A letter from the Executive Board

21 April 2021

Dear DAE students, tutors, studio leaders, heads, coordinators, staff and alumni,

In December 2020, we asked Bezemer & Schubad to conduct independent research on social safety and culture within DAE.

This decision was made by the Executive Board for a number of reasons. We were already engaged with critical reflection and discussions around how we approached education. But the need for an external assessment became urgent following a wave of statements on social media regarding the behaviour of a small number of DAE tutors and criticism in the context of a wider conversation around diversity. It was clear that the issues of diversity, inclusivity, social safety and culture were connected, but that we needed an external perspective to be able to understand the reality of how this is currently experienced at DAE.

The Bezemer & Schubad investigation was an opportunity to draw a zero line, to give a voice to those who felt they had not been heard, and to take disciplinary action if needed. But it was also an opportunity to understand how to further shape the process of improvement that has been underway since 2019, which has already seen an overhaul of the Institutional Plan and the restructuring of the Bachelor Programme.

Thank you to everyone who took part for your openness and willingness to contribute. The participants included students, staff, tutors, heads, studio leaders, coordinators and alumni, and we are very grateful to them all for sharing their experiences with Bezemer & Schubad.

The Report

Recently, Bezemer & Schubad presented us with the outcome of their research. Over 1000 students, tutors and staff members were invited to participate via email. The investigation was also announced on the DAE website, giving alumni and former DAE employees the opportunity to engage with it. Thirty-one respondents contacted Bezemer & Schubad to take part. The Bezemer & Schubad team also interviewed 21 randomly selected tutors, heads, studio leaders, coordinators and staff.

In the interests of transparency, we made the decision to share this report with the DAE community and with the world. It has been published in full on the DAE website.

Findings and next steps

The Bezemer & Schubad report concludes that there is no overall unsafe culture within DAE. However, there are signals of alleged undesired behaviour of individuals. These include intimidating and imminent behaviour, transgressive behaviour with a sexual connotation and abuse of power. There are signals and suspicions of integrity violations by individuals employed or formerly employed by DAE.

The Executive Board takes these seriously. A number of individual cases concerning (former) teaching staff have been reported to us by Bezemer & Schubad. In some cases, additional, in-depth research is necessary to be able to draw conclusions. Until now, no closer examination of cases regarding individuals mentioned in the scope of this investigation was executed. The Executive Board has already assigned Bezemer & Schubad to execute additional in-depth research into these cases. Privacy regulations prevent us from providing more detailed information.

Position of the Executive Board

The Executive Board deeply regrets that DAE has not been able to provide a safe learning and working environment for some in our community. And we regret some of you did not experience appropriate and much-needed guidance and help in difficult situations. This has to change.

We want to send out a very clear message: the Executive Board will not and does not condone any kind of inappropriate behaviour at any level. Anyone at the Academy who is accused of inappropriate behaviour can expect that allegations will be thoroughly and professionally investigated. This should have always been the case.

Tutors and staff

All of our community should feel safe and supported at DAE, and this includes tutors and staff. We are aware that one consequence of the heightened scrutiny and the accusations made by students in recent months has been a sense of insecurity and uncertainty among educators and staff. We have also felt this. We very much regret that this has affected hardworking and dedicated members of our community who are the backbone of education at DAE, and appreciate that so many of you have actively supported the research despite this. We hope that all educators and staff can now come together in solidarity to help us act on the findings of the report and make DAE a better place for everyone. We know that more support may be necessary to rebuild confidence in your work at DAE, and we are open to ideas on how to move towards this.

Dialogue

We need to discuss the outcome of this research and learn from previous mistakes. Education at DAE needs to adapt to today’s world, and issues of diversity and inclusivity cannot be ignored.

This dialogue started with discussing the report with different bodies of the DAE community in last weeks and sharing the report in detail with students, Heads, Studio Leaders, coordinators, tutors and staff by EB live sessions today.

The conversation on diversity and inclusivity is ongoing at DAE, with many facets. In January, Dr. Praveen Sewgobind established the Diversity and Inclusivity research department at DAE. Last month, this department launched an open call for its first initiative – the Social Justice Lab. You can find out more about this here. Since last autumn the, Executive Board has also been engaged in conversations with the Anti-Racist Committee and the Student Council, which have already resulted in tangible change. The outcomes of this collaboration have been shared via joint communications, which can be read on the DAE website. These initiatives contribute to the necessary ongoing dialogue on this subject.

Ongoing process

Improving the DAE learning and working environment is a process that will not be completed in a few weeks. It needs constant attention from everyone that belongs to the DAE community: students, tutors, staff, heads, studio leaders, coordinators and alumni. We all need to learn from this experience and build a sound system of governance together. Above all, we need to pay attention to all signals of concern and show respect to those who step forward to share their worries.

Safety is a pre-condition for DAE to be a place where all voices are heard and where education is inspiring for everyone who participates in it. This is the ultimate goal. The Bezemer & Schubad report includes a quote that says it all: ‘Respondents believe that DAE should be the place to be for questioning, sharing, meeting and discovering and learning together with people from all corners of the world, with talents and vulnerabilities.’ We could not agree more and hope that you are all with us in this challenge.

Kind regards,
Joseph Grima & Raf De Keninck
DAE Executive Board