Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: December 13rd, 2016
Associate Dean (Studies)
Student Services, First Floor Dunning Hall
Queen's University
Kingston, ON


To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Kyle Scoten, and I am a third-year Arts and Science student majoring in Life Science. In April, 2016, I suffered a severe concussion. Consequently, I was unable to study for and write any of my five Winter 2016 final exams. I was forced to appeal for Aegrotat Standing and deferrals for my exams. I was granted Aegrotat Standing in my two eligible courses, CHEM 223 and BCHM 218. For the remaining courses, CHEM 222, MICR 270, and PSYC 100A/B, I was granted a deferral of my final exams until the end of the Fall, 2016 semester.

Unfortunately, I am still unable to write the CHEM 222, MICR 270, and PSYC 100A/B exams due to a second concussion that I suffered in June, 2016, just two weeks after the symptoms from my first concussion subsided. The second concussion's symptoms were even worse than the first and continue to persist now, 6 months later. This letter is to appeal for an extension of the Incomplete Grades that I currently hold in CHEM 222, MICR 270, and PSYC 100A/B. I emailed the respective professors to ask them for their support in my appeal for an extension of my Incomplete Grade in their courses. Fortunately, they are all very understanding and supportive of my current appeal.

The doctor that I initially met with at KGH on March 31st, 2016 advised me to meet with an academic advisor. On April 5th I met with Spring Forsberg-Lewis, a Queen's Academic Advisor, to discuss my options with regards to my final exams. She has been very helpful in suggesting the best path to take, considering both my health and my desire to perform academically to the best of my ability. To do so, I must now request a further deferral of my exam dates until April, 2017.

As my academic records show (please see transcript attached), I am an extremely conscientious student, and my academic studies are very important to me. Having put tremendous effort into my course work all semester (Winter 2016), the stress resulting from academic worries was a serious hindrance to my recovery and continues to be concern as I still have severe symptoms. These symptoms include persistent headaches (of a 6-8 severity), depression (due to my lingering headache), and difficulty focusing on one task for longer than 15 minutes at a time.

These symptoms persist despite extensive physiotherapy (eye-tracking exercises, etc.), massage therapy (to loosen muscles in the back of my neck), acupuncture, natural medicines, a new glasses prescription, and frequent visits to a concussion specialist in Kingston (Dr. O'Connor) and my family doctor in Vancouver (Dr. Levitt). The feedback that I have received is that it is not surprising that my symptoms have persisted so long because of the short time-frame in which both concussions occurred. However, the doctors and professionals are optimistic that I should start seeing improvements in the coming weeks/months.

I took one course during the Fall 2016 semester (ANAT 100), as the workload was reasonable and the course did not have any long assessments or final exam. However, I was still very inefficient at studying the material as I had to take very frequent breaks; therefore, I plan to take next semester off to focus on my recovery. I expect that this break will allow me to be well enough to write my exams in April, 2017. I will continue to seek medical advice from medical professionals as needed in the hope of a full recovery, and continue with the physiotherapy exercises which I have been assigned. I will also be following a GF Strong (Vancouver General Hospital) post-concussion syndrome recovery treatment plan in the hopes of improving my symptoms. If necessary, I will also seek help from a neurologist and/or neuropsychiatrist.

Thank you very much for your thoughtful consideration of my appeal for an extension of the Incomplete Grade that I currently hold in CHEM 222, MICR 270, and PSYC 100A/B. I hope that you understand that my extenuating circumstances have directly affected my ability to complete my final examinations for the Winter 2016 semester as scheduled, and a granted appeal would give me the time that I need to fully recover from my concussions and write my exams concussion-free.

Sincerely,

Kyle Scoten
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