Boys film teacher’s ordeal
A teacher who was sexually harassed by students at an Upper Hutt school has revealed the boys who filmed up her skirt had more nefarious plans.
Former St Patrick’s College, Silverstream teacher aide Hester Tingey, 23, has spoken publicly for the first time about the 2017 incident that saw four year 9 boys suspended, and the two female victims resign.
In an Antworks Studios video for a Netsafe campaign, Tingey described how the students put camera phones in their shoes or jackets on the ground, then got female staff to step over them. ‘‘They were pretty organised.’’ The footage was shared to a private group on social media app Instagram. ‘‘The intention behind it was to gain as many up-skirt photos of female staff members from the school.’’
Two days after Tingey was secretly filmed, another female staff member fell victim to the same trick.
Four year 9 boys were suspended from the school in March 2017 after filming the teachers inappropriately, in a case the school described at the time as ‘‘most distressing’’.
Tingey said she blamed herself and her outfit choice in the weeks following the incident, even though she knew she had not done anything to encourage the boys’ behaviour.
‘‘I took my grandmother out shopping with me before I got the job and we picked out a whole bunch of stuff that was approved by an Anglican minister.
‘‘I only wore a dress on two occasions – one was the po¯ whiri and the other was the day it happened.’’
Tingey was pleased the boys were ordered to attend a restorative justice meeting with her, as it gave them the chance to see how the incident had affected her.
‘‘I really wanted this to be something that they learnt from, and not just be a slap on the wrist and something that they go on to think is OK,’’ she said.
‘‘I think, for them, their actions were so minor [that] they couldn’t comprehend the effect that it had ... and to see me so upset was jarring for them.’’
She still suffers from anxiety when driving past the school more than a year later, and has had trouble sleeping as a result of the incident.
‘‘I still feel anxious, and I think
Staff and students in Victoria University of Wellington’s science faculty are ‘‘angry and disappointed’’ at university leadership, accusing bosses of being unwilling to acknowledge complaints that sexual harassment victims were mistreated.
Physical chemistry lecturers Renee Goreham and Nate Davis and PhD student Amira Brackovic say they are shocked at the university’s lack of acknowledgment of people who have alleged sexual misconduct, in the wake of an urgent meeting held on campus on Friday.
The science faculty meeting was called after Stuff revealed a chemistry tutor continued to teach after a serious misconduct complaint was upheld against him.
The two students involved in the complaint and the staff member who made it on their behalf, Dr Nick Monahan, say the university failed to communicate with them or take any meaningful action.
One of the complainants had to continue to work directly opposite her alleged harasser, and the women were not offered any support.
Provost Professor Wendy Larner said the university took allegations of harassment seriously and ‘‘remedial actions’’ had been taken, though she would not say what these were. In a further statement, the university said the accuser had been dealt with adequately.
But students who had witnessed the alleged behaviour disagree. ‘‘I’ve been waking up every day feeling very anxious about this whole situation and how badly it’s been handled by the university,’’ says Brackovic.
She adds that she saw and experienced some of the tutor’s alleged misconduct, including unsolicited touching and sexual
comments.
Brackovic says she did not formally complain because she did not feel confident to at the time, but saw it escalate with other women. She later supported Paris Watson and the other female student, who has chosen to stay anonymous, in their complaint.
When Provost Wendy Larner and Professor Mike Wilson fronted at Friday’s meeting, Brackovic expected an acknowledgement of gaps in the system.
Instead, she, Goreham, and Davis say there was widespread dismay when Larner insisted the university’s policy was ‘‘robust’’ and had not failed.
The university does not currently have a standalone sexual harassment policy. It is now developing one.
‘‘That was the first time I saw how little they cared. I was so angry,’’ said Brackovic. ‘‘I was hoping for some explanation, for
some accountability. I’m hoping in future they deal with these cases differently, they respect the victims and do right by the victims. To me it looks like they just wanted to wait for the people involved to be gone so they don’t have to do anything.’’
Davis said the university’s response was frustrating, especially when staff and students were personally aware of the impact on the women involved.
‘‘It’s pretty hard to build trust with someone who won’t admit there’s fault. It was basically a brick wall of buzz words. But at least the conversation is happening now, which is good.’’
In a statement yesterday, Victoria University said it strongly encouraged those with concerns to contact the university. It did not answer questions about when the new sexual harassment policy would be implemented, or if it felt its actions were sensitive to accusers.
‘‘I was hoping for some explanation, for some accountability.’’ PhD student Amira Brackovic