Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Kayleigh MacNeil (Student ID: 20302723)
624 Division Tt. Kingston Ontario
To the University Student Appeals Board RE: Late course drop appeal

I am writing this letter to request an appeal to eliminate three failed courses from my transcript for the winter semester of 2022. Due to extenuating circumstances that severely affected my mental health and prevented me from attending university in person, the academic results of my second semester in 2022 exhibited extremely low performance. Due to poor academic standing, I was subsequently placed on academic probation. I did not choose to appeal this decision at the time as I was unaware of how it may affect any future opportunities for myself at university. In addition to this, I felt hopeful and confident that in my second year I would be able to begin studying on campus to achieve success in my studies and ultimately lift my probation. After having been able to move to Kingston and pursue my education in person, I??ve gained an interest in going on an international exchange. Due to my poor academic standing, however, I will be unable to apply for this opportunity. Now, having had the opportunity to study in person, I do not believe that the results of the second term of my 2021/2022 academic year are an accurate reflection of my abilities and values as a student.

In the first semester of the 2021/2022 school year, I had chosen to take three courses to help balance my studies with my mental health struggles caused by the pandemic at the time. By the winter term, I was enrolled in a full five-course term and began to struggle to meet academic expectations. During the second term of the 2021/2022 academic year, covid-19 cases had begun to rise and a variety of safety regulations were reinstated during this time. Lockdown measures greatly limited my ability to socialize with extended family and friends, and prevented me from participating in recreational sports, and practicing my faith with my church community. These factors caused me to experience a variety of mental health issues. As a result of my mental instability, I struggled to reach out for support and utilize the online services provided by Queen??s to assist me with my mental struggles as well as my studies. I did not choose to drop the courses, at that time for the same reasons. I wasn??t thinking clearly about my education and what failed classes could mean to me other than having to only repeat them. I truly believe that I was unable to effectively contemplate the future of my education, as well as the severity of my failing grades and therefore made unwise choices.
Along with my mental health issues I was struggling to learn in an online environment. My home environment was unsuitable for learning acquisition due to having 2 younger siblings at home also participating in virtual learning. During this time my Mother was also working from home and trying to help my siblings was difficult at best. Also at this time access to public libraries was extremely limited due to frequent closures as a result of lockdowns and other covid-19 regulations. Further, throughout my final year of high school, my online classes consisted of lectures given by my teachers daily, allowing me to engage in discussion and ask questions at the time of learning. However, for the chosen classes I had in my first year at Queen??s, there were no lectures for me to watch or be present in. Although there were opportunities to communicate with teaching assistants and professors through email, I found these to be not as helpful for me as an online student. Speaking via email did not provide me with the support I needed at the time based on my mental capacity as well as the stress of online classes and the risk of failure.

After having spent the last 2 months pursuing my studies in person and the reduction of covid-19 related lockdowns, I have noticed a substantial improvement in my mental health, as well as my academic performance. Having access to spaces suitable for learning on campus, classroom peers to engage with, and a multitude of mental health support resources from Queen??s faculty and student-run organizations I am prepared to achieve success in university. I
feel that my choice to move to Kingston and be a part of the University community, as well as the coping skills I have gained over the last few months have shown me that I am fully capable of achieving the marks required to study internationally and would love to be able to do so. I request that I be allowed to drop these 3 failures from my transcript due to my inability to meet academic expectations in that semester for reasons beyond my control. I plan to make up for the losses of credits this summer and pursue an application for studying abroad next year.

Thank you for your consideration in this matter and I hope to hear a positive outcome for my request.

Sincerely, Kayleigh MacNeil.