Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am appealing to drop HIST 105 (Winter, 2022) and GNDS 125 (Winter, 2022).

In January, at the beginning of the 2022 Winter Term, I began having some difficulties and my academic performance suffered as a result. I take full accountability for my negligence of my academic responsibilities, and would like to take this chance to explain where I fell short.

I do not wish to provide excuses or justify my failings, and instead would like to give insight into my position and circumstances. My hope is that this provides some insight into my struggles without excusing the way I managed.

I have ADHD, and since my diagnosis in August of 2021 I have been learning to manage my symptoms. Although medicated and equipped with resources, strategies, and support, I was mentally exhausted following the Fall term and reverted to older, dysfunctional coping methods. Within weeks of starting the new term, I was overwhelmed by the amount of work steadily piling up, and felt I had no ability to motivate myself to do it. As the workload increased, my disengagement from academics bled into a disengagement from life, and I was struggling to complete simple, everyday tasks of life. I spent a majority of my time isolating myself in my bedroom, most days not being able to get out of bed until mid-afternoon, eating meals sporadically, and I even stopped making appointments with my therapist ?? who I was seeing for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

????After I reached that point, all of my time and energy went into day-to-day life. Reengaging with my academic responsibilities was such a daunting task that became a constant stress hanging over me. Even when I was able to get a grasp on my personal life, I never felt able to truly find my footing and tackle academics. I did not have the energy or understanding that dropping a course before the deadline was a realistic option, because at the end of February I still felt like I'd move past the low point and get my focus back. After months of being in a state that I??m tempted to call a disconnect from reality, the term wrapped up and I finally reached out for support ?? and have been working to recover my grades in time for the end of the term.

In communications with my HIST 105 professor, Dr. Lisa Pasolli, she advised that my best option would be to appeal for late withdrawal/drop the course. Considering the degree of involvement my outstanding work would require, she suggested that I appeal to withdraw instead of attempting to complete the assignments, and also suggested that I not take the exam, as that mark alone would not be enough to pass the course should I do poorly on the assignments. In communications with my Accessibility Advisor, she suggested the same approach regarding GNDS 125. As such, I am following their recommendations and appealing to drop the courses after the academic deadline.

As for my approach to my future studies, I am making a plan to better align with my capabilities, struggles, and time management. Though I will be working on my management strategies, I also plan on lightening my course load. With fewer courses per term/year, I expect to not become overwhelmed by academic demands and stresses. I will be better able to manage my time and energy, and will be able to maintain my responsibilities.

I plan to pursue all the support that will help me, including my therapy but also the options here at Queen??s, including mental health and academic advising. I do not want to make the same mistakes, especially since I take my education seriously and have meaningful goals for myself.