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SINGAPORE: Jeremy Fernando, the Tembusu College professor who was fired by the National University of Singapore (NUS), had “an intimate association” with a student, the university said in a statement on Wednesday (October 21).
NUS also said it made a police report on Wednesday in response to the CNA’s inquiries.
“The university received two complaints alleging that Dr. (Fernando) had behaved inappropriately as a teaching staff. All allegations of misconduct are taken seriously and the University strongly opposes all forms of inappropriate behavior. Upon receiving the initial complaint, the university immediately suspended the official and initiated investigations, ”the statement read.
“The internal university investigation established that Dr. Fernando had an intimate association with a student.”
This was a “serious violation” of the university’s code of conduct for staff members, and it “acted swiftly” to fire Dr. Fernando, the university said.
“The two students were advised to report allegations of sexual misconduct to the police, in the company of NUS personnel,” the university said in the statement.
READ: Student group asks NUS to show ‘transparency and accountability’ in handling the case of a teacher fired for inappropriate behavior
In accordance with the NUS Staff Code of Conduct, staff members are not to enter into an intimate relationship with an undergraduate student and ensure that they are not placed in a position of conflict of interest.
The university first received a complaint against Dr. Fernando on August 27 and it was suspended on August 31.
Dr. Fernando was interviewed by the university regarding the first complaint on September 1, and this investigation was concluded on September 5. On September 7, NUS received a second complaint from another student, it said in its statement.
In both cases, a no-contact order was issued to prohibit him from contacting the whistleblowers.
The students were also interviewed about their complaints on August 31 and September 9, respectively.
Attention officers from the NUS Victims Attention Unit (VCU) “explored” the option of making a police report with both students and assured them of the “continued support” of the VCU if they so chose. This would include accompanying them to the police station.
The director of Tembusu College also counseled the second student in a similar way, NUS said. Later, both students decided not to report the matter to the police.
NUS completed its internal investigation of the first complaint on September 5 and the second complaint on September 21.
On September 21, Dr. Fernando was informed of the alleged misconduct on the same day and given seven business days to “respond with additional information / mitigating factors,” the university said. He responded on September 30.
On October 7, NUS informed Dr. Fernando that he was fired after internal investigations into his conduct, and the two students were also informed of the outcome of their complaints in separate sessions.
The VCU care officer again “explored” the options of making a police report with both students and assured them that they would receive “continued support” if they so desired.
“The students decided not to report the matter to the police,” the university said, adding that academic staff were informed of Dr. Fernando’s departure that same day.
On October 18, Tembusu College sent an email to all staff members and students to inform them of the dismissal of Dr. Fernando, NUS said. The following day, the care manager contacted the two students who had filed the complaints to “check their well-being”.
“As one of the students was a student at Tembusu College, two of the university directors have given her additional direct support and continue to be in contact with her,” NUS said in the statement, adding that the university teacher had also involved different interested parties in the matter.
Furthermore, the university took immediate steps to ensure that there were no disruptions to student learning after Dr. Fernando’s dismissal. A group of student leaders at Tembusu College has also started a grassroots initiative to form a community support working group to facilitate deeper dialogue and discussion within the university community. ”
READ: Tembusu College students form a group to ‘rebuild’, ‘strengthen’ confidence after the dismissal of a university colleague
Responding to criticism about NUS ‘handling of the firing, the university noted that it “has to balance privacy and confidentiality interests,” especially for the victims involved.
“We recognize that we could have shared information about the termination with Tembusu staff and students in a more timely manner and we strive to do better.”
The university has also released the Code of Conduct for Staff, which was previously unavailable to the public, in response to a request from the NUS Student Union, according to the statement.
“We will continue to remind our staff to maintain high standards of professional and personal conduct. We will also continue to work closely with our students, staff, and stakeholders to build a safe, inclusive, and respectful community. ”
