A toxic culture has been revealed at a Christian Brothers high school in Melbourne where teachers allege students simulated sex acts, threatened teachers and saluted Hitler.
Exclusive: Students at a Christian Brothers high school saluted Hitler, simulated lewd sex acts while on a tram, and told a female teacher they knew where she lived, teachers claimed.
A leaked document detailing interviews with staff at St Bernard’s College in Melbourne’s northwest has exposed allegations of a toxic culture with the school accused of failing to deal with teachers’ complaints.
St Bernard’s College principal Dr Michael Davies said the school took the incidents “extremely seriously” and “acted immediately to condemn the unacceptable actions and punish the students.”
Teachers claimed in a 13-page report that a “boys will be boys” attitude prevailed at the school, which receives $13 million in government funding each year.
The school is part of the Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA) network – formerly known as the Christian Brothers.
A scathing KPMG report recently found EREA had “evaded accountability”, while Commonwealth Bank chairman Paul O’Malley, who is on the board of the St Kevin’s Advisory Council has accused EREA of “manifestly failing students”.
The claims of behaviour at St Bernard’s College raise further questions about the culture at Christian Brothers’ schools.
Read the article in the Herald Sun.