and once again sacrificing class work in order to focus on my mental health. It was at this point that I spoke to a professor, Dr. Godlewska (GPHY 351), regarding my unfished work in her course. She recommended that I appeal to receive aegrotat standing as I had done well in everything I had managed to complete.

Receiving aegorotat standing in these courses would allow me to use my summer to rest and recuperate from the events of the last semester, rather than attempt to complete unfinished work so that my grades can be reflective of my performance in the courses at risk of worsening my mental health. At this time, I am working in a position I love as a Camp Director at STEM Camp, which is helping me maintain a schedule and create healthy lifestyle habits, including consistently taking my anti-anxiety medication, as well as focusing on my physical and mental wellness. For the fall semester, I will continue to see my therapist and take a reduced course load, while not having a position on the AMS will allow me to dedicate my free time to activities that benefit my mental health which will have a positive impact on my studies.

Thank you for your consideration,
Jaden Diminno