Whistleblowers claim bullying, misogyny at Ballarat Clarendon College

The principal of a top private school has responded to allegations of harassment among staff said to have caused “genuine misery”.

UPDATE WEDNESDAY 3PM: The principal of one of Victoria’s highest-performing private schools has called claims of a racist, sexist, and misogynistic college culture “upsetting and untrue”.

In a letter sent to parents about 12 hours after the Herald Sun first published this story, Ballarat Clarendon College principal David Shepherd said he had “charted a course that is best for the school”.

He said board chair Mark Patterson told him about the claims after the board received them in mid-August, despite saying on Tuesday — as below — he did not know about the statements in the whistleblower letter.

“I have been principal at our school now for 26 years,” Mr Shepherd said.

“Throughout that time, the welfare, growth and development of all within Clarendon has been my priority. That is both staff and students.

“I am proud of the way we have worked together, grown, succeeded, had fun and, at times, had balanced and respectful disagreements.

“But collectively we have always charted a course that is best for the school, students and staff.”

After the Herald Sun published the initial story at 7.40pm on Tuesday, Mr Patterson issued a statement to parents of students at the school.

“The Board initiated an internal policy and procedure review based on the information provided by the anonymous complainant,” he wrote.

“In addition, as part of good governance, the Board is seeking legal advice and an independent investigator has been engaged to further investigate several allegations, the findings of which will be reported to the Board.

“The Board will report on the internal policy and procedure review once completed.”

When questioned, the school said only that the investigator was an “independent specialist in workplace regulation and safety”.

It is not clear how long the investigation will go on, but the college said it had no intention of standing down Mr Shepherd until it had seen the findings of the internal review and independent investigator, at which point the board would determine the next course of action.

‘Genuine misery’: Bullying claims at elite school

TUESDAY 7.40PM: One of Victoria’s highest performing private schools is under investigation for having a “slimy and creepy” culture with endemic racism, sexism and misogyny.

WorkSafe is investigating a series of explosive claims from up to 20 staff about bullying at Ballarat Clarendon College which they say is having an “enduring and sometimes devastating” effect on employees.

An anonymous letter sent to the elite school’s board on August 16 said the school’s culture was creating “genuine misery” and presents “a serious, ongoing risk to the wellbeing of both staff and students”.

Among many claims, the whistleblower letter alleged a young teacher informed the principal David Shepherd she was pregnant before she was told she was too young to have a baby and he would help her pay for an abortion.

The letter also alleged that a female job applicant for the school was rejected with the phrase, “Nope, got a womb”.

The school has appointed an independent investigator to probe several of the allegations and has launched an internal policy and procedure review.

The Herald Sun is not suggesting any of the allegations against Mr Shepherd or other senior staff are true, only that they have been made and are being investigated.

The document claimed there was “embedded misogyny among certain senior male managers”.

One former staff member who was quoted described the culture as “slimy and creepy and full of misogynist microaggressions”.

Staff were told to provide death certificates if they wanted to attend funerals, videoed while teaching and routinely humiliated, the letter alleged.

The school, which ranked among the state’s top four performers in VCE last year, allegedly had ambulances called at least seven times for staff having panic attacks and had an “epidemic of antidepressant” use among staff.

In other claims, a male staffer allegedly made fun of Ramadan as “this bloody ramadamalamam shit” and another would massage the shoulders of female staff and make references to younger colleagues “howling at the moon” during their periods.

Two weeks after the letter was sent to the board, the retirement of Mr Shepherd at the end of next year was announced, and he was hailed by school board chair Mark Patterson as an “outstanding leader”.

In a statement issued to the Herald Sun, Mr Patterson confirmed the board was sent the anonymous letter, but said the allegations “were largely high-level and generally did not provide the level of detail necessary to allow a proper investigation by the college”.

Further detail about the claims was requested, he said, but the board received no response.

Mr Patterson said there was “no connection between this matter and the recent announcement that current principal Mr. David Shepherd will retire at the end of 2023”.

Clarendon College principal David Shepherd, who will depart the school at the end of 2023.

Mr Shepherd sits on the college’s board but said he had not seen the letter himself and denied having read the contents of the eight-page document.

“The only comment I have got to make is always the safety, care and health of all in our community, whether they be students, whether they be staff or whether they be parents, or other members of the community, that’s always our number one priority,” he said.

“So without knowing anything about the statements in the letter, I can’t really make any more comment than that,” he said.

In a letter to the school community this week marking his resignation, Mr Shepherd said he was “overwhelmed by the kind messages” and did work that had a “moral purpose”.

David Brear, deputy general secretary of the Independent Education Union, said he heard reports of staff being physically sick before going to class, fainting in class due to stress and facing unreasonable opposition to accessing sick leave.

“Members tell us the workload is crippling,” he said.

Mr Shepherd, an OAM recipient who has led the school for 27 years, is referred to in the whistleblower letter as a “driving force” of “genuine misery”.

“The principal has a terrible temper, and there is a pattern of him yelling abusively at colleagues who dare to challenge him,” the document said.

“The principal makes frequent inappropriate and unprofessional remarks on women’s dress, hair and appearance.

“One young teacher informed the principal she was pregnant and was told she was too young to have a baby and he would help pay for an abortion.”

Whistleblowers also alleged Mr Shepherd reprimanded staff for voting a certain way on an enterprise bargaining agreement.

“HR was conducted by the principal for much of 2021,” the document said, “meaning the function was being run by one of the people most likely to be complained about – an alarming conflict of interest.”

Whistleblowers claimed there was an “epidemic of antidepressants” among staff, who were harassed into continuing work even when taking unavoidable time off.

In a case involving a student who was suspected of having abusive parents, it is claimed one manager said: “The best place for her is here.

“Besides, she brings in full fees for the boarding school. Very lucrative.”

Whistleblowers go on to allege that more than 20 staff members were stood down at the beginning of the pandemic.

They said there was “abysmally low staff morale”.

The document also said one senior manager “openly described his employment method as ‘Get ‘em young, and squeeze them for all they’ve got.’”

The letter notes that in a “parallel universe” the school’s annual performance report notes that “staff satisfaction with goal alignment was at the 85th percentile”.

A WorkSafe spokeswoman said the agency was “making inquiries”.

The school, which posted a $7.6m surplus in 2021, has 1710 students, including international students and locals from Victoria, NSW and South Australia. It has $94m in total assets.