D GRADING SEX

One of Melbourne’s top universities has been involved in a ‘sex and money for good grades’ scandal and has been doing its damndest to keep it quiet. Partly because the senior law lecturer at Victoria University, accused of boosting grades in exchange for favours, committed suicide in May.  That was two days after Police contacted him and told him to come in for questioning and bring a lawyer.

They were preparing a brief including ten charges of bribery. The university refuses to name the man or even  comment on the flimsy excuse of ‘privacy reasons’ and the newspaper that broke the story declined to name the teacher.  Even though the reporter at The Australian, Andrew Trounson, knows who he is.  And presumably so does his editor. I’ll tell you who it is. His name is Rolf Saxon.

The university knew last December about the allegations that the 46-year-old lecturer was offering good grades to international students in exchange for sex and money.

Saxon was subject co-ordinator in the Faculty of Business and Law at Victoria University’s Footscray campus. He taught law subjects and had a lot of international students studying accountancy and business.

After learning of the allegations the university confronted Saxon and he was stood down. Exactly when Police were told I don’t know. But it was four months before the lecturer was called in for questioning.  University staff were told Saxon had resigned. They were later told he had died.

Reportedly his death and the bribery allegations shocked his colleagues at the university where he had taught for several years. AND Police are preparing a brief for the Coroner.

All the University would say, through senior deputy vice-chancellor, John McCallum, was: ‘The university has processes in place that ensure that any allegations that are made, that could constitute criminal conduct, are referred to Police.’

As I said, a university spokesman refused to tell us the man’s name for privacy reasons.

Well, those reasons don’t apply if Saxon was guilty of appalling breaches of trust, criminal offences, and abused his duty of care. It makes no difference if he is dead or alive. Rather than front the serious accusations he chose to kill himself.

Monday, August 17, 2009

© Copyright Derryn Hinch 2009