Petition Letter
To whom it may concern,
My name is Kathleen Greening and I’m requesting to drop MUTH 380 and MUSC 211 as well as adding DRAM 247. This semester has been very difficult for me. My inability to complete these courses how I wanted to is the culmination of my unchecked mental health struggles over the past year. Ever since COVID, I’ve quietly struggled with motivation, focus, anxiety, and my mood. Schoolwork became a lot harder to complete than it used to be. I kept moving forward however and continued to struggle somewhat during my time at Queen’s. I never thought it was a big enough issue to prioritize over my other work so I didn’t reach out for help. This year it’s come to a head. I’ve been pushing toward the finish line ignoring my mental health for far too long and it seems my brain has decided to pull the brakes. I already struggled with getting work done on time and even handing in mostly finished work last semester so this semester got even worse. I stopped attending classes and handing in work even if it was simple. I started losing track of things and feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount I was missing in classes that I felt I couldn’t overcome and I shut down. I felt so frozen by anxiety and fear that I stopped going to some of my classes entirely and gave up on assignments because I didn’t feel I could recover. Instead of reaching out for help, I retreated into myself because I was ashamed. I used to be so good in school and when I handed things in I did really well but I just couldn’t do it any longer for some reason. It’s like I was driving a car and I was slowly losing pieces of the vehicle until it was just a chair and a wheel crashed in the ditch. I wish I had reached out for help but I didn’t feel comfortable telling anyone because I was embarrassed and feared judgment. I also felt I didn’t have time to deal with it or focus on it. So, now that I’m home and have a break I’m reflecting and trying to take the time to figure out what’s going on so I can move forward without continuing down this destructive road. I even dropped down to a BA so I could graduate and take a break from my studies to focus on my mental health. I hope to someday upgrade my degree back to the BAH but in my current mindset, I couldn’t complete the requirements. I’m usually a good student, very dedicated to my work and my reputation with my professors and peers, but my struggles overcame me this semester. Therefore, I’d like to drop MUTH 380 and MUSC 211 as I believe these extenuating circumstances affected my performance in these courses and are therefore not a reflection of my abilities.
For adding DRAM 247, I genuinely thought I was in the course. I attended the lectures and did my practicum for the course and I didn’t realize until I applied to graduate that I was not in the course. I don’t want to lose the work and effort I put into this course as it is one of the few courses I’m proud of my work in. Therefore, I’d like to petition to add DRAM 247 late.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Greening
My name is Kathleen Greening and I’m requesting to drop MUTH 380 and MUSC 211 as well as adding DRAM 247. This semester has been very difficult for me. My inability to complete these courses how I wanted to is the culmination of my unchecked mental health struggles over the past year. Ever since COVID, I’ve quietly struggled with motivation, focus, anxiety, and my mood. Schoolwork became a lot harder to complete than it used to be. I kept moving forward however and continued to struggle somewhat during my time at Queen’s. I never thought it was a big enough issue to prioritize over my other work so I didn’t reach out for help. This year it’s come to a head. I’ve been pushing toward the finish line ignoring my mental health for far too long and it seems my brain has decided to pull the brakes. I already struggled with getting work done on time and even handing in mostly finished work last semester so this semester got even worse. I stopped attending classes and handing in work even if it was simple. I started losing track of things and feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount I was missing in classes that I felt I couldn’t overcome and I shut down. I felt so frozen by anxiety and fear that I stopped going to some of my classes entirely and gave up on assignments because I didn’t feel I could recover. Instead of reaching out for help, I retreated into myself because I was ashamed. I used to be so good in school and when I handed things in I did really well but I just couldn’t do it any longer for some reason. It’s like I was driving a car and I was slowly losing pieces of the vehicle until it was just a chair and a wheel crashed in the ditch. I wish I had reached out for help but I didn’t feel comfortable telling anyone because I was embarrassed and feared judgment. I also felt I didn’t have time to deal with it or focus on it. So, now that I’m home and have a break I’m reflecting and trying to take the time to figure out what’s going on so I can move forward without continuing down this destructive road. I even dropped down to a BA so I could graduate and take a break from my studies to focus on my mental health. I hope to someday upgrade my degree back to the BAH but in my current mindset, I couldn’t complete the requirements. I’m usually a good student, very dedicated to my work and my reputation with my professors and peers, but my struggles overcame me this semester. Therefore, I’d like to drop MUTH 380 and MUSC 211 as I believe these extenuating circumstances affected my performance in these courses and are therefore not a reflection of my abilities.
For adding DRAM 247, I genuinely thought I was in the course. I attended the lectures and did my practicum for the course and I didn’t realize until I applied to graduate that I was not in the course. I don’t want to lose the work and effort I put into this course as it is one of the few courses I’m proud of my work in. Therefore, I’d like to petition to add DRAM 247 late.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Greening