Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Dr. Jenn Stephenson (Associate Dean of Academics),

My name is Robyn McMurdy, I am a fifth year student majoring in Global Development Studies. I am writing to you to appeal grades that I received between 2018-2019. I am doing so per the advice of an academic advisor. I was not previously aware that an appeal process existed, nor that I would be a candidate for such.

I hope to keep this letter as brief as I can. However, I do apologize as I will try to explain my situation as thoroughly, yet succinctly, as I can.

I wish to appeal to have my grade in DEVS 340 either changed to Aegrotat or Credit standing, I received a D in Fall 2018. In addition, I would like the same consideration for my grade in DEVS 392, in which I received a D in Winter 2019. In Winter 2019, I also received an F in DEVS 300, which I later retook and received a C+ in Winter 2020. I would like to have this F expunged from my transcript. Finally, I received an F in HIST216 in Fall 2019, and I would like to have it changed to Aegrotat standing.

I am currently receiving accommodations for a chronic pain condition called endometriosis. Many people are not familiar with the condition; it is related to menstrual cycles. It essentially takes the form of internal bleeding as tissue that would normally grow inside your uterus during the menstrual cycle grows outside of it, causing damage to internal organs as it sheds like tissue in your uterus does when you receive your period. I apologize if this is too detailed, but I am hoping to illustrate the extent of the pain that I experienced. For some, birth control can help manage the pain, but unfortunately that was not the case for myself and it led to me experiencing bouts of pain, like cramps, nearly every other day during 2018-2019, finally subsiding into late 2019, and now being successfully managed as of January 2020.

These bouts of pain effectively deteriorated my quality of life as I would be bedridden and unable to focus for hours at a time. If you look at my transcript for the 2018-2019 school year, you¿¿ll notice that I did receive A¿¿s in FREN106 and 107, I would like to explain that these classes were online, which made it possible to partake in all elements of the course from home. The pain made attending lectures and tutorials very difficult.

Stress is a major factor in pain exacerbation. Hence why I wish to request a reconsideration of my grades in the form of Aegrotat or Credit standing, as in the cases of all classes that I did poorly in, it was a result of an incomplete final assignment that was heavily weighted. These final assignments tend to take place at the same time in the year, and while many students lament and joke about all-nighters or redbull during finals, I could not afford this kind of bodily stress.

This also applies to DEVS 300, which I later retook. I failed the course because of an incomplete final paper worth 40 of my mark. As for HIST 216, you will notice that the other grades I received during that semester were very impressive. As is the nature of my experience with endometriosis post-2017, the bouts of pain were no longer tied to specific times of the month and occurred at random. When the major assignment for HIST216 was due, I was also working two part-time jobs and managing my other courses. I set aside little time, hoping to complete the paper in a rush, however I was unable to as I experienced a bout of pain. I had no chance but to continue on and hope to do well in my other courses. At that time, I was not yet receiving accomodations, and instead of blaming my circumstances, I chose to blame myself for not having time managed well enough ¿¿ as was my response in every failed academic situation until I finally received support in Winter 2020.

To further explain, during summer 2018, I was diagnosed with endometriosis. Prior to my diagnosis, it took nearly five years of emergency room visits to have my pain taken seriously enough to have additional tests run. In summer 2017, I was misdiagnosed and received a treatment plan, in the form of birth control, that exacerbated my condition. While I finally received surgery in summer 2018 to have endometrial tissue removed, this surgery did not aid in pain management as I was led to believe it would. I was continually gaslit by my previous OBGYN doctor who did not believe that I could still be exhibiting pain into Fall 2018. Finally, I was given medication for pain management in late 2018, however there was a subsequent adjustment period of a few months.

Meanwhile, I was still receiving the treatment plan that exacerbated my condition, being led to believe that this could not be the source of continued pain. The last straw with my previous OBGYN doctor was her hesitancy to sign QSAS healthcare forms in April 2019, still believing that my pain was psychosomatic. I began to search for a new OBGYN doctor and finally found one in November 2019. My detrimental treatment plan was finally terminated and in January 2020, I began to receive successful treatment with a physiotherapist, who I continue to see.

I am incredibly proud of my Winter 2020 grades and am currently doing very well in my courses this semester. It is very exciting to see what I am academically capable of after feeling like a failure during the 2018-2019 period.

The treatment and stigmatization of my illness conditioned me to not take it seriously or believe that the subsequent difficulties that I faced as a result of the condition were somehow my fault. I am very proud to say that I now receive accommodations and have put a plan in place with QSAS. I wish that this could have happened sooner, but coming to terms with endometriosis and overcoming my own guilt has been an uphill battle. It has taken me a very long time to realize that first, there is help to be found, and second, I am deserving of help.

Thank you for your consideration, I look forward to hearing from you about further steps.

Sincerely,

Robyn McMurdy