Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS)

Former student Former Student, 26-Jul-2010
They say a fish rots from the head. AFTRS used to be good. Read why it is now going down under the current head Sandra Levy in this exposee from Crikey. Off-screen drama: disquiet over film school boss Levy's management. Tom Cowie writes in Crikey: "Australian Film Television and Radio School chief executive Sandra Levy has come under attack from a member of her own board, who cites an atmosphere of suppression and "sycophantic compliance". In a resignation email sent by Katherine Blashki, the school's director of research and education, to Levy in June, the AFTRS executive has been accused of passing motions on educational policy without the director of education and research present. "I am at a loss to understand why a motion would be passed on a paper in an area for which research and education is directly responsible and yet have had no part in constructing," Blashki wrote. "With this motion you have effectively ensured that I am unable to exercise my experiential knowledge and expertise to arrive at decisions." In responding to the allegations, Levy -- a former director of television at the ABC -- told Crikey that many of the claims were false and that documents correcting the assertions had been forwarded to Blashki. "There are many factual inaccuracies in that letter, which were included in my response to her and were corrected at the time of her resignation," she told Crikey. Levy was unwilling to comment directly on which of Blashki's accusations were false, as she was concerned about the prospects of defamation. However, she did choose to issue a generic statement to Crikey, which explained how the executive process works at AFTRS. But Blashki claims that under Levy the correct processes at AFTRS were being ignored and that the integrity of the academic board had been "compromised". "Instructing the director of research and education to endorse a program offering is tantamount to assuming that the role of the director is one of sycophantic compliance," she wrote. "I will not be instructed on how to use my vote in academic board as this not only comprises my own integrity but also the integrity of the academic board. "Where is the forum for dissension and debate in AFTRS? If not at executive and academic board then where?" Graham Thorburn, director of screen content at AFTRS, disagreed with Blashki’s claims, telling Crikey that debate within the executive was "rigorous and demanding". "There is debate but you have got to be prepared to put your debate strongly and have the facts and figures at hand," he told Crikey. Blashki’s accusations are the latest in a series of rumblings from within AFTRS. Crikey understands that senior staff at AFTRS are unhappy with Levy’s micro-management control of the organisation but are "are too afraid to say anything publicly". AFTRS is a federal government statutory body and a self-accrediting institution. Last month, Levy was reappointed for a further four years by Federal Minister for the Arts Peter Garrett, who cited "strong leadership credentials" as the reason for her extension. Levy confirmed that Blashki will be working at AFTRS until September, despite offers from the school to pay her out."