Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: April 13, 2022

Dear Dr. Jill Atkinson Associate Dean (Academics),

My name is Brennon Jacobs, and I am submitting an academic appeal request to drop one of my courses without academic penalty past the eight-week deadline. The course I wish to drop is CLST 201 Roman History W22 taught by Professor B. Kavanaugh.

Before and throughout this semester, I have faced acute mental illnesses that have significantly impacted my performance in CLST 201. I specifically started experiencing the seriousness of my symptoms after Christmas break of this past year, which has greatly hampered my ability to absorb information in the necessary way to perform to the best of my abilities according to what is required for CLST 201. The seriousness of my mental illnesses has hampered my ability to memorize specific names, dates, and exact word-for-word material necessary to remember to write midterms and exams in this class.

I am explicitly appealing this class and not my others because my mental illnesses directly impacted my ability to perform in the needed way to succeed in this CLST 201. Attached in this appeal, you will find the letter from my clinical psychologist, which clearly outlines my conditions and how they impact me academically and in all aspects of my life. This specific course and the testable material required word-for-word memorization, which I could not do due to my conditions. Test two and the final exam required me to remember 100 fill-in-the-word blanks on the entire history of Rome, which I was unable to do no matter how much I attempted to study while dealing with my mental health conditions.

I have been successful in my other courses because the format of tests and exam materials were essay-based applications of knowledge that culminated in take-home assignments. These specific assignments and tests allowed me to have considerable time to write, consider, and formulate my thoughts, leading to a higher degree of academic success. However, CLST 201 and the formats in which the final two tests took place, and my ability to memorize course material were a significant burden. They proved too much for me per the conditions outlined by my psychologist in the attached letter.

I did not drop CLST 201 sooner because the first midterm was an essay-based test that I did pretty well on. However, test two was scheduled to be written in week 9. After studying and writing the test, it became apparent how much my illnesses were hampering my ability to succeed through the remainder of the course. Therefore, due to the late date for test two, I was unable to drop the class as it was too late in the semester to do so. Additionally, I had to wait to appeal this course because my psychologist was out of town and was unavailable to write me a letter in support of this appeal until he was back in Kingston on the 13th of April.

Moving forward, I have been in careful consultation with my Doctor to make a medication adjustment to help aid me in the difficulties I have been facing while seeking continued assistance from my psychologist. To succeed in my future academics, I understand that continuous work on my mental health remains essential, and I remain dedicated to improving it wherever I can.

To graduate on time, I fully intend on making up the credits that I would be losing by dropping CLST 201 by taking a summer course. Throughout my time at Queens, I have done relatively well academically and remain dedicated to succeeding to a high degree in the future. However, given the current state of my mental health and the impacts it has explicitly had on my performance in CLST 201, I wish to drop this course without academic penalty, and have it removed from my transcript, as it doesn??t accurately represent my intellectual capabilities.

I would be thankful for all of your consideration on this matter, and I would be happy to answer any questions relating to it.

Most Respectfully,

Brennon Jacobs
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