"Students out in force to protest"
- Description
This image was taken (but not used) for a story that ran in The Manawatu Evening Standard on 5 August 2000 "Protestors wend their way from Massey University to the College of Education to protest the repositioning proposals"
Left to right: Massey University Vice-Chancellor James McWha, Extramural Student Association President Liz Barker and Chancellor Morva Croxson during a University Council meeting to decide on the ‘Repositioning’ proposal.
‘Repositioning’ was the infamous title given to a staff restructuring process at Massey University in 2000 that saw multiple positions across the colleges of science, business, social sciences and humanities under threat of disestablishment. The Association of University Staff called it the ‘single biggest academic redundancy exercise in New Zealand’s history’. Driven by drops in student numbers and government funding for the tertiary sector, the review was challenged in the High Court by the association and attracted scathing criticism from staff, students, and some Palmerston North city councillors.
The anti-repositioning protest march on 4 August 2000 began at the Turitea campus of Massey University, and made its way via road across Fitzherbert bridge to the Hokowhitu campus (College of Education) on Centennial Drive where the University Council was meeting to vote on the proposal. Behind closed doors, the decision was taken to go ahead with the restructure pending the outcome of the judicial inquiry. ‘Massey News’ reported the outcome of the meeting – that most of the proposal would go ahead – in their 14 August edition.
Identification
- Object type
- Image
- Digitisation ID
- 2022N_2017-20_B4306_038748_011
- Format
- Colour negative
Taxonomy
- Community Tags