Sydney Uni VC apologises to Jewish students and staff

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sydney has apologised to Jewish students and staff, admitting he "failed them" in his handling of a pro-Palestinian student encampment.

Professor Mark Scott was making a submission to the senate inquiry into antisemitism on university campuses, convened in response to encampments at several Australian universities earlier this year.

Asked if he had failed Jewish students and staff, Scott told the inquiry, “Yes, I have failed them and the university’s failed them.” 

But he said his university’s newly announced independent review was a “commitment to my leadership, the university’s leadership” and not a “failure” of his leadership over the pro-Palestine encampment protest.

“I said I was sorry for the experience of students,” he said. “What I said now, though, is having been through those experiences at the university, we are putting in place a range of measures to do all we can to manage the tension.”

A group of about 60 current and former University of Sydney academics and staff have called for Scott’s resignation, saying there’s “too much mistrust and too much damage” to mend the relationship with Jewish staff and students.

Former University of Sydney academic Andy Smidt, speaking on behalf of the 60 Jewish and non-Jewish staff and former staff from the University of Sydney, said there was a “general lack of confidence” that the former ABC managing director could fix the university’s relationship with the Jewish community.

“We need to rebuild trust, and there’s too much mistrust, too much damage. We don’t have confidence that Mark Scott is the guy to lead this,” she said, adding that he had been given “every opportunity to understand the perspectives of Jewish staff and students” and they had “informed him via every legitimate platform”.

Smidt is the lead complainant on a complaint to WorkSafe NSW which alleges Jewish staff and students have been subject to preventable “psychosocial harm” at the university

The Australasian Union of Jewish Students vice-president Zachary Morris named Sydney University as “probably one of the worst places to be a Jewish student”. He said after one meeting between Scott and Jewish students “his chief of staff had to apologise for his behaviour as soon as he left the office”.

Scott told the inquiry that he recognised there was a problem in his relationship with Jewish staff and students.

“I realise there is a lot of work to do to win back the trust and confidence of the university’s Jewish community,” he said in his opening statement. “I am committed to that.”

READ MORE

‘No one should feel at risk’: Sydney University Vice Chancellor sorry over antisemitism (The Australian, paywall)

Apology to Jewish students and staff (ABC)

Dozens of University of Sydney staff, students say Mark Scott ‘must resign’ despite his admissions of ‘failure’ (The Australian, paywall)