Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Studies),

I am appealing to receive an Aegrotat grade for Professor Gwynn Dujardin's ENGL 421 seminar class.
I struggle with anxiety and see a therapist in Kingston regularly. I also work on controlling my anxiety through practicing yoga and meditation. On April 7th, the day before the deadline of our final paper, I received news that a close friend of mine from home, and his mother, were involved in a murder-suicide and were found dead in their home. After I heard the news, I tried to focus on my studying and continued to spend long days at the library from April 8th to 10th.
Throughout the semester, I attended every seminar class on Tuesdays and Fridays. I received an A grade on participation (10), my assignment (15), and presentation (20). I submitted a draft of my final paper (25) with a request for an extension to revise it further.
However, the combination of heightened stress from exam season and the news of my friend triggered uncontrollable anxiety and I was unable to focus on my work. I suffered numerous panic attacks and mental breakdowns over the weekend and into the beginning of the next week. I was unable to sleep or eat properly. The unusual circumstance of death is one that I am not accustomed to dealing with and found it completely unmanageable with exams quickly approaching. The funeral was scheduled for April 13. Professor Dujardin's exam was on April 16th.
On the morning of April 11th, I visited Student Wellness Services and booked an emergency appointment to speak with a counselor who administered a note of extenuating circumstances for my professors. After speaking with Professor Dujardin, she said the draft I submitted was satisfactory and suggested that I look into appealing for an Aegrotat grade for her course.
With Professor Dujardin's support, I was able to go home from April 12th to 15th to be with family and friends and attend my friend and his mother's visitation and funeral. This circumstance has been extremely traumatizing and detrimental to my concentration on my academics and to my physical health, as I have been unable to sleep or eat properly. Therefore, I am still finding it difficult to focus clearly on my work, though I am doing my best to complete all of my other courses with accommodation from my professors.
I work very hard to be successful in my studies. However, due to the unusual events that have recently occurred in my life and have triggered my anxiety attacks, I do not believe that the work I would have produced for the remainder of Professor Dujardin's course would have reflected my understanding of the course material or the effort I have put into the course.
Although I am in my fourth year of studies, I am taking an extra semester of courses next year because I have been taking a reduced course load since second year in order to control my anxiety. I plan to continue to carry a reduced course load in my upcoming semester. I will also continue to seek support from my personal counselor during this difficult time and beyond to better cope with my anxiety.
Thank you for your time in considering my request. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Lauren Luchenski
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