Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean,


My name is Lindsey Walker, and I am writing to appeal to waive the 21 day/ one term deadline for courses taken during the Fall 2018, Winter 2019, and Summer 2019 semesters. During the last few weeks of the Fall semester, there was a traumatic extenuating circumstance that prevented me from completing my coursework and exams. I am hoping that by waiving the 21 day/ one term deadline, I will be able to submit an appeal to change the grades from my Fall 2018 semester and drop the courses taken from the Winter 2019 and Summer 2019 semesters. My primary concern is my PSYC 301 course from Fall 2018 as it is my last required and mandatory course to take before I am eligible to graduate. If only one aspect of the request could be granted, I would graciously ask that it please be changing my PSYC 301 course from an F to CR or AG standing as it is only offered on campus, and I am not able to mentally or physically be on campus again safely and I had completed more than 60% of the course work.

I had to leave campus expeditiously in order to remove myself from the setting where the event occurred and have not returned to on campus courses since. In order to cope with what I had been through, I had to completely remove myself physically and mentally from Queen's and Kingston in their entirety. I did not disclose what happened to anyone for more than a year and a half as I felt a great amount of personal shame, even though I know now that it was not my fault.

Since the event occurred, I have been dealing with feelings of intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, anhedonia, self-isolation, guilt, anger, irritability, insomnia, hypervigilance, avoiding people, places, and things that connect me to the event, trembling, excessive and maladaptive nervousness, a fluctuating heart rate, cold sweats, and an impending feeling of danger and doom regardless of whether I am objectively safe. I also developed bulimia in a subconscious and misguided attempt to feel some form of control over my life and have since dealt with a distorted body image, tooth decay leading to a medically necessary root canal, facial swelling, and cessation of menstruation.

I did not submit an appeal within the 21 day timeline as my attempt to cope with what I had been through was to act in a manner as though Queen's did not even exist. I was not a student there, I had never been to Kingston, and I was certainly not logging on to Solus to drop my courses or look at the ArtSci website to determine what the appropriate steps for an appeal in my novel situation were. It was an insufficient, but temporarily effective coping mechanism, as if I did not do any of those things, then the extenuating circumstance had never happened.

I began counselling in September 2020 in an attempt to overcome what I have been through and have found it beneficial and cathartic enough to now be able to continue with and complete my degree. My counsellor has helped me exponentially in terms of processing what has happened and finally being able to be borderline optimistic about my future. Some days, I feel like a survivor and am proud of myself for having continued with my education and gotten the help that I need and deserve and some days I feel like a victim, angry that I am in this situation at all. Since I have started counselling, I have found the strength to continue with my degree and took PSYC 365 and PSYC 335 online in Winter 2021 and earned a B in both courses. I then took CHEM 113 and CHEM 114 online during the Summer 2021 semester and earned an A- and an A, respectively. When I am physically safe, I am able to mentally perform at a level more aligned with my abilities and the marks from the Fall 2018, Winter 2019, and Summer 2019 courses are not an accurate reflection of those abilities.

I am continuing with counselling and speak with my counsellor weekly and sometimes more as necessary and will continue to do so indefinitely. I ask humbly, to please grant my appeal to waive the 21 day/ one term deadline in order to submit an academic appeal for the Fall 2018, Winter 2019, and Summer 2019 semesters and be a survivor who was able to overcome a massive challenge that I still carry with my every day and be a successful Queen's graduate.


Thank you for your consideration,
Lindsey Walker