Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Associate Dean,

My name is Alexa Luckie, I am a second year Global Development Major-Psychology minor, and my student number is 10108555. I am requesting to drop my ECON 111 Introduction to Microeconomics class due to extenuating circumstances.
At the beginning of the semester I had initially picked up this course in hopes that it would allow me to understand the economic-based language in some of my DEVS courses. At first, I grasped concepts with ease, although when I had to apply my knowledge I was completely lost.
As soon as I realized I was struggling with Microeconomics, I contacted ASUS Peer Tutoring. During my sessions it took me a long time to understand what my tutor was teaching me, and when I was asked questions I found my self guessing. The mathematical components of the course stumped me the most, no matter how many times I reviewed I found I was not getting the right answer.
Furthermore, during the beginning half of this semester I was studying for my LSAT. The stress of trying to complete my assignments as well as study for such a significant exam made my depression and anxiety skyrocket. I have learned to cope with my mental illness over many years; I see a psychiatrist here in Kingston that has helped me a lot. On top of that I have been very consistent with my medication prescribed for my mental illness, which is very important.
I had missed the first test without even realizing on February 1. Thankfully Prof. Chernoff allowed me to make up for the missed tests by splitting the percentage across the other 2 tests. Although, as a result I fell behind and have found it extremely hard to catch up ever since.
On the first assignment I received a 38, which was due on February 8. No matter how much time and effort I put into the assignment I knew I would still do poorly due to the fact I was struggling to understand the material. In addition, the layout of the course requires the student to pass a 60 exam, in which I feel very strongly that I will fail. I was unaware that Friday was the last day to drop classes without an appeal. If I had have known then I would have been proactive and ultimately would have done it myself.
As a full time student, I am registered in three other courses this semester¿¿ two DEVS courses and one PSYC course. I enjoy them, the professors are very helpful and most importantly, I understand them (even though they are intellectually challenging). Last semester I ended with around a 3.7 GPA, in which I worked very hard for and am very proud of. The weight ECON 111 has posed on my mental and physical wellbeing has disabled me from obtaining the grades I know I can get in my other classes, and this is overwhelming for me. I request that you please present me with the ability to drop this course so I can continue to attain the marks I did last semester and in turn, not be so anxiety ridden and depressed during my studies this semester.
I absolutely feel that if I drop this course, my time at Queen¿¿s this semester will be less stressful. Since the completion of my LSAT, my overwhelming stress levels have decreased, although I still feel overpowered by ECON 111; to do this poor in a class is completely unlike me. As for my anxiety and depression, by continuing to attend my therapy sessions I can maintain my coping skills during the last few weeks of school. I am aware that I will have to take some summer courses to make up for the mistake of taking ECON 111 and also be able to graduate on time, but I am 100 willing to do what it takes to fix this. Microeconomics is not one of my program requirements and I now know to stick to my requirements as well as the things I know. This situation will not happen again.

Sincerely,
Alexa Luckie