Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: May 2nd, 2022


Dr. Jenn Stephenson,

My name is Annu Pulipra and I am writing this letter to submit an official appeal to drop all courses taken during both the academic year of 2020-2021, as well as the 2021-2022 year.

During the Fall 2020 term, I began my first year of post-secondary education at Queen??s University as a Bachelor of Arts (BAH) / Concurrent Education (B.Ed) student. Due to personal circumstances, I was not able to pass my courses and was required to withdraw for one year (an appeal to waive the requirement to withdraw was granted on September 7th, 2021). I am aware of my actions and take full responsibility for my poor academic performance during the past two years, however, I am kindly requesting your time to review my circumstances and I am hoping there is a chance to drop all courses taken during the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 period.

I would like to begin by expressing my inherent passion for learning and how it has always been prevalent in my life. From a young age, it was always a dream of mine to be able to pursue teaching as a career in my life. The moment I found out about the Concurrent Education program at Queen??s, I knew that this is where I wanted to continue my path towards my dream of being an educator. I have always been an enthusiastic and hardworking individual, and showcased many of these skills through both academics and various leadership positions in my community. I put my all into everything I set my mind to, and I was so grateful to begin the next chapter of my life as a post-secondary student at Queen??s University.

I was honoured to be accepted into the BAH / BEd first year program at the Bader International Study Center (BISC), and was ready to have a fresh start in both my academic and personal life in an exciting new environment; however, the COVID-19 pandemic largely impacted the course of the 2020-2021 academic year. In the beginning of 2020, I was definitely struggling with my mental health more than I have before, and with the world shutting down, I found it harder to overcome these challenges. Since my initial plan to attend in-person classes at the BISC in England was cancelled due to the pandemic, my parents requested that I stay at our family home for my first year until changes were announced. Learning and exploring my academic growth from home was something I had not experienced before and was definitely something that would later affect my experience in Kingston during my second year at Queen??s.

Living at home as a first generation Canadian in an ethnic household, my parents were not able to fully recognize my decline in mental health, and the disbelief of any personal struggles I had expressed to my family further heightened feelings of isolation during the many months of the provincial lockdown. The feeling of excitement and progression in this new chapter of my life and education journey turned into a long period of stagnation, where I experienced feelings of hopelessness and a decline in motivation. Balancing school work and home stress became a tedious task and created an unhealthy learning environment, and as my first year at Queen??s progressed, I began to acknowledge the effects of my mental health on my courses. Having experienced invalidation while seeking help in the past, however, I failed to take concrete actions to improve my situation. As a result, I continued to struggle keeping up with my courses and was denying the realities of my mental health. I saw myself failing courses, and began to give into the shame associated with failure in my culture, ultimately viewing the sensible option of dropping a course early on as a sign of ??weakness?. I was ashamed to seek help, and instead told myself that I would make up for my grades with little to no action by the end of each term. By the time I received the notification on May 25th, 2021 that I was required to withdraw for one year and would not be able to return to my studies in the fall, I had reached my lowest point in my mental health journey. I denied opportunities that were presented to me to make sustainable changes to my lifestyle and thus disregarded my progression towards a positive lifestyle.

I had continued to struggle going into my second year at Queen??s, despite initial efforts to confront my mental health, as the lingering effects of the year prior were still catching up to me during this past academic year. With September 2021 being my first month living in Kingston and attending in-person classes after a long and stressful summer at home, I found it harder to overcome these challenges. I had brought these struggles from home with me during the return to in-person learning, and I was unable to address these ongoing issues alone, especially while balancing the abrupt shift in lifestyle in an unfamiliar town. I had moved to Kingston without knowing anyone on campus, including the housemates I would live with for the following academic year. During these last months of the Winter 2022 term, however, I ultimately came to the realization of the importance and gravity of my situation, and deeply regretted not doing everything I could to turn things around for myself earlier on during my very first year at Queen??s. I know I want to pursue my passion and continue my learning at Queen??s University, and so I made the decision to move forward and finally take action. I opened up to my parents about my mental health, and with persistence, time, and compassion, we have made significant progress in our mutual understanding. I have reached out to my doctor and I am currently seeking professional help to support my emotional growth through ongoing therapy sessions. Additionally, I have learned to tap into the many incredible resources that Queen??s University has to offer to help me get back on my feet. I have been in contact with Academic Advisors within the Faculty, and I am completing the Study Skills & Habits questionnaire developed by Student Academic Success Services (SASS). By reaching out to an Academic Skills Specialist, I will identify skills that need work and implement effective changes to my learning habits. I am also opening up to friends about my academic and mental health journey, since I had felt unable to do so earlier this term. Through transparency among friends and family, I have found a true support system that will also prevent me from repeating my actions in the future. In my friendships, I am setting goals for my academic and personal growth, strengthening relationships where I can communicate openly about any hardships and discuss sustainable plans of action to overcome them, all while further developing my confidence and having someone to keep me in check during this remedial period. Prioritizing effective time management practices that I will continue to use with my courses has proven extremely beneficial as well, such as pre-scheduling each day with time dedicated to different courses and ensuring to implement breaks and personal time to avoid potential burnout. Additionally, I am also speaking with my doctor about medications that will help aid the transition into a healthier, more positive mindset. I am determined to make realistic and sustainable changes that will help me not only get back on track with my personal growth, but with my post-secondary career at Queen??s.

To conclude, I want to thank you for taking the time to review my appeal and I truly hope there is a possibility to drop my failed courses from my first and second year at Queen??s University. You are a truly remarkable institution and I will not take your prestigious programs for granted moving forward. Thank you again for your consideration and I hope to hear back from you soon.


Sincerely,

Annu Pulipra
Student ID: 20232150