Decision Letter
Appeal Number: 8840
Decision Date: March 28, 2022
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Abigail Erwin
Student Email: abi_erwin@hotmail.com
Course: BCHM 218
Term: Fall
Year: 2020
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. John Allingham
Course: CANC 380
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Tiziana Cotechini
Course: BCHM 315
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Robert Campbell
Dear Abigail Erwin:
I have carefully considered your appeal to receive Credit standing in BCHM 218 (F20), CANC 380 and BCHM 315 (F21). After reviewing your file, I have decided the following:
1) To deny your request for Credit Standing in BCHM 218 (F20). I acknowledge that you experienced a health-related extenuating circumstance during the 2020 Fall term however, the documentation that you supplied related to this course, does not indicate the timeline that your academic ability was impacted. The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts in general would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students?? records without clear and compelling reasons indicating that the student??s performance was significantly compromised by extenuating circumstances beyond their control. I am sympathetic to your situation and recognize that this is a disappointing decision but I want you know that exam-related stress is not typically considered an extenuating circumstance as many students experience this every term. In general, an appeal would be successful when there are significantly extenuating circumstances, which would merit the waiving of an academic regulation.
2) To deny your request for Credit Standing in CANC 380 and BCHM 315 (F21). I recognize that you were hospitalized in November however, the information that I received from your instructors indicate that you were accommodated appropriately for this absence from school. As you know, Academic Regulation 10.3.2. states that, Credit standing in a course is reserved for situations in which a student, who has completed and passed all of the work of the course including the final examination, but because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected, normally a grade of C or lower?. Looking at your grade breakdown as provided by your instructors it appears that your lowest grades were achieved during the month of December and do not correlate with timeline of impact as suggested by the documentation that you supplied.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean??s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on ??Board of Studies?). You may contact the Office of the Ombudsman (www.queensu.ca/ombudsman) for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academics)
Decision Date: March 28, 2022
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Abigail Erwin
Student Email: abi_erwin@hotmail.com
Course: BCHM 218
Term: Fall
Year: 2020
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. John Allingham
Course: CANC 380
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Tiziana Cotechini
Course: BCHM 315
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Robert Campbell
Dear Abigail Erwin:
I have carefully considered your appeal to receive Credit standing in BCHM 218 (F20), CANC 380 and BCHM 315 (F21). After reviewing your file, I have decided the following:
1) To deny your request for Credit Standing in BCHM 218 (F20). I acknowledge that you experienced a health-related extenuating circumstance during the 2020 Fall term however, the documentation that you supplied related to this course, does not indicate the timeline that your academic ability was impacted. The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts in general would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students?? records without clear and compelling reasons indicating that the student??s performance was significantly compromised by extenuating circumstances beyond their control. I am sympathetic to your situation and recognize that this is a disappointing decision but I want you know that exam-related stress is not typically considered an extenuating circumstance as many students experience this every term. In general, an appeal would be successful when there are significantly extenuating circumstances, which would merit the waiving of an academic regulation.
2) To deny your request for Credit Standing in CANC 380 and BCHM 315 (F21). I recognize that you were hospitalized in November however, the information that I received from your instructors indicate that you were accommodated appropriately for this absence from school. As you know, Academic Regulation 10.3.2. states that, Credit standing in a course is reserved for situations in which a student, who has completed and passed all of the work of the course including the final examination, but because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected, normally a grade of C or lower?. Looking at your grade breakdown as provided by your instructors it appears that your lowest grades were achieved during the month of December and do not correlate with timeline of impact as suggested by the documentation that you supplied.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean??s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on ??Board of Studies?). You may contact the Office of the Ombudsman (www.queensu.ca/ombudsman) for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academics)
Generated March 28, 2022 at 11:19:54 AM.