News

Little is known about the character situated above the Proctor in the discipline chain; the very elusive and somewhat secretive Provost. Critic does some digging to find out more about the the man you will get sent to if you’ve been significantly naughtier than your average scarfie.
The University of Otago Provost, Professor Robert Knight, is among those authorised to exercise disciplinary authority at Otago. The Provost is a member of the academic staff of the University, and is appointed by the Chancellor in consultation with the President of OUSA.

When disciplinary proceedings are brought against a student of the University, the Proctor has the power to deal with minor offences, and may deal with any guilty students by imposing fines, directing the student to carry out community service, or banning them from attending certain social functions or visiting a certain part of the University. At this stage of the year, Critic would like to be banned from going anywhere near the OUSA Boardroom, particularly every second Tuesday when they hold their chore-ish Executive meetings.

Former Critic writer, Tailgunner Joe, wrote a fortnightly account of the most lol-worthy tales that ended up on the Proctor’s desk. He described the Proctology column as being founded to chronicle scarfie hijinks gone awry, with the general theme being “drunk twerp breaks something”. From knowledge that may or may not stem from personal experience, Critic is aware that incidents such as skinny-dipping in the Leith and getting busted by Campus Watch will get you sent to the Proctor, where you will be dealt with accordingly.
 
The Provost also has the power to determine the outcome of appeals against decisions made by the Proctor, and the power to dismiss any complaint which he thinks is frivolous. In short, the Provost has similar disciplinary powers to the Proctor, with the added stick of being able to recommend to the Vice-Chancellor that the student be excluded from University. If you find yourself in this situation, you must be advised in writing of the complaint before the Provost can exercise any of his disciplinary powers, which would make a lovely letter for Mum and Dad to stick on the kitchen fridge as a souvenir of your time at Otago.

Students can appeal a decision of the Provost to the Appeals Board of the University Council, which is when you know shit has reallllly gone bad. While we’re sure Professor Knight is an absolutely all round tip-top chap, he isn’t the man you want to find yourself having to go see on a Monday morning after a bender of a weekend. On that note, to keep yourself out of his firing line Critic recommends avoiding riots of any sort, especially if you find yourself dressed in a toga and throwing poo at other people.