Petition Letter
To whom it may concern,
This letter is my request to waive the deadline for 2 late drop academic appeals. The first of which was in the winter term of 2019, and the second was in the fall term of 2019.
To begin it is important to know that I have been struggling with concussions and the aftereffects of brain injury¿¿s since I was 12 years old. Before I started my time at queens in the fall of 2018 I had accumulated 5 brain injuries: several of which were severe and left me struggling with post concussive syndrome. It is also important to note that I am professionally diagnosed with several learning disorders including a severe output disorder, and ADHD.
On the day that I arrived in Kingston (September 1st, 2018) I was assaulted by a group of 4 men. This was my first day at university and I was left with the worst concussion I had ever experienced, and a fractured skull. The effects of this brain injury were devastating on my ability to function in any normal capacity and destroyed my mental health.
In December of 2018 when I was home for winter break, I was assaulted again while at a nightclub and knocked unconscious on the pavement. At this point I had not fully healed from my previous concussion from September: the effects of this additional injury compounded exponentially. At this point I was seriously considering not returning to school for the sake of my health, however I did end up returning for the winter term of 2019 and subsequently ended up failing CISC 101.
All winter term and summer 2019 I was in the worst state of mental health I had ever experienced. I was experiencing extreme post-concussion syndrome which included me being unable to work on a computer for any extended period of time-without having extreme debilitating headaches occur. I was also beginning to experience horrible depression which crippled my mental health and outright prevented me from leaving my bed/ being able to accomplish anything that I would normally be able to do. On top of being kept in my bed by depression, I also faced severe fatigue as a result of these concussions which only worsened the depression I was facing. My ADHD and output disorder also got significantly worse, and on rare occasions when I was able to sit down to do anything, my brain simply wouldn¿¿t allow me to accomplish any kind of writing. All of these reasons I have listed above are the circumstances that prevented me from appealing CISC 101 during the summer of 2019. I was unable to appeal this course during the fall term of 2019 because in mid-august before I returned to school, I got yet another severe concussion. All of the symptoms I just listed above got even worse and I now had to focus all my limited ability¿¿s towards passing my fall courses.
During all of my time at queens I have tried to continue my studies while my brain has been in a barley functioning condition. I tried to handle everything on my own, and these struggles have cost me hundreds of dollars in failed courses, and negatively affected my GPA.
Anatomy 101 was the second course I failed, and the second course which I am requesting the one-term deadline be waived. I signed up for this course for the fall term of 2019: after my august concussion my course load was going to be too heavy. With all the circumstances I listed above getting worse (including my memory), I missed the drop deadline for this course. From the beginning of the semester I had planned on dropping Anatomy to give myself a better chance of passing my other courses (important for my degree). Cripple by my depression and the inability to remember basic things (like the deadline to drop courses), I missed the drop deadline to drop Anatomy 100. I was unable to meet the one term deadline for this course because for the remainder of the semester I was still struggling with my aforementioned symptoms, and I had to focus on passing my courses. When my fall exams ended, I went home and began to seek the necessary documentation to write my appeals. Collecting the hospital records and letter from my family doctor took until late February, when I was then struck with yet another concussion. I was unable to write my appeal from that concussion (Feb 2020), until I finished my exams (now), because I was experiencing worsened symptoms and struggling to pass my courses.
The same circumstances which caused me to fail both of these courses were also the same circumstances that prevented me from appealing within the time frame allowed. I am requesting that the one-term deadline be waived so that I can appeal both CISC 101 and Anatomy 100. I have been struggling to stay in school and complete my degree thanks to my unfortunate brain health. Thank you for your considerations and please contact me if you require any clarification with my provided documentation / if you require any additional documentation.
Sincerely,
Cooper Lloyd.
This letter is my request to waive the deadline for 2 late drop academic appeals. The first of which was in the winter term of 2019, and the second was in the fall term of 2019.
To begin it is important to know that I have been struggling with concussions and the aftereffects of brain injury¿¿s since I was 12 years old. Before I started my time at queens in the fall of 2018 I had accumulated 5 brain injuries: several of which were severe and left me struggling with post concussive syndrome. It is also important to note that I am professionally diagnosed with several learning disorders including a severe output disorder, and ADHD.
On the day that I arrived in Kingston (September 1st, 2018) I was assaulted by a group of 4 men. This was my first day at university and I was left with the worst concussion I had ever experienced, and a fractured skull. The effects of this brain injury were devastating on my ability to function in any normal capacity and destroyed my mental health.
In December of 2018 when I was home for winter break, I was assaulted again while at a nightclub and knocked unconscious on the pavement. At this point I had not fully healed from my previous concussion from September: the effects of this additional injury compounded exponentially. At this point I was seriously considering not returning to school for the sake of my health, however I did end up returning for the winter term of 2019 and subsequently ended up failing CISC 101.
All winter term and summer 2019 I was in the worst state of mental health I had ever experienced. I was experiencing extreme post-concussion syndrome which included me being unable to work on a computer for any extended period of time-without having extreme debilitating headaches occur. I was also beginning to experience horrible depression which crippled my mental health and outright prevented me from leaving my bed/ being able to accomplish anything that I would normally be able to do. On top of being kept in my bed by depression, I also faced severe fatigue as a result of these concussions which only worsened the depression I was facing. My ADHD and output disorder also got significantly worse, and on rare occasions when I was able to sit down to do anything, my brain simply wouldn¿¿t allow me to accomplish any kind of writing. All of these reasons I have listed above are the circumstances that prevented me from appealing CISC 101 during the summer of 2019. I was unable to appeal this course during the fall term of 2019 because in mid-august before I returned to school, I got yet another severe concussion. All of the symptoms I just listed above got even worse and I now had to focus all my limited ability¿¿s towards passing my fall courses.
During all of my time at queens I have tried to continue my studies while my brain has been in a barley functioning condition. I tried to handle everything on my own, and these struggles have cost me hundreds of dollars in failed courses, and negatively affected my GPA.
Anatomy 101 was the second course I failed, and the second course which I am requesting the one-term deadline be waived. I signed up for this course for the fall term of 2019: after my august concussion my course load was going to be too heavy. With all the circumstances I listed above getting worse (including my memory), I missed the drop deadline for this course. From the beginning of the semester I had planned on dropping Anatomy to give myself a better chance of passing my other courses (important for my degree). Cripple by my depression and the inability to remember basic things (like the deadline to drop courses), I missed the drop deadline to drop Anatomy 100. I was unable to meet the one term deadline for this course because for the remainder of the semester I was still struggling with my aforementioned symptoms, and I had to focus on passing my courses. When my fall exams ended, I went home and began to seek the necessary documentation to write my appeals. Collecting the hospital records and letter from my family doctor took until late February, when I was then struck with yet another concussion. I was unable to write my appeal from that concussion (Feb 2020), until I finished my exams (now), because I was experiencing worsened symptoms and struggling to pass my courses.
The same circumstances which caused me to fail both of these courses were also the same circumstances that prevented me from appealing within the time frame allowed. I am requesting that the one-term deadline be waived so that I can appeal both CISC 101 and Anatomy 100. I have been struggling to stay in school and complete my degree thanks to my unfortunate brain health. Thank you for your considerations and please contact me if you require any clarification with my provided documentation / if you require any additional documentation.
Sincerely,
Cooper Lloyd.