Hillcrest Christian College: Million-dollar reading deal adds to school’s turmoil

A besieged Gold Coast private school principal voiced fears for his career after a legal notice was served on him by the developer of a reading program the college is trying to offload in a million-dollar deal.

Hillcrest Christian College on the Gold Coast.

A BESIEGED Gold Coast private school principal voiced fears for his career after a legal notice was served on him by the developer of a reading program the college is trying to offload in a million-dollar deal.

Hillcrest Christian College has been rocked by months of turmoil including bullying allegations against principal Jeff Davis – which he denies – the suspension and departure of senior staff and controversy over hundreds of thousands of dollars in school loans to a private company set up to commercialise a phonetic-based reading program.

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Mr Davis has taken leave only two weeks after the school holidays and headed to Thailand after a revolt by angry members of the Reedy Creek Baptist Church which owns Hillcrest and who are trying to oust the school board.

Last month, the board said an independent investigation into allegations against Mr Davis had cleared him of any wrongdoing but the Independent Education Union has expressed ‘grave concerns’ that none of its disgruntled Hillcrest members were interviewed.

Hillcrest Christian College principal Jeff Davis.

Mr Davis said he had been cleared by two ‘full, independent’ investigations and it was time to ‘move on’.

Hillcrest announced in July that it had entered into a $1 million-plus deal to sell a company called I Love Reading Pty Ltd to a Hong Kong company.

I Love Reading was set up by Mr Davis and Hillcrest board members in 2017 to sell a reading program acquired by the college to other schools, and was loaned more than $600,000 in college funds.

But the I Love Reading sale has yet to settle and the program’s developer, Joe Mamone, has called in lawyers.

Mr Mamone has served the college with a legal notice terminating the licensing agreement for the program, claiming the college failed to provide him with sales statements.

The Courier-Mail has seen a video recording of a meeting Mr Mamone held with Mr Davis in June where the principal was handed a copy of the termination notice sent two weeks earlier to the college.

“At the moment, ILR does not have a program … it’s over because you didn’t send the statements,” Mr Mamone told Mr Davis.

Hillcrest Christian College on the Gold Coast.

Mr Davis urged Mr Mamone to ‘just put it (the termination notice) aside for a minute’ but Mr Mamone refused.

“Everything we’ve worked for, I have wound up,” Mr Davis pleaded.

“It is costing me my career.”

Gold Coast Innovation Hub founder Danny Maher, who brokered the I Love Reading deal, said it was still subject to ‘due diligence’ by the would-be Hong Kong buyer.

Mr Maher said a new agreement would have to be negotiated with Mr Mamone for the sale to proceed.

Mr Davis has described the reading program as ‘profoundly successful’, saying it achieved results ‘I have never seen before’.