An elite Australian private school has been rocked by bombshell claims male students have been ranking their female counterparts based on their looks.
Female students at the Wesley College in Melbourne have stepped forward to allege they have been harassed at the school and to claim there is a culture of misogyny within its walls.
The head of the college’s St Kilda campus Kim Bence said police had been notified of multiple assault and abuse allegations between the school’s students.
Wesley College Principal Nick Evans said on Friday he ‘apologised unreservedly to those affected’ on behalf of the school.
Wesley College said police will investigate after a number of female student have voiced allegations of harassment at the school (pictured)
In one example, a document circulating via social media in the last 12 months by male students ranked girls in various year levels by their looks, The Herald Sun reported.
‘It’s been a boys’ club for years. There is so much toxic masculinity at this school. They’ve objectified women and this document made us feel so uncomfortable,’ one 16-year-old female Wesley student said.
‘I want to point out that it’s not all of the boys at our school, some of them are listening and are willing to listen about the issues we’ve faced,’ the student added.
Another student also relayed accounts of attending a school camp at Clunes in 2018 where a Year 9 boy had been selling porn videos to other students.
She also said she was pulled out of a lesson by her year level leader and told her skirt needed to be longer because it was a ‘distraction to the boys’.
Other allegations which have been leveled by girls at the school include being followed into the female toilets, being verbally abused, and ‘threatened with rape’.
Female students have launched a petition and are planning further actions such as walkout and protests involving not wearing or covering school emblems on uniforms.
Pictured is a TikTok video of a group of Wesley College male students making offensive remarks
About 10 students have met with Ms Bence since Thursday expressing their concerns and she said she has addressed even more issues via email.
On Thursday a TikTok video featuring Wesley College students describing an offensive act towards a female, was revealed to have been made by Melbourne comedians Nick and Bill.
‘While the video was shot during school holidays and away from school campus, I was deeply disappointed by its content and the students involved will be appropriately dealt with,’ Principal Nick Evans said.
In a letter to parents on Friday, Mr Evans said the allegations proved there was a ‘cultural issue that has clearly been in place for a considerable period of time’ at the school.
‘I apologise unreservedly to those affected on behalf of the college,’ he said.
‘Sadly … Wesley College is a microcosm of Australian society. We are not alone in this scourge.
‘We must face it with honesty, courage and a willingness to confront hard truths.’
The school is in the process of engaging external trauma-informed psychologists and has set up lunchtime forums for senior students.
‘We are entering a phase of deep listening,’ Mr Evans said.
Wesley College (pictured) sent a letter to parents on Friday saying they would begin a phase of ‘listening’ to female students at the school
‘We need to better understand the experiences of our students, the issues they face, how they feel, the impact such challenges are having on their health and wellbeing, and ideas about how we can further support them at this time.’
The school has also engaged education consultants and child protection agency Bravehearts, which will deliver ‘respectful relationships and personal safety’ programs at the school.
Topics covered will include consent, confidentiality, bullying, internet safety, sexting, pornography, stress and how to seek help.
It comes after boys in Wesley uniform were heard making misogynistic statements towards women on a bus, hours after the March4Justice march at Treasury Gardens on Monday.
Some students went on to boycott the uniform in protest of how the school handled the incident.
Wesley College was also listed in a national petition calling for ‘urgent reform to require sexual consent to be enthusiastic consent’.