Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

New Information: I would like to resubmit my last application number 8779 as I accidentally submitted my rough draft instead of this edited less wordy version I meant to attach. Please accept this as my written answers to this application, my apologies-I will add my doctor note in this forum here once I've received it.


MY APPEAL:

I am appealing my grade from the winter semester of January 2021 for the courses SOCY 300 (Sociology of Cities), SOCY 276 (Substantive Issues Social Deviance), and SOCY 309 (Surveillance and Society). During this semester two of my roommates contracted the delta variant of COVID-19, one after another, during the later half of my courses and at that time I was deemed high risk. I struggled significantly during this semester without access to the university's libraries, or in class learning, both of which I found to be useful aspects of learning with my learning and mental disability, ADHD, anxiety, and depression.

Given the COVID outbreak in my home, I had been taking frequent PCR tests and had asked SOCY 300 and SOCY 309 for extensions to complete my work as I was becoming the ?caregiver?? for my roommates. I was responsible for cooking my roommates meals and cleaning the house extensively in order to adequately meet isolation standards in the environment of our student home during COVID-19 situation as advised by the nurses. For example, it was required that I clean the shower after each use. This was very time consuming as we only had a single bathroom as my roommates were both confined to the space of their rooms.

In regards to the SOCY 276 class, I had stopped the course work when the midterm assignment was asked to be written in the context of COVID-19 for the midterm paper, which as you could imagine at the time was a highly triggering subject given my most recent experience. Despite my efforts to work through this difficult scenario, I decided I would not continue the course work, and did not submit assignments for the remainder of the semester and finished with an F on my transcript in this course as I had been past the drop deadline.

These events severely impacted my anxiety and depression which I have been professionally diagnosed with. Despite having started the winter 2021 semester scoring grades in the A range prior to the outbreak in my home, I ended the semester failing both these courses due to these psychological challenges.

Additionally, due to the turnover of the doctors I was being connected with through the wellness services, I was not provided a sole doctor. And therefore do not have a doctor to vouch for this semester as a whole. I do have a registration with Queen??s Accommodations, and last week I have requested my family doctor back home to fill forms to vouch for my diagnosis claims. Despite my efforts to use coping habits throughout the semester, including the books recommended on the behalf of a previous doctor I worked with at Queen??s (Mind over mood, anxiety and avoidance, mindfulness and meditation), I struggled when the aspect of my personal treatment to address my issues. Mental health walks and physical activity was no longer possible in the pandemic circumstances of quarantine, isolation, and shut down establishments, making the midterm season highly stressful and in some of my courses impossible for a student working through mental challenges and barriers like myself.

As I mentioned, I am waiting for my doctor to have the paperwork completed to attach to this plea, in order to vouch for my anxiety, depression, and ADHD disorders which I believe have impacted my academic ability to succeed under stressful circumstances I could not have anticipated. The grades from this semester (ie.a total of 3 F??s) on my transcript I believe are not fair reflections of my status as a student. My disabilities had proven to be difficult to work under in light of the circumstances of the pandemic highly impacting me to function in the circumstances of the mentioned semester. I have never failed courses throughout my academic career at Queen??s, and I hope the school can recognize and consider these grades from the single semester that I was impacted by COVID-19 to be removed from my transcript, as they do not appropriately represent my ability and efforts as a student, bringing down my GPA tremendously.

ACADEMIC PLAN:

My academic plan for success I have achieved with my resilience being demonstrated by my final semester a few months ago: fall 2021. In this semester I was able to return to my regular habits in school and use the library facilities on campus, and finished the semester with a B and A- whilst balancing a full time position as a preschool teacher. In other words, I have completed my degree and have bounced back from the events of my winter 2021 semester where I experienced difficulties in coping with my learning and mental health issues when faced with COVID-19.

I hope to continue studying and would like to continue my career of teaching in primary and or elementary schools. In specific, in order to maintain the GPA I have worked hard for at Queen??s I believe excluding the discussed semester would be an accurate and fair representation of my status as a student in consideration of the stressful circumstances I have described.

Additionally, as I had my exchange experience with Queen??s cut five months short due to COVID-19, I have recently been in contact with a representative from CanTeach, whereby I would be able to pursue my studies abroad in New Zealand whilst also being able to then return to Canada upon completion and be able to help in the teaching shortage occurring in Prince Edward Island. To be an applicant for this teaching college which begins in March, a GPA of 3.0 is required, which I previously held prior to my winter 2021 semester.

I was highly impacted by COVID-19 circumstances in relation to my mental health issues, and I would like to be an applicant for this program. With that said, I am making this plea to have the F??s removed to help continue my future academic plans and dreams to become a teacher, and to pick back up my abroad experience that had been negatively influenced due to the events of COVID-19. I hope to be able to pursue this route to obtain my teaching degree while being immersed in a new culture. I am very appreciative of your time taken to consider my situation and will be in contact with further supporting documentation shortly.



Thank you so much.