Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Members of the Academic Petition Committee,

I am writing to respectfully request a late drop for PHIL314 from the Winter 2025 semester.

I am a consistently dedicated student who would like to pursue graduate studies after my
undergraduate degree. At the same time, I am supporting myself financially and academically by
working approximately 30 hours per week. Unpredictably, some extenuating circumstances had
interfered with my efforts.

During the winter semester of 2025, I experienced an unusual convergence of significant
personal and family circumstances, resulting in my worst performance to date. At the end of the
holiday break, my grandfather passed away. Since my father is mentally unstable, my
grandfather has been a pillar of stability in my life. His loss was devastating.

On top of this, my parents began a highly contentious divorce. My family started to fall apart due
to these events, and drew my mental focus away from my academics. As an older sibling, I
assumed the responsibility of supporting my sisters and attempted to shield them from the impact
of these events. These responsibilities required considerable emotional and practical energy
during a time when academic demands were increasing.

Throughout this time, I spoke with academic advisors who provided me with academic
accommodations. This helped me minimize some damage during this period. Despite this
support, due to the increasing familial responsibilities, my weakened efforts resulted in an F for
PHIL 314, which had never happened to me before.

I am actively committed to recovering my previous academic performance, enlisting the help of
a psycho-therapist. One of the remaining obstacles to advance academically on the road to
graduate school is the F mentioned above.

I am confident in my future success at Queens and hopefully Law School thereafter. However,
for my transcript to reflect my genuine commitment to success, I need to minimize my setbacks
during this period. For these reasons, I am petitioning for a late drop of PHIL 314.

Thanks,

Jordan
20363776