Decision Letter
Submission Number: 12557
Decision Date: March 24, 2025
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Elyse Sugarman
Student Email: 20els6@queensu.ca
Course: BCHM 315
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: MICR 386
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: ECON 110
Term: Fall/Winter
Year: 2023
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Ian Crombe
Course: EPID 301
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Lisa Butler
Dear Elyse,
Thank you for your petition request to drop BCHM 315 and MICR 386 (F23) after the academic deadline and for Credit Standing in ECON 110 (FW23/24) and EPID 301 (W24). I have carefully reviewed your petition and while I’m unable to grant all of these requests, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account as part of this decision.
I have decided to grant your request to drop BCHM 315 and MICR 386 (F23) after the academic deadline due to the timeline and academic impacts of extenuating circumstances as confirmed within the documentation you supplied. Your grades in these courses will be replaced with a DR notation on your transcript.
Regarding your requests for Credit Standing in ECON 110 (FW23/24) and EPID 301 (W24), the Academic Petitions and Appeals Regulation 3.3.1.4 at https://www.queensu.ca/academic-calendar/arts-science/appeal-regulations/ state that credit standing is reserved for a course in which a student who has completed all of the work of the class, including the final examination, and achieved a passing grade in the class, but due to illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected.
I acknowledge the health-related struggles that you experienced during the timeline of November 2023 and May 2024 and understand that you were not supported during that time. I was happy to see that you successfully completed both ECON 110 and EPID 301 despite the ongoing impacts of these circumstances. I have however, denied your request for Credit Standing ECON 110, as the instructor of this course has reported that you did not complete all of the components in it which makes you ineligible for this academic option. I unfortunately do not have enough information to make a decision on EPID 301 as I was not able to obtain your individual grades from the instructor of this course and so it is unclear if you are eligible for Credit Standing in it.
I want to remind you that it is the student’s responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on their classes prior to the drop deadline of the term. If they have fallen behind in a course or find the material too difficult, they should drop the course by the deadline. The drop deadlines, as they have been outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Arts and Science web page, have been established by the Faculty of Arts and Science to ensure fair and equitable treatment of all students.
If you are concerned with the impact that these courses have on your GPA, I would suggest that you consider repeating them in a future term. When repeating the exact same course code, both attempts will appear on your transcript however, only the higher grade will be included within the calculation of your cumulative GPA.
Additionally, if you wish to appeal this decision, information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). The Office of the University Ombudsperson offers guidance on student rights and procedural fairness at queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness, and they are also available to support you at queensu.ca/ombuds.
I hope that you continue to seek out the support and resources available to you, and I wish you the best in navigating your next steps.
Warm regards,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)
Decision Date: March 24, 2025
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Elyse Sugarman
Student Email: 20els6@queensu.ca
Course: BCHM 315
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: MICR 386
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: ECON 110
Term: Fall/Winter
Year: 2023
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Ian Crombe
Course: EPID 301
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Lisa Butler
Dear Elyse,
Thank you for your petition request to drop BCHM 315 and MICR 386 (F23) after the academic deadline and for Credit Standing in ECON 110 (FW23/24) and EPID 301 (W24). I have carefully reviewed your petition and while I’m unable to grant all of these requests, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account as part of this decision.
I have decided to grant your request to drop BCHM 315 and MICR 386 (F23) after the academic deadline due to the timeline and academic impacts of extenuating circumstances as confirmed within the documentation you supplied. Your grades in these courses will be replaced with a DR notation on your transcript.
Regarding your requests for Credit Standing in ECON 110 (FW23/24) and EPID 301 (W24), the Academic Petitions and Appeals Regulation 3.3.1.4 at https://www.queensu.ca/academic-calendar/arts-science/appeal-regulations/ state that credit standing is reserved for a course in which a student who has completed all of the work of the class, including the final examination, and achieved a passing grade in the class, but due to illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected.
I acknowledge the health-related struggles that you experienced during the timeline of November 2023 and May 2024 and understand that you were not supported during that time. I was happy to see that you successfully completed both ECON 110 and EPID 301 despite the ongoing impacts of these circumstances. I have however, denied your request for Credit Standing ECON 110, as the instructor of this course has reported that you did not complete all of the components in it which makes you ineligible for this academic option. I unfortunately do not have enough information to make a decision on EPID 301 as I was not able to obtain your individual grades from the instructor of this course and so it is unclear if you are eligible for Credit Standing in it.
I want to remind you that it is the student’s responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on their classes prior to the drop deadline of the term. If they have fallen behind in a course or find the material too difficult, they should drop the course by the deadline. The drop deadlines, as they have been outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Arts and Science web page, have been established by the Faculty of Arts and Science to ensure fair and equitable treatment of all students.
If you are concerned with the impact that these courses have on your GPA, I would suggest that you consider repeating them in a future term. When repeating the exact same course code, both attempts will appear on your transcript however, only the higher grade will be included within the calculation of your cumulative GPA.
Additionally, if you wish to appeal this decision, information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). The Office of the University Ombudsperson offers guidance on student rights and procedural fairness at queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness, and they are also available to support you at queensu.ca/ombuds.
I hope that you continue to seek out the support and resources available to you, and I wish you the best in navigating your next steps.
Warm regards,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)
Generated March 24, 2025 at 1:32:33 PM.