Canberra private school captain pulled from awards for speaking out on unrest

The case of Rachel Jayatilaka has sparked intervention from the ACT Human Rights Commission - making it the third authority to wade into reports of bullying and intimidation rocking Brindabella Christian College since a Canberra Times investigation in August.

Last week, Worksafe slapped six notices on Brindabella for failing to comply with workplace safety laws regarding psychological harm and bullying, and the ACT government confirmed it was continuing its own audit of the school's compliance.

This year's shock resignation of principal Christine Lucas - the fifth to depart the top job in five years - has sparked a groundswell of concern about board interference "bordering on harassment" in the day-to-day running of the school. Dozens of people have now spoken to The Canberra Times about an alleged "culture of fear" and control wielded by the board, which many claim has seen "disloyal" staff targeted, books like Dracula disappear from lesson plans and bullying complaints buried.

The board did not respond to requests for comment but chair Greg Zwajgenberg has previously denied any bullying and insisted the school complies with all regulation. He said the board had gotten involved when things were handled "the wrong way" and instead blamed problems on a band of disgruntled parents determined to destroy the college.

In recent weeks, tensions between the board and the Brindabella community have boiled over into an alleged altercation at a graduation ceremony, accusations of sports hall sabotage, and even an all-out editing war on the school's Wikipedia page.

Then, at the awards night last week, Rachel went sensationally off script to acknowledge the toll of the unrest on students. She was quickly banned by the college from her speaking and performing duties for the rest of the evening, but not before receiving thunderous applause. Ignoring last-minute edits to her speech by the school seen by The Canberra Times, Rachel paid tribute to Ms Lucas and reflected on how the recent exodus of staff had impacted students, thanking teachers for their support during a difficult year.

Some people said they were brought to tears by her words, and many rushed to thank her after the event.

Rachel, who has won multiple awards in her time at the school, was first dragged into the mess in August when her parents joined those approaching the board with concerns about the school's finances and staff welfare.

Mr Zwajgenberg responded by pointing a finger of his own - accusing their daughter of making "inappropriate" comments in line with a "view formed by your family without the actual supporting facts...which is sad".

Rachel's parents were asked to "to reflect on where your hearts actually lie in all of this, and what it is you are teaching your children and one as our college captain, a privilege we as a college and board have bestowed on your daughter."

"She had nothing to do with our complaint, we felt they were trying to shut us up by threatening our daughter," Jodie Jayatilaka told The Canberra Times. "It was creepy. To use our child against us like that, without any thought to her welfare. They wouldn't even tell us what she was meant to have done wrong."

But for Rachel it didn't end there.

In the middle of her final year assessments, she was pulled into a meeting by a senior teacher and quizzed over her personal feelings about board members. "Rumours" were brought up, accusations she had disparaged the board while talking privately to her peers, but again no detail was given. She was reminded of proper leadership conduct and sent back to class, shaking, pending a further investigation.

"It didn't feel like it was over," Rachel said. "I felt scared, watched. We'd just been studying 1984 and it felt like my own Big Brother moment. I couldn't tell anyone about it, I didn't know who I could trust. It was just hanging over me."

While the family had requested detail of the accusations, it also explicitly told the school not to worry Rachel with it unless there were grounds for further action.

READ THE FULL STORY: 'Culture of fear': Teachers speak out on Canberra private school

The human rights commission is now running conciliation between the family and the school.

Some staff have defended the board for volunteering their time to help out, calling the recent unrest a "witchhunt".

But many people, including former staff, have also described feeling watched, threatened or pressured into silence by board members in recent years. In parent Matt Fuller's case, his own alleged confrontation with Mr Zwajgenberg was in public at this month's Year 12 graduation.

"I went over to pass on some feedback, it wasn't a compliment, I'll admit, but I wasn't expecting such a reaction," Mr Fuller said.

"His whole face changed. He came at me straight away, yelling and swearing. His son got in between us and in my face and his wife pulled him back...It was very threatening. I was pretty shaken up."

An eyewitness confirmed the account, but Mr Zwajgenberg did not comment.

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In his own awards night address, the board chair alleged there had been an elaborate but foiled "plot to destroy" the school's new multi-million dollar sports hall, though he did not elaborate. Instead, he warned of a "perfect storm" now breaking over Christian education, worse than he had first imagined in 2017. He called recent reforms to the ACT's Education Act, designed to increase protections against child abuse, the "most significant" the school had seen.

"We are now entering uncharted waters in terms of new legislation and the liberalisation of views of what it is to be Christian," he said.

Mr Zwajgenberg revealed that plans to expand Brindabella's second Charnwood campus were now on hold, but blamed negative media coverage for the "heartfelt loss" of staff and students as well as the school's failed bid to rake in $5 million during a recent round of government infrastructure grants.

The next evening, Worksafe took action against the school - it has until March to comply with all six improvement notices.

In recent weeks, the board has appeared to deny statements from Worksafe itself that the watchdog was formally investigating the school, instead calling it a "collaborative" process. In cyberspace - where the war at Brindabella is also raging - additions to the school's Wikipedia page have also come under fierce contest from the college.

Last month, the account "Brindabella Christian College" was banned indefinitely for making additions for "advertising or promotion" and removing links to negative media coverage. When someone, believed to be a board member, continued to edit the page to remove references to recent controversy under a personal account, the entire page was locked down.

Responding to a parent petition for transparency earlier this year, Brindabella's board denied any knowledge or finding of bullying at the school.

But records from the Fair Work commission, released under Freedom of Information laws, reveal at least four claims of bullying have been made against the college's governing not-for-profit in the past nine years, and nine disputes have also been lodged by staff in that time, including two former principals.

The Canberra Times has also confirmed at least four worker's compensation claims alleging workplace bullying have been approved for payouts in recent months while multiple staff have spoken of a grave toll on their health.

Brindabella receives millions of dollars in government funding and has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on worker's injury payouts in the past four years. A number of experts have questioned its "unusual" governance framework - which in practice blocks parents from joining either the board or not-for-profit as members - as well as the transparency of its finances.

It's estimated well over 100 students have left the school this year, along with at least 40 staff. But this month some families remaining were shocked to discover a new clause in fee arrangements for 2020 - stating that discounts were now also dependent on maintaining a "positive relationship with the college", regardless of eligibility or personal circumstance.

It follows the additional requirement for Brindabella staff to "be loyal to those in authority" in their employee expectations for next year, though Mr Zwajgenberg said the board had no hand in writing that document.

The college has moved to reassure families that a strong interim principal and leadership team is in place for next year, when Brindabella will celebrate its 40th anniversary, and agencies have been contacted to plug gaps in the teaching roster.

While Rachel has since graduated, she admits her heart still aches for the school. Multiple past and present staff have praised the captain as a hardworking ambassador for Brindabella.

"I knew this was my moment to speak up," Rachel said of her speech.

"Up until recently. I've loved selling the school, running principal tours. It was a great place. That's what hurts the most. I've talked about what's been happening here lately with my friends, we all have, but I was passing on news. I haven't been inappropriate. We've lost so many great teachers. It's been really hard."