Petition Letter
To whom it may concern,
My name is Santyna Brar and I am a fourth year Biology major at Queen¿¿s University, appealing for a credit standing in BIOL 330 and CHEM 281. Both courses were taken and passed in the fall semester of 2017. I am appealing on the grounds that the state of my mental health prevented me from performing at my best ability during this time. I have attached supporting documentation to this application to provide further proof of my poor state.
In October of 2017, I was sexually assaulted by my partner¿¿s friend. Due to a history of sexual assault since early childhood, this incident severely took a toll on my mental health. In fact, it brought me back to a very dark place in which I found myself contemplating suicide. When a few weeks had passed after the assault, I was home for the weekend and my former partner made it very clear that he blamed me for the assault. This was when the anxiety attacks started again. I had not been assaulted in years after I had stood up to the previous sexual predator and transferred schools to Queen¿¿s University to get away from the abuse. I was finally healing, and my former partner was the first person I had trusted intimately in years.
On the Sunday of that weekend, I drove back to Kingston from Toronto, as I had an executive meeting with the Consensual Humans club of which I am the treasurer. At the meeting, I completely lost control of my emotions and broke down to the president. I dropped her home after the meeting, informing her that I was contemplating suicide and couldn¿¿t study for my CHEM281 makeup midterm the next day. I told her that I was thinking about driving into a wall and she forced me to go to Kingston General Hospital with her (the notes taken during this visit on Nov 11th are attached to the appeal). Not only did the doctor help me feel confident enough to go home, but she also provided me with a sick note for the midterm.
Unfortunately, by missing the second CHEM 281 midterm, it meant that my final exam would be worth 80 of my grade. By the time exams rolled around, I was still feeling horrible and although I studied hard, I could not focus and failed the final exam. Luckily, I got an A- on the first midterm for CHEM 281 (worth 15 of my grade), as this midterm took place before the incident. Additionally, as my BIOL 330 midterm was soon after the incident, in late October, my mental health was struggling and as was my immune system. Due to this, I received a doctor¿¿s note for that midterm as well. When it was time to retake the midterm in early November, I was still grappling with my pain and could not perform to my best ability. I know it is suggested that I only apply for credit standing for courses in which I have received a grade lower than ¿C¿¿. However, my BIOL 330 mark will still bring down the GPA that I have worked so hard to maintain throughout undergrad, as the program that I have been striving to get in to is extremely competitive. I do not want to be penalized for circumstances that I could not control. Dr. Bendena knew that I had been struggling immensely this semester and can attest to that.
The inescapable pain and feelings of negativity truly impacted me throughout exam season as well as during the semester. I found myself struggling with everything, especially these two courses. I tried extremely hard to study and put in hours of work, but my mind kept wandering to flashbacks of every single assault that I had ever been through. The abuse would consume me every day and keep me from sleeping at night.
If you look at my transcript, you can see that I am a very diligent student and my grades reflect this. I have worked earnestly to overcome my haunted past and to move forward to a brighter future, but the incident that took place in fall of 2017 pushed me back a few steps. I know that I will regain myself and coming home for the holidays is helping with this. I am talking to my doctor about seeking help through counselling at Queen¿¿s and through the Summerville Health Team, and I am also considering psychotherapy. I believe that counselling, along with knowing that I still have my academic future to look forward to, will help me heal and move past these suicidal feelings.
I would appreciate forgiveness for these grades that reflect not my intelligence or work ethic, but rather, my circumstances. If you grant my appeal, I would be exceedingly grateful to know that I still have a hopeful future ahead of me in regards to graduate studies and job opportunities. My family doctor was not able to write my professional note, so a doctor covering for her took a look at all of KGH notes from Nov 11th and assessed me on Dec 19th. You can find all of the notes taken at KGH under ¿MD Chart¿¿ and ¿Care Notes¿¿, in the additional documentation I have submitted.
Thank you, kindly, for your time and consideration.
My best,
Santyna Brar
Fourth Year, Biology (Hons.) BSc
Queen¿¿s University
My name is Santyna Brar and I am a fourth year Biology major at Queen¿¿s University, appealing for a credit standing in BIOL 330 and CHEM 281. Both courses were taken and passed in the fall semester of 2017. I am appealing on the grounds that the state of my mental health prevented me from performing at my best ability during this time. I have attached supporting documentation to this application to provide further proof of my poor state.
In October of 2017, I was sexually assaulted by my partner¿¿s friend. Due to a history of sexual assault since early childhood, this incident severely took a toll on my mental health. In fact, it brought me back to a very dark place in which I found myself contemplating suicide. When a few weeks had passed after the assault, I was home for the weekend and my former partner made it very clear that he blamed me for the assault. This was when the anxiety attacks started again. I had not been assaulted in years after I had stood up to the previous sexual predator and transferred schools to Queen¿¿s University to get away from the abuse. I was finally healing, and my former partner was the first person I had trusted intimately in years.
On the Sunday of that weekend, I drove back to Kingston from Toronto, as I had an executive meeting with the Consensual Humans club of which I am the treasurer. At the meeting, I completely lost control of my emotions and broke down to the president. I dropped her home after the meeting, informing her that I was contemplating suicide and couldn¿¿t study for my CHEM281 makeup midterm the next day. I told her that I was thinking about driving into a wall and she forced me to go to Kingston General Hospital with her (the notes taken during this visit on Nov 11th are attached to the appeal). Not only did the doctor help me feel confident enough to go home, but she also provided me with a sick note for the midterm.
Unfortunately, by missing the second CHEM 281 midterm, it meant that my final exam would be worth 80 of my grade. By the time exams rolled around, I was still feeling horrible and although I studied hard, I could not focus and failed the final exam. Luckily, I got an A- on the first midterm for CHEM 281 (worth 15 of my grade), as this midterm took place before the incident. Additionally, as my BIOL 330 midterm was soon after the incident, in late October, my mental health was struggling and as was my immune system. Due to this, I received a doctor¿¿s note for that midterm as well. When it was time to retake the midterm in early November, I was still grappling with my pain and could not perform to my best ability. I know it is suggested that I only apply for credit standing for courses in which I have received a grade lower than ¿C¿¿. However, my BIOL 330 mark will still bring down the GPA that I have worked so hard to maintain throughout undergrad, as the program that I have been striving to get in to is extremely competitive. I do not want to be penalized for circumstances that I could not control. Dr. Bendena knew that I had been struggling immensely this semester and can attest to that.
The inescapable pain and feelings of negativity truly impacted me throughout exam season as well as during the semester. I found myself struggling with everything, especially these two courses. I tried extremely hard to study and put in hours of work, but my mind kept wandering to flashbacks of every single assault that I had ever been through. The abuse would consume me every day and keep me from sleeping at night.
If you look at my transcript, you can see that I am a very diligent student and my grades reflect this. I have worked earnestly to overcome my haunted past and to move forward to a brighter future, but the incident that took place in fall of 2017 pushed me back a few steps. I know that I will regain myself and coming home for the holidays is helping with this. I am talking to my doctor about seeking help through counselling at Queen¿¿s and through the Summerville Health Team, and I am also considering psychotherapy. I believe that counselling, along with knowing that I still have my academic future to look forward to, will help me heal and move past these suicidal feelings.
I would appreciate forgiveness for these grades that reflect not my intelligence or work ethic, but rather, my circumstances. If you grant my appeal, I would be exceedingly grateful to know that I still have a hopeful future ahead of me in regards to graduate studies and job opportunities. My family doctor was not able to write my professional note, so a doctor covering for her took a look at all of KGH notes from Nov 11th and assessed me on Dec 19th. You can find all of the notes taken at KGH under ¿MD Chart¿¿ and ¿Care Notes¿¿, in the additional documentation I have submitted.
Thank you, kindly, for your time and consideration.
My best,
Santyna Brar
Fourth Year, Biology (Hons.) BSc
Queen¿¿s University