Michael Deas, News Editor
November 13, 2007
Five students have declined an invitation to a reception at the home of LSE Director Howard Davies in protest at the three month paid academic sabbatical leave of absence, worth £55,000, he is due to take next summer.
LSE Students’ Union (LSESU) Mature and Part time Officer Ziyaad Lunat; Women’s Officer Daisy Mitchell-Forster; Environment and Ethics Officer Aled Fisher; Students with Disabilities Officer Lizzie Fison and Constitution & Steering Committee member Elle Dodd have made it clear they will not attend the reception. It is traditional for members of the Students’ Union Executive Committee, the Athletics Union Executive, student Governors and heads of the Media Group to be invited to the Director’s home once a year.
In a letter to Davies’ assistant, Clare Taylor Gold, the officers said they were declining “due to objections we have concerning the marketised direction that he [Davies] is taking the School and, more specifically, the decision taken by the School's administration to grant him a three month sabbatical leave in 2008 whilst retaining his full salary”.
Davies was awarded a sabbatical following the decision to re-appoint him in April last year. However, concerns have been raised that as Davies is an administrator, not an academic, the decision to award him a sabbatical is inappropriate.
The LSE website states: “The general purpose of sabbatical leave is to enable members of the teaching staff to have the opportunity to pursue research upon which they might be engaged; to undertake preparation of new courses and to retrain in fresh areas of academic activity.”
At the time of Davies’ reappointment last year, The Beaver asked Davies if he would be using his sabbatical for academic purposes. He replied, “I shall be writing a book.”
LSE Chairman Lord Grabiner claimed last year that such a sabbatical is the precedent set for continuing Directors.
Davies is the first LSE director without a background in teaching. When asked if the sabbatical was intended for purposes of academia or as a reward for good service to the school, Grabiner refused to comment.
The students also complain that sabbatical was “not fully and adequately discussed by LSE Council”.
Lord Grabiner told The Beaver last year that the sabbatical had come about during negotiations over Davies’ re-appointment as a result of “express agreement between me, on behalf of the LSE, and Sir Howard”. It is claimed that the this agreement was “announced informally” rather that discussed or sanctioned by the Council.
Davies was reappointed last year and was given overwhelming support in a Students’ Union ballot on the reappointment. However, the fact that he would recieve a paid leave of absence was not mentioned at any point during the consultation process.
Ziyaad Lunat, one of those refusing the dinner invitation, said, "The sabbatical was undemocratically announced to Council and it is paid by our extortionary tuition fees. There is a stringent criteria for staff sabbaticals and Howard Davies should have no special treatment. The school has refused our right to 24 hours library alledging lack of funds. Perhaps Howard Davies would like to donate his luxury holiday pay to fund decent library services to LSE students?"