New TEQSA chief to focus on student safety amid warnings of anti-Semitism on campus

As universities are ordered to stay alert for student protests, a new chief commissioner has been appointed to head the tertiary education watchdog.

Student safety will be a priority for new TEQSA chief Kerri-Lee Krause.

Student safety and quality teaching will be priorities for the new chief commissioner of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), Professor Kerri-Lee Krause.

Her five-year appointment, announced by federal Education Minister Jason Clare on Tuesday, comes at a time of unprecedented scrutiny of university governance and growing alarm over anti-Semitism and student safety. Professor Krause, a deeply religious Christian university executive, has a 30-year career focused on governance and student experience.

“There is a lot of change across Australian higher education and having effective regulatory oversight and world’s best quality assurance will be essential to sustaining the sector’s integrity, quality and reputation,’’ she said.

Professor Krause’s first challenge will be to ensure universities control increasingly volatile protests over the war in Gaza, with TEQSA writing to vice-chancellors last week urging them to ensure the “safety and wellbeing’’ of students. “As you know, last year we witnessed a disturbing increase in incidents of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and racism more broadly within the Australian community,’’ TEQSA chief executive Dr Mary Russell and acting chief commissioner Adrienne Nieuwenhuis wrote.

“Despite the current ceasefire in the Middle East, we continue to see heightened tensions and violence. TEQSA wants to remind universities of their obligations … to uphold student and staff safety.

“At a minimum, we expect that universities are closely watching developments, both nationally and within their own communities, and ensuring that they have appropriate arrangements in place to respond to any sudden escalation of protests or outbreaks of violence.’’

A Pro-Palestine march at the University of Sydney in 2024. Picture: Noah Yim / The Australian.

TEQSA told university leaders to review settings and permissions for events that “may escalate tensions’’, and to “engage with law enforcement’’. “TEQSA also expects universities will ensure new and returning students are informed about … misconduct policies and penalties for engaging in or displaying racist behaviour, such as anti-Semitism and Islamophobia,’’ the letter stated.

“Consideration should be given to the needs of at-risk students and staff — including Jewish people, Muslim people and people from Palestinian backgrounds — to ensure they have a safe learning and working environment.’’

TEQSA will host a roundtable meeting on Tuesday with Mr Clare and vice-chancellors to meet the Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism, Jillian Segal, the Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman, National Student Ombudsman Sarah Bendall and Universities Australia chief executive Luke Sheehy.

The National Student Ombudsman has already received 170 complaints from students since starting operation this month — with more than half relating to course administration. A spokesperson gave the example of students complaining that a “higher education provider refused special consideration on unfair grounds, resulting in the student withdrawing from the course’’.

Students had also alleged that providers failed to give adequate consideration to medical issues or caring responsibilities, in refusing requests for reasonable adjustments for assessment tasks.

“We also have a number of complaints relating to work-integrated learning, such as placements,’’ the spokesperson said. “For example, where students are unhappy with the quality of the supervision they are receiving on placements, or not able to complete the placements due to personal circumstances.’’

The new independent National Student Ombudsman Sarah Bendall, pictured with federal Education Minister Jason Clare, is already fielding complaints from students. Picture: Facebook

TEQSA fielded 395 complaints in the first 10 months of last year, including 84 relating to student services or learning environments, 64 concerning leadership and 55 complaints about the quality of teaching. TEQSA dealt with 477 complaints in all of 2023.

Professor Krause will start the top job on April 8, after stepping down from her role chairing the Higher Education Standards Panel – the federal government’s chief adviser on tertiary education.

She has served as the vice-chancellor of Avondale University – Australia’s newest university, established by the Seventh-day Adventist Church – and as a deputy vice-chancellor at the University of Melbourne, La Trobe University, Victoria University and the University of Western Sydney.

As an academic and author, her most recent publication is the 2023 book, Learner-centred Leadership in Higher Education: A Practical Guide.

Asked by the Seventh-day Adventist Church magazine Adventist Record in 2021 to nominate who has the most influence on her life, Professor Krause responded that it was “my Heavenly Father … his life-changing influence sustains me, challenges me and makes me who I am today’’.

Professor Krause also revealed that one of her mottos is “if you don’t like change, you’ll like irrelevance less’’.

Professor Krause replaces Emeritus Professor Peter Coaldrake, who quit the role in May last year.

Mr Clare has also appointed a new commissioner to TEQSA – Emeritus Professor Elizabeth More, an expert on business education who served as dean of the Macquarie Graduate School of Management and deputy vice-chancellor at the University of Canberra.