Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Dr. Benard,
I am writing to you to request an extension for a course grade. I would like to appeal Socy 227. I took this course in the Winter of 2016, and I, unfortunately, did not realize I needed to appeal this extension then, which is why I am asking for it now. I suffered a concussion during March of 2016 and had to miss my exams and final assignments for the term. This was my third concussion, so the long-term implications seemed increasingly serious and scary. Thus, I took, and continue to take, every precaution to assure a complete recovery. I received aegrotat standing for my other 3 courses from the term, and have been slowly catching up on the rest of the work this year. I am finished with the work now and have sent it to the professor for the course, Dr. Martin Hand. After a summer of focusing exclusively on my recovery, I was able to return to school in the Fall of 2017. However, I continued to experience and manage many post-concussion symptoms. These symptoms included headaches, nausea, difficulty focusing, fatigue, and issues with mental health. During the first semester, I worked hard to adjust to being back at university with the addition of my post-concussion symptoms, seeking out various support systems to help cope with the physical and emotional ramifications. In addition to the many doctors I saw during the spring and summer after my concussion, I started to meet regularly with Dr. O¿¿Connor at Kingston Orthopedic Pain Institute during the fall. Together we worked to develop various treatment plans to help manage my recovery within an academic setting. He also referred me to Lisa Delaney (OT), who gave me many useful strategies, tips and tools to help me succeed in the classroom. I also found help with Queen¿¿s accessibility services and communicated frequently with my professors. While I was able to successfully manage my current work, I was unable to allocate any time to Socy 227. While the symptoms persisted throughout the Winter 2017 term, I was more prepared to handle my coursework. Therefore, I was able to spend more time on my remaining Socy 227 assignments.
Socy 227 is a course I need to complete my Sociology major. If I am unable to receive this extension on this grade, I plan to take an equivalent course online at Athabasca University during the fall of 2017. That way I will still be able to complete my required 400 level Socy classes during the Winter of 2018. In terms of credits, I still need 39 credits to meet the 120 credits requirement for Concurrent Education. However, I have spoken with the academic advisor from the Education department, Vicky Andrews, and we have formed a plan to take the 6 or 9 credits during the summer of next year. Thank you for taking the time to read and consider my appeal, and I look forward to hearing from you in a couple of weeks.