Petition Letter
I have been advised by my Queen's Academic Councillor to seek the appeals of any anomalies on my transcript (which was described as a grade below C+) as a form of retroactive accommodations for having undiagnosed ADHD through my first three years of my undergraduate studies. My family never felt comfortable with the idea of an ADHD assessment and medication, and therefore ignored requests by my teachers that suggested I go get tested from a very young age all the way into my undergrad. After meeting with a Medical Professional in the Queen's La Salle building about what felt to me like what might have of panic attacks, the Doctor urged me to ask my family doctor for a referral for an ADHD assessment, for it had gotten so severe by going untreated that it was causing my extreme anxiety. The anxiety, according to my Doctor, stemmed from being unable to complete the tasks and live up to my academic capabilities. On August 18th, 2016, I got diagnosed with ADHD by Dr. Aline Marin, who was surprised I was even able to get myself through 3 years of under-graduate studies with my level of ADHD, that had transcended into bad anxiety. We decided only to medicate my ADHD, for that was the direct cause of my anxiety. I went into my fourth year medicated, and had had my best academic year yet, with my Fall Term GPA being 3.67. I am seeking for retroactive appeals on my transcript because I don't believe that I was able to live up to my academic expectations in my first three years, having to had undergone it without any diagnosis and understanding of what was hindering me. Now that I've seen just a drastic improvement in my grades and daily life, thanks to my condition being properly treated, I believe that I have an actual chance of pursuing my long-term goal of graduate and law school. This, however, will be tough due to the ADHD hindering my academic capabilities in my first three years. My academic advisor believes that I should seek retroactive accommodations, such as these appeals, for it is clear that my ADHD had a large negative impact on me through the first three years at Queen's.