Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: June 7, 2015

RE: Taryn Pilon Student 10036169

Att: Johanne Benard, Ph.D.

Dear Dr. Benard,

May this letter serve as my appeal to your letter of May 26, 2015 wherein you advised that I am required to withdraw from Queen¿¿s for one year.

I am appealing this decision for several important reasons.

First, I feel as though this decision is more punitive than constructive. Although I am sure that is not the intention, I cannot see how refusing to allow a student who is identified as ADHD and is Learning Disabled in reading and math to return to school will in any way improve my academic performance. If anything, I fear that it will serve counter-productive. I have dutifully attended Queen¿¿s for four years and I am very close to earning enough credits to graduate. Denying a student her chance at success this close to the finish line is not what one might expect from a leading educational institution. I would hope that if Queen¿¿s knowingly accepts a student with special needs, they would advocate for that student and work with her not against her in achieving that success.

Second, as referenced above there is a psychological assessment on file at Queens, which was submitted to the disability office upon my enrollment in 2011 and outlines 11 recommendations for me to be successful in my studies. I could go on for pages, but simply put, I submit that those accommodations have not been met to the fullest extent required or possible. For example, it states that I require double time for examinations but to date I have only been given one extra half hour for every allotted hour of exam time. I require a note-taker, but this is done on a volunteer basis in each course so oftentimes there is no one to help me. I also require adaptive technologies for reading and writing and, while I have received some assistance, I have found it very difficult to deal with the disability office, particularly on this issue. Last semester I found out much too late that a particular type of adaptive technology was available for writing exams at Queen¿¿s (Kurzweil) that may have further enhanced my grades. That information should have been shared with me (and other students with disabilities) as soon as it became available or at the very least, at the annual meeting I have with Disability Services.

Third, my failure to meet the arbitrary standards set is not due to any lack of commitment or effort on my part. I fully understand that my education is the key to my success in life and I have been working very hard to improve myself. Upon being placed on probation last year I entered into an academic plan which included attending workshops on my own initiative to improve academic skills, meeting often with tutors and student mentors and meeting weekly with an academic advisor (through the Athletics Gaels 301 program) who helped me review, organize and offered advice for my study calendar and upcoming assignments etc. Consequently, this past academic year was the most structured one thus far. Although they all still require improvement, my ability to write exams, organize my schedule, and take notes, all improved because of these efforts and the assistance I received from Athletics. Not coincidentally, I also enjoyed my most successful academic year, and finished with a GPA in 2014-2015 that was higher than the probation cut off line. Despite an improvement I fell just shy of the cumulative GPA required, but hope that my clear and obvious progress in the face of my challenges with respect to the accommodations, is proof that I am trending upwards in a positive way. In addition, my cumulative GPA is being weighed down by a lone failure on my transcript, without which I may land above the required grade. Armed with my improved study skills I attempted to re-take that course last year but could not get in.

Fourth, if granted the appeal I commit to continuing to work hard to improve my academic abilities and further raise my GPA as required. In addition to any further suggestions that Queen¿¿s may have, my academic plan for next year would include:

1) Utilizing the many outstanding resources available at the Queen¿¿s Learning Centre;
2) Taking advantage of the tutor program available through Queen¿¿s Athletics;
3) Continuing in the Gaels 301 program through Queen¿¿s Athletics, which I feel was a great benefit to my progress; and
4) Continue to advocate strongly with respect to accommodations as required.
5) I also plan to re-take Social Psychology 241 this upcoming year which will raise my overall GPA.

As a final note I would like to add that I am currently enrolled in a summer course (MUSC 171). I am hoping the completion of this course will boost my overall GPA.

An outline of the Gaels 301 program will follow under separate cover. If you have any questions about that program I¿¿m told that you can contact Alex Dominato in the Athletics department. In addition, I am attaching a letter of reference from the Athletics Department. I feel that I contribute positively to the greater Queen¿¿s and Kingston community. Entering my fifth and final year, I have recently been named as an assistant captain with the Queen¿¿s Women¿¿s Hockey team.

Thank you for your consideration of this appeal. If you require any further information prior to making your decision please do not hesitate to contact me.


Taryn Pilon