Jenan Taylor
25 July 2024
Update
Indigenous people will feel less safe in the Australian Church after the closure of the School of Indigenous Studies at the University of Divinity, an academic has warned.
Its former head believes the school was set up to fail, with “impossible” funding models for a new institution.
The School of Indigenous Studies closed on July 16 when the University of Divinity ruled it financially unsustainable after about three years of operation.
School head Professor Anne Pattel-Gray said students and staff were gutted by the decision.
Professor Pattel-Gray said without the school there would be no way to raise next generation Indigenous theologians and a hole in the development of quality First Nations church leaders.
Read more: A ‘Yes’ begins our journey of healing
She said this would have a devastating effect on Indigenous theology students because there would be no Indigenous people there to support them in their studies.
“It’s unclear what’s going to be provided to them in the way of a culturally safe learning environment and working environment. It raises significant uncertainty and leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of Indigenous people,” Professor Pattel-Gray said.
She said the decision to discontinue the school was also traumatising for the former school’s staff as it was unexpected and abrupt.
Professor Pattel-Gray said its funding model meant the school was set up to fail.
She said staff discovered only at the start of 2024 that they were expected to raise all the funds for the school’s running.
She said the school’s funding model was philanthropy-based but its committee and staff believed the university was providing some base finance throughout its three-year history.
“It’s impossible to establish a new institution without having at least base income to support us while we raise funding, prove ourselves through our research, and build those relationships that would enable us to have sustainable income,” Professor Pattel-Gray said.
University of Divinity Vice Chancellor Professor James McLaren said he was unable to comment on the background of the funding model because he was not at the university when it was set up.
Professor McLaren said he wanted to clarify that the model was a combination of elements that included revenue-raising through fundraising and grant applications.
He said the university budget was approved late last year and as far as he was aware the university executive, of which the school was a member, was part of that process.
Read more: Indigenous Christian leaders ‘gutted’, but unwavering after Voice setback
He said First Nations students would continue to undertake their Indigenous theology studies or be taught by Indigenous academics, as theological studies were still being offered through the university’s colleges.
Professor McLaren said the university was an institution with 12 colleges where the majority of students who were enrolled undertook their studies.
Professor Pattel-Gray said the closure was a kick in the guts for Indigenous people in churches nationally, particularly after the outcome of the referendum for an Indigenous Voice.
She said it meant Indigenous and non-Indigenous people would lose knowledge, and hopes for transformative change within theological education would be lost too.
Earlier
The School of Indigenous Studies has been discontinued after the University of Divinity announced its decision to close it immediately.
The school offered education and research, including in the fields of theology and ministry, led by and for First Nations people.
Vice-chancellor James McLaren said in a statement the University Council decided the school’s financial model was not sustainable in the current higher education environment.
Professor McLaren said it was a difficult decision that carried additional gravity after the result of the 2023 constitutional referendum for an Indigenous Voice.
He said the council affirmed the university’s strategic goals relating to Indigenous theologies.
Read more: Indigenous spirituality gathering aims to help Christians echo truth and love
The National Tertiary Education Union said it was appalled and profoundly disappointed at the decision.
NTEU Chair of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy Committee Dr Sharlene Leroy-Dyer said Indigenous students were one of the most under-represented groups across Australia’s higher education sector.
“This announcement by the University of Divinity will undermine the years of work undertaken by the Reverend Dr Garry Deverell and others, to build the profile of the University of Divinity amongst the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities,” Dr Leroy-Dyer said in a statement.
The University of Divinity has been contacted for comment.
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