Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dr Jenn Stephenson,

My name is Matthew Gionnas (20055999), I am currently enrolled in the Queens Arts and Science program majoring in Sociology, and I am writing this letter to kindly request your permission to waive the deadline for an appeal. I understand the time for an appeal has passed, however, the purpose of this letter is to explain the circumstances which were ongoing in my life and prevented me from taking any action from the appeal deadline to the present time. If you will consider my request to appeal, I would like to proceed and ask for permission to drop the following courses: SOCY 210, SOCY 226, SOCY 211, SOCY 227, HLTH 102, all courses which I completed in the fall of 2018 and the winter of 2019. In addition, I would like to ask for permission to appeal for credit standing in the following courses: RELS 223, SOCY 200, which I completed in the fall of 2018.

Throughout my second year at Queens I struggled with mental health illness that severely impacted my wellbeing and as a result of my suffering, my academic grades were negatively impacted. I know that I do not need to disclose any of the illness, but I feel that it is relevant to provide context. I struggled with symptoms of depression and anxiety that increased to levels that made it difficult to leave my house, focus on school, or even do most of the things involved in daily living. I considered most days a challenge. I could not mentally prioritize or accomplish the academic work to the best of my ability, and this left me with negative feelings about myself. These negative experiences started during the 2018 fall semester and continued to escalate. As I started to experience these struggles, I was unable to follow a daily routine, fulfill my studying commitments and properly approach the work for all my courses. My first attempt to reach out for help was during Christmas break. I shared some of what I was feeling with my family doctor. She suggested a referral to a psychologist to get help, however the appointment was less than ideal. I returned to Queens without help. During the winter semester I tried to reach out for help again, this time at Queens. I went to Student Wellness, however, I was told there was a waiting list, and I was unable to see a psychologist or speak to anyone for help. The situation escalated dramatically during the 2019 winter semester, as I battled my mental health issues on a much larger scale than the fall of 2018. Feeling absolutely hopeless, I ended up secluding myself to my room for days at a time. As a result, I did very poorly in almost all of my classes, either failing, receiving a D, and in only three courses I received a B-. Looking back now, I feel fortunate that I had support from my peers in three of my courses, in which I managed to be successful. They were influential in picking me up to get to classes, supporting me to leave the house, and picking me up for study sessions that helped me to engage in the coursework.

My mental health left me overwhelmed, confused and ashamed with this situation, and incapable of reaching out for guidance on how to proceed. As a result of my ongoing struggle with mental health I was unable to appeal earlier. Since I began taking steps to improve my life and my situation, I am grateful this extreme negativity has been resolved. With the emotional support of our home environment, this spring, I reached out again to my parents and shared my transcript. They encouraged me to take summer courses. Most importantly, later this summer I found support through a psychologist and committed to working on the mental health issues that negatively impacted my well-being and school performance this year. Each of these steps have helped me to improve my mental health. To support my well-being and to prevent this situation from happening again, I have planned my weekly class schedule and organized academic support, as well as commuting home on the weekends to meet with the psychologist, and to have the emotional support of my family. As a result of my recovery, I am now able to communicate this information and to begin the appeal process.

On August 19th, I came to Queens and met with an academic advisor and with my councillor, Meg Hall, who was very helpful in finding supportive accommodations and planning for the upcoming year. I will be working with Gail Eaton-Smith to understand learning strategies, I have extended my potential graduation date, reduced my course load, and plan to take summer courses in the future as I work toward graduation. I have enrolled to re-take four core sociology courses (SOCY 210, SOCY 226, SOCY 211, and SOCY 227) in order to fulfill my major requirements. I am on the waiting list for WRIT 125, and I reviewed the help offered by the writing centre. I have also reached out to the school of graduate studies and with their help, I have found a tutor that I will be working with twice a week on campus. She is enrolled in the Queens PhD sociology program and we have been communicating to set up a study plan.

It is difficult to communicate this sadness, and even more difficult to request help. In this appeal, I have tried to do both. I hope I have provided enough information for you to make your decision on waiving the appeal deadline, as the first step, in order for me to have the opportunity to submit a formal appeal to address my final grades in the fall and winter semesters of 2018/2019.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my request.

Respectfully,

Matthew Gionnas
20055999