Manage Appeals
Petition Type: New
ID: 1529
Submitted: October 28, 2015 at 2:27:47 PM
First Name: Michelle Wing-Yan
Last Name: Tam
Student Number: 10059210
Email: 11mwyt@queensu.ca
Degree Program: BSH
Plan: LISC/GNDS
Level of Study: 4
Petition Categories
Petition Categories: Waive the 21-day or one term deadline
Petition Letter
Petition Letter: Dear Dr. Johanne Bénard and Academic Appeals Committee,
I am appealing for Credit Standing in CHEM281- General Organic Chemistry 1 (Summer, 2013) and CHEM 282- General Organic Chemistry 2 (Winter, 2014).
I learned a lot about myself through my time at Queen¿¿s. One of these occurring the summer after first year, summer 2013. I suffered through issues regarding my sexuality and finally came out to my parents. My parents have very traditional heteropatriarchal views. They had very traditional views on family and sexuality. It went terribly. Through that summer I ran away from home twice and at last got kicked out of my house. This was not done gently. The police were involved. My neighbours all called the police when they found my mother wrestling me to the ground on our front door while my dad was threatening to kill my partner and her family. I continued through CHEM 281 online through this struggle. I was estranged from my parents. I came back to school and did not speak to them. They said I was a disgrace to the family and did not welcome me back. I would stay at my partner¿¿s house whenever I went back to Toronto and make ends meet through OSAP and my partners funding. When I struggled through all this I did not think to turn to anyone for help, I felt helpless. CHEM 281 is a course linked to CHEM 282. It is a continuation. Without the background knowledge of CHEM 281, I suffered through CHEM 282. First semester of second year, I tried to focus on school again. I felt like that was the least I could do for myself. This led to my grades slowly getting back to where they were. I also took courses/electives that I was more comfortable with, including first year courses, so my grades would not suffer as much. Winter semester of second year came and issues started appearing again. For one, I did not have a well enough background knowledge from CHEM 281 for CHEM 282. Secondly, my dad¿¿s brother passed away. Seeing this he felt like he needed to reach out and ¿¿make the family whole again.¿ This did not help me in any way. Instead of welcoming me with open arms, he told me I must come back to the family now as ¿¿a whole person,¿ as if I was incomplete because of my sexuality.
After much suffering, I decided to explore my sexuality through courses offered at Queen¿¿s. I fell in love with the Gender Studies Department and found my place. I learned a great deal about myself and society through my time in the department. I was still estranged from my parents but at least now I had support. This helped my third year a great deal. My grades went up again because I was in the right mind set even though I was still estranged from my parents. In my third year, my housemates helped me point out that I may be suffering from mental health issues. I began seeing Health Counselling soon after that realization. They have helped me a lot through the many issues I have encountered from the past and present. I still continue to seek help from my counsellor, Arunima Khanna and have bi-weekly appointments with her.
Just last month my mother was hospitalized. It was very shocking, but it finally brought the family together again. I want to prove to them that I am the same person regardless of my sexuality. I now commute back home Fridays-Tuesdays every week to take care of her. She needs help with her daily activities. This rebuilt family bond has led me to reflect back on the past and fix up problems from the past. No, they have not accepted my sexuality but at least we are no longer estranged. Recently, I spoke to my counsellor about concerns over my grades from the past and she enlightened me. She told me about Academic Appeals. This is my attempt in going back and straightening back out my past to reinvent my future. Lately, I am doing a lot more self-reflection. I want to continue further with my head held high with minimal regrets from the past.
Thank you for taking your time to read my letter. I am now finally comfortable with telling my story so thank you for reading it.
Sincerely,
Michelle Tam
I am appealing for Credit Standing in CHEM281- General Organic Chemistry 1 (Summer, 2013) and CHEM 282- General Organic Chemistry 2 (Winter, 2014).
I learned a lot about myself through my time at Queen¿¿s. One of these occurring the summer after first year, summer 2013. I suffered through issues regarding my sexuality and finally came out to my parents. My parents have very traditional heteropatriarchal views. They had very traditional views on family and sexuality. It went terribly. Through that summer I ran away from home twice and at last got kicked out of my house. This was not done gently. The police were involved. My neighbours all called the police when they found my mother wrestling me to the ground on our front door while my dad was threatening to kill my partner and her family. I continued through CHEM 281 online through this struggle. I was estranged from my parents. I came back to school and did not speak to them. They said I was a disgrace to the family and did not welcome me back. I would stay at my partner¿¿s house whenever I went back to Toronto and make ends meet through OSAP and my partners funding. When I struggled through all this I did not think to turn to anyone for help, I felt helpless. CHEM 281 is a course linked to CHEM 282. It is a continuation. Without the background knowledge of CHEM 281, I suffered through CHEM 282. First semester of second year, I tried to focus on school again. I felt like that was the least I could do for myself. This led to my grades slowly getting back to where they were. I also took courses/electives that I was more comfortable with, including first year courses, so my grades would not suffer as much. Winter semester of second year came and issues started appearing again. For one, I did not have a well enough background knowledge from CHEM 281 for CHEM 282. Secondly, my dad¿¿s brother passed away. Seeing this he felt like he needed to reach out and ¿¿make the family whole again.¿ This did not help me in any way. Instead of welcoming me with open arms, he told me I must come back to the family now as ¿¿a whole person,¿ as if I was incomplete because of my sexuality.
After much suffering, I decided to explore my sexuality through courses offered at Queen¿¿s. I fell in love with the Gender Studies Department and found my place. I learned a great deal about myself and society through my time in the department. I was still estranged from my parents but at least now I had support. This helped my third year a great deal. My grades went up again because I was in the right mind set even though I was still estranged from my parents. In my third year, my housemates helped me point out that I may be suffering from mental health issues. I began seeing Health Counselling soon after that realization. They have helped me a lot through the many issues I have encountered from the past and present. I still continue to seek help from my counsellor, Arunima Khanna and have bi-weekly appointments with her.
Just last month my mother was hospitalized. It was very shocking, but it finally brought the family together again. I want to prove to them that I am the same person regardless of my sexuality. I now commute back home Fridays-Tuesdays every week to take care of her. She needs help with her daily activities. This rebuilt family bond has led me to reflect back on the past and fix up problems from the past. No, they have not accepted my sexuality but at least we are no longer estranged. Recently, I spoke to my counsellor about concerns over my grades from the past and she enlightened me. She told me about Academic Appeals. This is my attempt in going back and straightening back out my past to reinvent my future. Lately, I am doing a lot more self-reflection. I want to continue further with my head held high with minimal regrets from the past.
Thank you for taking your time to read my letter. I am now finally comfortable with telling my story so thank you for reading it.
Sincerely,
Michelle Tam
Documentation
Professional Letter: Letters of Support.pdf
Documentation Detail: Surgeon/Physician Documentation of Mother's Current Illness