A prestigious Melbourne school is in disarray after a long-standing teacher, deputy headmaster Rohan Brown was sacked for cutting a student’s hair.
Mr Brown was dismissed last week for “contravening disciplinary procedures” when he cut a boy’s hair, which he deemed was too long, before school photos were taken. The teacher took action in line with the school’s strict uniform and grooming guidelines. And while the student was reportedly unfazed by the haircut — it didn’t go down well with Trinity Grammar.
Hundreds of furious parents and old boys’ of the Anglican boys school in Kew, in Melbourne’s east, confronted the school council at a meeting held last Friday night. A online petition to “Bring Brownie Back” has received more than 5,000 signatures.
One supporter of the deputy headmaster wrote on the petition, “Without Brown, the school will fall apart. Now that he is gone, rules will go out the window, which will harm our reputation as one of the better all boys private schools in Melbourne.”
State member for Kew Tim Smith gave insight into the popular teacher’s character telling 3AW, “Mr Brown is a straight shooter, he’s a disciplinarian, and they’re the sort of characters we need in our schools because they bring a certain level of rigour and indeed discipline to school cultures.”
Speaking to channel 7’s Sunrise, a former Trinity Grammar school captain said this recent controversy is a symptom of a greater problem at the school.
“The [school] council is out of touch with what the community actually wants to see,” he said.
“These problems have been going on for around four years, I think they stem from a lack of communication, and a lack of transparency from the council and senior management at the school,” he added.
During today’s protest, students of the school will shun uniforms and instead wear casual clothing
The school will appoint an independent expert to review the school’s governance procedure.
