Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To whom it may concern,

I sincerely thank the Faculty of Arts and Science for the support they have provided me thus far. I am making an appeal regarding my courses from Fall 2015, for which I was granted an IN due to health issues in December 2015, and which remain IN to this date due to extenuating circumstances in the Winter Term. After discussion with my professors and the Faculty, it was suggested at this point to seek alternative solutions for 12.0 units worth of courses that are not required for my double degree in Life Sciences (BScH) and Linguistics (BAH). Therefore, today, I am appealing to drop LING 475/6.0, for either a Credit Standing or a drop in FREN 503/3.0, and to receive Aegrotat status in FREN 250/6.0.

In late November 2015, I experienced significant anxiety and mental health issues that was noticed by my professors, who intervened and suggested I defer my coursework from that point forward. I received counselling from my family doctor, who agreed that the best remedy at that point was to cease schoolwork and defer my work in December (see ¿¿Documentation December¿).

Throughout the Winter Term, I made efforts to recover and to return to my usual productivity, which was successful for the first few weeks, and I managed my regular course load without issue for the first few weeks. I planned to complete the majority of my Incomplete coursework from the fall term during Reading Week and after the April exam period. However, I began to experience depression and mental health challenge rooted from regret and existential thoughts that affected my ability to complete work during the Reading Week. This caused some disruption to my Winter Term work, which resulted in accommodation being requested in early March (see ¿¿Documentation March¿).

Finally, throughout March and April, I experienced several viral infections that caused physical illness which, coupled with outstanding mental burden, led to suicidal thoughts. Therefore, my physician recommended seeking a short deferral for my April work up to that point (see ¿¿Documentation April¿), which included exams in ENGL 259 and MICR 221, and essays in CRSS 498, ENGL 259, and GRMN 427. This further affected my ability to complete my Fall Term Incompletes.

At this point, after significant reflection and consultation with the Faculty Office, I have realized that, considering that 12.0 units of the current incompletes are extraneous (not required for graduation), the best solution is to request non-evaluative grades in LING 475, FREN 503 and FREN 250. Although I would have desired to complete these courses and feel that I have the academic ability to do so, after discussion with Dean Bénard, I have decided to appeal these courses in order to stabilize my health, considering they are not required for my Double Degree. Thus, this request is not due to a regret in selecting the courses due to coursework, but rather, as a practical solution given the extenuating circumstances.

Therefore, I am requesting (in order of request)
1. To drop LING 475/6.0
2. To request Credit Standing in FREN 503/3.0 . If this is not possible, I am requesting to drop FREN 503/3.0
3. To request an Aegrotat grade in FREN 250/3.0 based on the 60 of the course I have completed to date.

Academic Plan
My current plan includes earning a passing grade in all current IN courses by May 16, 2016, in order to be eligible for a full Spring Convocation. This involves submitting essays in GRMN 309, GRMN 312, and ENGL 259; and writing exams in NSCI 323 and MICR 221. This would ensure that I would meet the requirements for graduation by the Faculty deadline. Some of these professors in these courses have indicated that they are not be able to compete grading my outstanding work by May 16, and have arranged for them to first submit the passing mark I would receive if I do not complete the outstanding work (e.g. B in GRMN 312). This will be done with the understanding that the grade can be updated up to June 8 (the day before my convocation).