Petition Letter
May 26, 2021
Sokolowski,Trevor¿¿
447 Alfred
Kingston, ON K7K 4J2
Dear Associate Deans for Academics,
My name is Trevor Sokolowski and am appealing to have the deadline to drop GPHY 310 and GPHY 336 (Fall, 2019) and appeal for credit standing for GEOL 200, and PSYC 205 (Fall, 2019) waived.
The reason I am appealing past the deadline and not close to the Week 8 drop deadline is because of my mental approach to certain situations, an approach that affected myself magnitudes more than it would ever help. The Fall 2019 semester was extremely difficult as I was in a dark place from a mental health standpoint. I used to be an overly critical person of my actions and would be too prideful to seek or ask for help regardless of the situation. This tendency occurred for too long and I have come to terms with it which is why I am seeking an appeal now despite how over-due it may be. When I was in this dark place I failed to complete many day-to-day activities such as proper nourishment, minuscule assignments, and simple quizzes. These difficulties compiled to result in habits that would not result in desired grades. This episode lasted for a portion of the middle of the semester and continued to the end of the semester. After becoming aware of the failure to complete tasks, a feeling of hopelessness settled causing each assignment to be a small portion of my potential. Since I carried myself with so much pride I sadly did not seek proper help in a professional manner, but luckily found refuge in talking to my older bother (Jason). Jason managed to get me out of this dark hole that I had been in for the Fall 2019 semester and back on my feet ready to pull up the grades that suffered immensely (grades of Fall of 2019). This semester was the lowest point in my academic career which had major impacts on my CGPA. The start of the Winter 2020 semester was extremely important to fix the errors and difficulties of the Fall 2019 semester. Despite starting off strong, the rapid changes of COVID-19 posed a new challenge that I found difficulty adjusting to. The changes to virtual teaching was a barrier that took time to adjust to. However, time was not on my side and the exam season was too difficult for me to overcome. This resulted in another semester of poor grades forcing courses to be dropped so my CGPA did not get affected so harshly once again. After the tough Fall 2019 semester, my academic standing was in a difficult spot as I had less units available to pull up my CGPA. The following semester I had my bearings set for online learning and was in a healthy mental state to stay motivated and bring my CGPA up. I accomplished this goal by going from a 0.860 GPA in Fall 2019 to a 2.760 in Fall 2020 and a 2.670 in Winter 2021. I have shown promise and worked much harder for both academics and mental health which show the difficulty that the semester had brought upon me. I have come to a better understanding of setting my pride aside and seeking the help that is there for people in my situation which is why I am making sure that I appeal the semester of Fall 2019.
Since the semester of Fall 2019, I have developed strategies to ensure that I never reach this point academically and mentally. I have changed my priorities to better suit what is important in short and long timelines. Changes to my lifestyle include: putting my academic priorities first, putting values to certain tasks (diet, and exercise have helped immensely), having regular talks with family and friends to remain myself that I am not alone. I have had bi-monthly discussions with my brother to create a schedule and a safety net of reaching out so if I miss one it is realized and is a red flag that I need help. Academically I have adjusted sleep habits, manually writing notes to better retain information (even in virtual settings), and created full schedules to better track each assignment and its weight.
Sincerely, -Trevor
Sokolowski,Trevor¿¿
447 Alfred
Kingston, ON K7K 4J2
Dear Associate Deans for Academics,
My name is Trevor Sokolowski and am appealing to have the deadline to drop GPHY 310 and GPHY 336 (Fall, 2019) and appeal for credit standing for GEOL 200, and PSYC 205 (Fall, 2019) waived.
The reason I am appealing past the deadline and not close to the Week 8 drop deadline is because of my mental approach to certain situations, an approach that affected myself magnitudes more than it would ever help. The Fall 2019 semester was extremely difficult as I was in a dark place from a mental health standpoint. I used to be an overly critical person of my actions and would be too prideful to seek or ask for help regardless of the situation. This tendency occurred for too long and I have come to terms with it which is why I am seeking an appeal now despite how over-due it may be. When I was in this dark place I failed to complete many day-to-day activities such as proper nourishment, minuscule assignments, and simple quizzes. These difficulties compiled to result in habits that would not result in desired grades. This episode lasted for a portion of the middle of the semester and continued to the end of the semester. After becoming aware of the failure to complete tasks, a feeling of hopelessness settled causing each assignment to be a small portion of my potential. Since I carried myself with so much pride I sadly did not seek proper help in a professional manner, but luckily found refuge in talking to my older bother (Jason). Jason managed to get me out of this dark hole that I had been in for the Fall 2019 semester and back on my feet ready to pull up the grades that suffered immensely (grades of Fall of 2019). This semester was the lowest point in my academic career which had major impacts on my CGPA. The start of the Winter 2020 semester was extremely important to fix the errors and difficulties of the Fall 2019 semester. Despite starting off strong, the rapid changes of COVID-19 posed a new challenge that I found difficulty adjusting to. The changes to virtual teaching was a barrier that took time to adjust to. However, time was not on my side and the exam season was too difficult for me to overcome. This resulted in another semester of poor grades forcing courses to be dropped so my CGPA did not get affected so harshly once again. After the tough Fall 2019 semester, my academic standing was in a difficult spot as I had less units available to pull up my CGPA. The following semester I had my bearings set for online learning and was in a healthy mental state to stay motivated and bring my CGPA up. I accomplished this goal by going from a 0.860 GPA in Fall 2019 to a 2.760 in Fall 2020 and a 2.670 in Winter 2021. I have shown promise and worked much harder for both academics and mental health which show the difficulty that the semester had brought upon me. I have come to a better understanding of setting my pride aside and seeking the help that is there for people in my situation which is why I am making sure that I appeal the semester of Fall 2019.
Since the semester of Fall 2019, I have developed strategies to ensure that I never reach this point academically and mentally. I have changed my priorities to better suit what is important in short and long timelines. Changes to my lifestyle include: putting my academic priorities first, putting values to certain tasks (diet, and exercise have helped immensely), having regular talks with family and friends to remain myself that I am not alone. I have had bi-monthly discussions with my brother to create a schedule and a safety net of reaching out so if I miss one it is realized and is a red flag that I need help. Academically I have adjusted sleep habits, manually writing notes to better retain information (even in virtual settings), and created full schedules to better track each assignment and its weight.
Sincerely, -Trevor