Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Dr. Bénard,

I am writing to request aegrotat standing in both Socy 225 (Winter 2016) and Socy 276 (Winter 2016). I currently have an IN in both of these courses. In Socy 225, I have the final exam left to complete, which is worth 30 percent of our final grade. In Socy 276, I have a final test worth 20 percent left to complete. I am also currently working on other assignments from my winter courses (Socy 227, Socy 273, and GPHY 101). In each course, I have contacted the professors to receive extra time and they have all been understanding and patient.

Unfortunately, the reason I fell behind in all of my courses last term was because I got a concussion on March 12, 2016. The headaches, nausea, and loss of focus came almost immediately after I hit my head, making class and work painful and daunting. The following week, I was officially diagnosed with a concussion by Dr. O¿¿Connor, a specialist who works with many Queen¿¿s students. That weekend (March 25th) I visited my Aunt Claire Barron in Guelph, Ontario and saw Dr. John Crawford, who put me on complete cognitive rest. An order I was eerily familiar with from two sports-related concussions in high school (2012). For the next three weeks, I stayed in Guelph, continuing to see Dr Crawford. At this time I was unable to read or be on screens of any sort, so I reached out to the accommodations office and my professors to officially postpone my exams and end of the year work.

I eventually received permission to travel and returned home to Nantucket, Massachusetts. Since then I have gradually returned to a relatively normal routine and sought medical support from my primary care doctor, a chiropractor, and a neurologist, Dr. Donald Marks. However, I still can only spend small periods of time reading or studying because it continues to hurt my head. Additionally, I still struggle to fully focus for long periods of time. It has become clear that I will be unable to finish all the work I missed this winter/spring by September, while also taking the appropriate measures to fully heal my head. Thus, I have spent some time looking through my courses, noting the amount of work I already completed in the course and what type of assignment I have to complete.

I am requesting aegrotat standing in Socy 225 and Socy 276 because these are courses in which I feel I have grasped the learning goals. Additionally, the final assessment for both courses is some form of test, rather than an essay. At this point, my head needs lengthy breaks between periods of studying, reading and test taking, which essays allow but tests do not. While the professors have granted some form of take-home assignment, I still worry that the 48-hour time period I have to complete it in and the studying beforehand will prove painful both at the time and in the long run. Although I wish that I could finish all my missed work, I have been advised to take time to heal my brain this summer in order to be back to a full course load this fall. If granted aegrotat standing in Socy 225 and Socy 276, I will be able finish my essays and assignments from my remaining courses.

In the case that my head has not fully recovered by the fall, I have spoken to Vicky Andrews, my academic advisor in the Concurrent Education department, and we have worked out a plan for a lighter course load in the fall and possibly winter of next year that will still allow me to graduate on time. While I wish that this injury would not continue to interfere with my schoolwork, my experience thus far and doctors have warned me that the recovery period is lengthy and unpredictable.

Thank you,
Grace Jensen