Petition Letter
Angela Chung
4 Presidents Court
Toronto, ON M1V3E8
January 3, 2018
Dear Associate Dean of Studies:
I am appealing to request aegrotat standing for LING475 for the reason of extenuating circumstances. I have been dealing with long-standing mental illness, which is usually controlled with medication and ongoing psychiatrist visits. With the help of my psychiatrist and personal counselor, I have made great strides in improving over the past few years. However, the nature of this illness is that it fluctuates; I experienced a setback in the fall term of 2017, and was consequently unable to complete some of the course requirements.
LING475 is a field methods course, worth 6.0 credits in one term. As such, the work load was significantly heavier than I was accustomed to, and likely beyond what I could handle in my condition. My illness worsened over the course of the term in the form of increased panic attacks, inability to sleep, and an inability to keep down food. These symptoms made it difficult to focus on classwork, comprehend and remember new material, complete assignments, and participate fully in labs. Still, I continued to push myself, until the accumulated stress culminated in a suicide attempt on November 20, 2017. After this incident, I immediately sought help from two different counselors: Meghan Leuprect of Queen¿¿s Counselling Services, and Freeman Woolnough of Residence Life Embedded Counselors. After also consulting with an academic advisor, we agreed that it was no longer in the interest of my health to continue with the course. Due to this, I was unable to complete the final essay for LING475.
Throughout the fall term, I did my best to complete all schoolwork that I was able to. Apart from the essay, which counts for 40 of the grade, I have completed every component of the course at or above 90. I am an extremely diligent and hardworking student. My instructor, Professor Charlotte Reinholtz, supports my appeal and agrees that my current grade is not representative of the work completed and does not reflect my abilities.
While my underlying mental health issue remains, I have taken the following steps to ensure academic success in the future:
1) Work with Queen¿¿s Accessibility Services to arrange (and/or modify) necessary accommodations.
2) Continue to take a reduced course load.
3) Work with my psychiatrist to adjust my medications as needed.
The immediate success of these steps can be seen in the A+ I received in my other course, LLCU201. During the winter term, I plan to make use of additional help to reduce the likelihood of a relapse by:
1) Utilizing a counselor at Queen¿¿s Student Wellness to better manage my mental illness, as well as develop strategies to access help before reaching that extreme level again
2) Making use of a learning strategist to better allocate my time and avoid reaching that level of stress again
Also, because I believe the worsening of my mental illness was course-specific, I will be more careful in selecting courses in the future. Furthermore, I do not have any courses that rigorous left to take, so I should be able to complete my degree without encountering the same problem again. I have come a long way from when my illness first started, and I believe that with adequate treatment I will continue to improve.
I thank you for your time and consideration, and hope most earnestly that you will grant me this aegrotat standing.
Sincerely,
Angela Chung
4 Presidents Court
Toronto, ON M1V3E8
January 3, 2018
Dear Associate Dean of Studies:
I am appealing to request aegrotat standing for LING475 for the reason of extenuating circumstances. I have been dealing with long-standing mental illness, which is usually controlled with medication and ongoing psychiatrist visits. With the help of my psychiatrist and personal counselor, I have made great strides in improving over the past few years. However, the nature of this illness is that it fluctuates; I experienced a setback in the fall term of 2017, and was consequently unable to complete some of the course requirements.
LING475 is a field methods course, worth 6.0 credits in one term. As such, the work load was significantly heavier than I was accustomed to, and likely beyond what I could handle in my condition. My illness worsened over the course of the term in the form of increased panic attacks, inability to sleep, and an inability to keep down food. These symptoms made it difficult to focus on classwork, comprehend and remember new material, complete assignments, and participate fully in labs. Still, I continued to push myself, until the accumulated stress culminated in a suicide attempt on November 20, 2017. After this incident, I immediately sought help from two different counselors: Meghan Leuprect of Queen¿¿s Counselling Services, and Freeman Woolnough of Residence Life Embedded Counselors. After also consulting with an academic advisor, we agreed that it was no longer in the interest of my health to continue with the course. Due to this, I was unable to complete the final essay for LING475.
Throughout the fall term, I did my best to complete all schoolwork that I was able to. Apart from the essay, which counts for 40 of the grade, I have completed every component of the course at or above 90. I am an extremely diligent and hardworking student. My instructor, Professor Charlotte Reinholtz, supports my appeal and agrees that my current grade is not representative of the work completed and does not reflect my abilities.
While my underlying mental health issue remains, I have taken the following steps to ensure academic success in the future:
1) Work with Queen¿¿s Accessibility Services to arrange (and/or modify) necessary accommodations.
2) Continue to take a reduced course load.
3) Work with my psychiatrist to adjust my medications as needed.
The immediate success of these steps can be seen in the A+ I received in my other course, LLCU201. During the winter term, I plan to make use of additional help to reduce the likelihood of a relapse by:
1) Utilizing a counselor at Queen¿¿s Student Wellness to better manage my mental illness, as well as develop strategies to access help before reaching that extreme level again
2) Making use of a learning strategist to better allocate my time and avoid reaching that level of stress again
Also, because I believe the worsening of my mental illness was course-specific, I will be more careful in selecting courses in the future. Furthermore, I do not have any courses that rigorous left to take, so I should be able to complete my degree without encountering the same problem again. I have come a long way from when my illness first started, and I believe that with adequate treatment I will continue to improve.
I thank you for your time and consideration, and hope most earnestly that you will grant me this aegrotat standing.
Sincerely,
Angela Chung