Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Hello, my name is Caroline Salomon Wong, I'm a half French, half Singaporean, international first year student. I am appealing to drop PSYCH100 (Fall and Winter 2020) and WRIT125 (Winter 2020) and for Credit standing (or late drops if necessary) for PHIL 111 (Fall and Winter) and FILM 110 (Fall and Winter) due to extenuating circumstances. During the time my first appeal was being considered, in the summer of 2021, I was asked for a letter from the family doctor/physician I spoke with (who gave me a diagnosis and prescription), for information about Fall and Winter 2020-2021. I was in depression, had anxiety and probably ADD like my father and his father. I was in France at the time and couldn't call him and ask for a letter (all other times we were in contact, I was in Canada and he called me). I contacted Student Wellness and was told that he would reach out to me through email, which I was banking on, but that never happened and my first appeal was denied.
I've been speaking with Pam from the office of the Board of Studies, and she advised me that I am able to resubmit my appeal, as they have waived the 21 day deadline. Pam has all my supporting documentation and has indicated that she will provide it to the individual reviewing appeals. Here is a slightly edited version of my first appeal letter, mostly from my point of view at the time (late May/early June 2021).
My father has bipolar and has had depression and severe anxiety and I recently found out he has ADD too. I think that I've been dealing with mental health issues for a while without necessarily knowing it- specifically anxiety and depression. My parents live in different countries, my father in Malaysia and my mother is a flight attendant based in Hong Kong. When my parents were busy with work I spent time doing extracurriculars and had many different Filipino nannies. I was never really close to my parents. I did high school in boarding, in Victoria, BC. I've always had trouble concentrating in class, with organization and with time management but I didn't think anything was wrong. I was under the impression that I was just lazy and scatterbrained because of the way I misplace things and my clumsiness. My parents split up near the end of high school and announced it to my siblings and I on a family vacation. It was quite messy and mentally tiring. My boarding houseparents noticed a change in my demeanour and set up a meeting with a school councillor. I talked to her twice and it helped, but we never talked about ADD or getting me tested. At this point I didn't know about my father's ADD and my grades were fine, so I didn't get help having viewed it as something shameful because my Asian side of the family viewed therapy as something for sick people. I graduated high school online, at my grandparents house due to Covid19. Whenever I spend too much time with family I get anxious and eventually have breakdowns. I then came to Queens where I met my canmate (girl I share the bathroom with) who had Aspergers. Near the end of fall term she was upset I didn't choose to live with her and she attacked me and ripped my sweater. She then started yelling at my friends and one of them had to wrestle a knife out of her hands when she went back to her room and yelled that she'd kill herself. I was shocked and talked to the don because I cared about her and didn't know what to think. After that I got my own room and spent most of my days in the dark on my laptop. I Also started spending time with the wrong people and didn't realize I was slowly spiralling. Doing schoolwork was difficult for me, partially because of my anxiety; communicating with professors was difficult. When I left residence in May, I went to stay with an old boarding school friend who graduated before me. I slowly noticed the signs of depression and he gave me an ultimatum; to be with him or he'd end his life. He did this knowing I had a long distance boyfriend from boarding school. I didn't have a SIM card so I had to contact my friend through social media to call the police. I stayed with her for a couple days and her mother helped me get through it, having lost her son to suicide years ago. I couldn't contain it any longer and needed to speak to my parents and to a professional. I somewhat opened up to my parents and it was difficult but relieving. I started therapy via video calls so that I could continue when I went back to France. I talked to Dr. Lee, the aforementioned family doctor/physician, who prescribed me anxiety medication. Between COVID issues, intense roommate issues that made me highly anxious, my own mental health and undiagnosed learning difficulties, as well as personal losses from the summer (2020/2021) my academics suffered greatly. This was not a clear representation of my abilities as a student.
I am advocating for this appeal, because until December, I didn't know that I still could, until I talked to Student Wellness and I now believe I'm eligible. Since then, I have been pursuing this appeal and attaining further documentation. I've been working closely with Pam from the board of studies office and updating her on the collection of documentation. I have also been working with QSAS to become fully registered. My accommodations are helping me, and I have recently been in contact with academic advising who is assisting me in possibly changing my major. I am also continuing to connect with counselling services to ensure that the appropriate support and treatment options are pursued.
I have been pursuing assessment for ADHD, however due to difficulties obtaining assessment via Student Wellness services I have had to explore community options. I did try public options initially but was denied assessment due to my age, and as such I am now connected with a private, licensed psychologist in Kingston, for full assessment (mental health and ADHD). So far, I have had two appointments with Dr. Cotton ,who has booked upcoming appointments, and this report will be available hopefully before the end of February. At that time I plan to discuss with QSAS the appropriate accommodation adjustments so as to support my learning needs more effectively. My plan moving forward will be adjusted as information is made available.
I hope you can see the sincerity of my request and approve Credit standing (late drops if necessary) for PHIL111 and FILM111 and late drops for PSYCH100 and WRIT125. I'm not applying for Credit standing for SPAN111, which I took in Fall 2020, because I'm satisfied with my B+ (this course was not as significantly impacted as languages come naturally to me, and this is not my first introduction to the language). Thank you for your consideration.