Former Cranbrook head Nicholas Sampson pans those who ‘harmed’ school

A farewell letter from Nicholas Sampson condemns those who ‘seize upon a fractional truth in order to justify a perverse prejudice’.

Former Cranbrook School principal Nicholas Sampson.

A farewell letter from outgoing Cranbrook principal Nicholas Sampson written to colleagues criticises people who intentionally tried to “harm” the school, and condemns “some members of the commentariat” who “seize upon a fractional truth in order to justify a perverse prejudice”.

The Australian has obtained two letters penned by Mr Sampson after settling his legal case against the school: one to members of staff, and one to students which was posted in a parent-controlled WhatsApp group.

The letter to students, which praises the boys for holding “bright promise”, was only posted for a short period before it was deleted by an unknown user. It is not known if it was taken down at the direction of, or in consultation with, Cranbrook School Council.

Mr Sampson settled legal proceedings against his former employer on Tuesday, after his resignation following allegations he failed to inform the school council that a senior school teacher allegedly sent graphic emails to a former female student of another school, as well as a report by the ABC which alleged a history of abuse, bullying, and mistreatment of staff and students at the school.

In a statement after the settlement was complete, the headmaster said he was “vindicated” as the School Council “clarified” public comments made on March 8 that he had failed to report the allegations to the council.

The council said it was referring to the “School Council as constituted on that date” only, and that “the council wishes to clarify that Mr Sampson did report the matter to a differently constituted council in 2015 and acknowledges that its statement may have caused confusion”.

Nicholas Sampson.

In the letter to staff, Mr Sampson said he was grateful for the “privilege and genuine pleasure it has been to work with you over the course of the past long decade”. “I am sorry that I could not talk to you directly as things were happening,” he said. “I am glad that the council has now clarified important matters and that we can all concentrate upon the challenges and opportunities ahead.”

He said he was “deeply sad” about the way Cranbrook had been “so misrepresented by people who either don’t know it or, for reasons of their own, want to harm it”.

Mr Sampson told his former colleagues Cranbrook had suffered from “the inverse alchemy practised by some members of the commentariat who seize upon a fractional truth in order to justify a perverse prejudice”.

“You must ask your students to avoid these temptations, to relish differences and to enjoy testing their assumptions,” he wrote.

In a separate letter to students, swiftly deleted from the Whats-App group run by the Cranbrook Parents Association, he praised the “quiet stories of private progress, perceptive generosity and making space for difference, civilised argument and eccentricity”.

“Living, working and learning at Cranbrook is a privilege: accept that fact and the high expectations others have of you and make the most of the opportunities you find,” he said.

At an AGM of the prestigious Sydney school on Tuesday evening, school president Geoff Lovell said Mr Sampson made a public statement that day “without our prior knowledge or agreement”.

A statement from a spokesman for Mr Sampson said he “did not need the approval of anyone to issue his own statement”.

Mr Sampson said he had lodged a “detailed complaint” with the ABC Ombudsman about the March 4 Four Corners program by reporter Louise Milligan, which he claimed was “lacking in im­partiality”.

Additional reporting: Elizabeth Pike, Noah Yim