Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Associate Dean
I am writing to appeal for a late drop due to personal circumstances

In the fall of 2018 I decided to start writing my Indian day school compensation application. I spent 6 years in the day school system. The day school system provided the basis for my education. The treatment which I was subjected to by staff and peers was triggering for me to have to detail. I worked on the application for months. It caused me to have flashbacks and created a pattern of insomnia. I had to put the application on hold in summer of 2019. In the fall of 2019 I received news that I had health issue that needed to be dealt with, the pandemic held up my surgery until the winter of 2020. This added to my sleeplessness and created anxiety as I awaited surgery. Impacting my studies overall. In the winter of 2020 my dad was diagnosed with a life threatening health condition and I was helping my mother take care of my father who still lived in his own home. My father had surgery in winter 2021 and was cleared health wise. Over the spring and summer of 2021 I worked on myself to manage the barriers that were keeping me from being successful in school. In the fall of 21 my dad died in a traumatic way. This was a huge set back, for my healing journey. After his death I continued my self-work both culturally appropriate and I sought out the help of my family dr. I knew that the need for both traditional healing the western methods was needed to help me to get myself back on a path of positive choices and outcomes.
I did not drop any of my course along the way because as I was filling out my Indian day school application I recalled times I was repeatly told that I was never going to become anything but I welfare bum. When I asked for help I was told it was showing the teachers how much of a failure I really am. I should give up and hope that I could be accepted into a trade school or learn to become a cleaning lady. I learned to never reach out for help of any type due to this treatment. The level of education I received was not the same as other children my age and when I left the day school and attended school in the public system I was subjected to the typical racism and ridicule of the misunderstanding of first nation??s people. I remember being told that I smell like drugs and that the teacher can smell the cigarettes I smoke and threw my jacket on the floor. My experiences have instilled in me to not ask for help, because I was ridiculed by educators
my dr suggested a leave in winter 2021 , I started my documentation submission but it was not completed. My own mental health was needing to be addressed at that time.
I did not realize how the Indian day school system had impacted my life, the way I view peers and educators. I am grateful for the opportunity to attend queens. I have had to do a lot of reflection and self-work to bring myself to submit my day school application. It may not sound like it is life altering I welcome a chance to talk about the impacts of the day school system on first nation??s people and how it has shaped me and my family.
Since leaving school, my father has passed on and I have come to terms with that and am actively working on my grief and self-care. I have accessed support for my previous education experiences and how it impacts me today. I am learning it is okay to need support; it is okay to ask for help. I am making my personal health a priority. I have recently submitted my Indian day school application. I am ready to prove those previous educators wrong, I may need more help to succeed but I will succeed. I am connecting with academic supports to look at assessments for possible accommodations and/or assessments I may need. The Indian day school was designed to see me fail, I will not fail. I will use all the tools that are available to me at queen??s university to be successful and to show my children I am a survivor of the inter-generational traumas.
Thank you for reading my appeal and I look forward to a chance to speak about my appeal further.

Kathryn ninham