Insult against public school withdrawn
A Coffs Harbour private school on New South Waless mid-north coast has apologized for its pamphlet which caused an insult against the public school system.
The school distributed a leaflet to Coffs Harbour Christian Community containing a description of state school as "seed plots of future immorality, infidelity and lawlessness".
New South Wales Greens Senate candidate John Kaye called on the federal and state governments to suspend the school's $4 million public funding until the leaflet is withdrawn.
"It's an insult to the teachers, it's an insult to the students, it's an insult to the parents of public education," he said.
"But even worse, it's an insult to our entire society. Many of us have had public education and it is sheer arrogance that the Coffs Harbour Christian Community school [could] make statements like that."
Now, Rodney Lynn, the school's headmaster, has issued an apology to the principals of all local schools, saying the pamphlet is old and does not reflect the current thinking of the school.
"The quotes in the pamphlet are in fact about 150-years-old," says the chief executive officer of Christian Schools Australia, Stephen O'Doherty.
"They're a quotation from an archbishop who was discussing the issue of schooling in an entirely different historical context.
"They have no currency for today, they're not the policy of the school, they're not the policy of the association and they're not currently being distributed by the school.
Lynn gave apologies to public school colleagues for any antagonism caused on this matter.