Curvy Students 'Perk of the job'
Discussion
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8270475.stm
A university leader has caused controversy by saying curvy female students are a "perk of the job".
Terence Kealey, of the University of Buckingham, said lecturers were aware of females who "flaunted their curves".
In a tongue-in-cheek article for Times Higher Education Magazine on the seven deadly sins of academia, he advised academics to "look but not touch".
The National Union of Students condemned the comments as insulting and disrespectful to women.
Dr Kealey, a clinical bio-chemist and vice-chancellor of Buckingham University, likened the classroom to a lap dancing club and said admiring the curves of attractive students could help "spice up" marital sex.
There will be a girl in class who flashes her admiration... Enjoy her! She's a perk.
Dr Kealey
In his article about the sin of lust, Dr Kealey wrote: "Most male lecturers know that, most years, there will be a girl in class who flashes her admiration and who asks for advice on her essays.
"What to do? Enjoy her! She's a perk."
Referring to characters from Middlemarch by George Eliot and The History Man by Malcolm Bradbury, he added: "She doesn't yet know that you are only Casaubon to her Dorothea, Howard Kirk to her Felicity Phee, and she will flaunt you her curves.
"Which you should admire daily to spice up your sex, nightly, with the wife."
Dr Kealey recalled the days when sex between student and tutor, in return for academic favours, could go by unchecked.
"Thanks to the accountability imposed by the Quality Assurance Agency [the university watchdog] and other intrusive bodies, the days are gone when a scholar could trade sex for upgrades."
'Appalled'
Olivia Bailey, womens' officer for the NUS , said: "I am appalled that a university vice-chancellor should display such an astounding lack of respect for women.
"Regardless of whether this was an attempt at humour, it is completely unacceptable for someone in Terence Kealey's position to compare a lecture theatre to a lap dancing club, and I expect that many women studying at Buckingham University will be feeling extremely angry and insulted at these comments."
Dr Kealey said he was using humour to warn against lust
His article has prompted a lively debate on the Times Higher Education website.
"I'm amazed that Terence K has a position in any university, and I'll be damn sure never to apply for a job at Buckingham," said one reader.
Another added: "Any scholar, who assumes that female students who show interest in the subject and ask for help because they have a crush on you or hope to manipulate you with their sexual charms, is a reality-challenged idiot.
"And anyone who thinks that female students are there in the classroom expressly as objects of the instructor's viewing pleasure needs to retire."
But another said: "I'm appalled that everyone's so appalled! - it's just not that important, or offensive."
Humour
Adding his own voice to the online debate, Dr Kealey said his article was a "moral piece" which used humour to encourage people to exercise self-restraint.
"Sex between academics and students is not funny, and should not be a source of humour," he wrote.
"But employing humour to highlight the ways by which people try to resolve the dissonance between what is publicly expected of them and how they actually feel - not just in this context - reaches back to origins of humour itself."
A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "Harassment is not something to be taken lightly and I would be surprised, and deeply concerned, if any university, or vice-chancellor, tried to laugh it off."
Dr Kealey has been vice-chancellor at Buckingham - the UK's only independent university - since 2001.
A university leader has caused controversy by saying curvy female students are a "perk of the job".
Terence Kealey, of the University of Buckingham, said lecturers were aware of females who "flaunted their curves".
In a tongue-in-cheek article for Times Higher Education Magazine on the seven deadly sins of academia, he advised academics to "look but not touch".
The National Union of Students condemned the comments as insulting and disrespectful to women.
Dr Kealey, a clinical bio-chemist and vice-chancellor of Buckingham University, likened the classroom to a lap dancing club and said admiring the curves of attractive students could help "spice up" marital sex.
There will be a girl in class who flashes her admiration... Enjoy her! She's a perk.
Dr Kealey
In his article about the sin of lust, Dr Kealey wrote: "Most male lecturers know that, most years, there will be a girl in class who flashes her admiration and who asks for advice on her essays.
"What to do? Enjoy her! She's a perk."
Referring to characters from Middlemarch by George Eliot and The History Man by Malcolm Bradbury, he added: "She doesn't yet know that you are only Casaubon to her Dorothea, Howard Kirk to her Felicity Phee, and she will flaunt you her curves.
"Which you should admire daily to spice up your sex, nightly, with the wife."
Dr Kealey recalled the days when sex between student and tutor, in return for academic favours, could go by unchecked.
"Thanks to the accountability imposed by the Quality Assurance Agency [the university watchdog] and other intrusive bodies, the days are gone when a scholar could trade sex for upgrades."
'Appalled'
Olivia Bailey, womens' officer for the NUS , said: "I am appalled that a university vice-chancellor should display such an astounding lack of respect for women.
"Regardless of whether this was an attempt at humour, it is completely unacceptable for someone in Terence Kealey's position to compare a lecture theatre to a lap dancing club, and I expect that many women studying at Buckingham University will be feeling extremely angry and insulted at these comments."
Dr Kealey said he was using humour to warn against lust
His article has prompted a lively debate on the Times Higher Education website.
"I'm amazed that Terence K has a position in any university, and I'll be damn sure never to apply for a job at Buckingham," said one reader.
Another added: "Any scholar, who assumes that female students who show interest in the subject and ask for help because they have a crush on you or hope to manipulate you with their sexual charms, is a reality-challenged idiot.
"And anyone who thinks that female students are there in the classroom expressly as objects of the instructor's viewing pleasure needs to retire."
But another said: "I'm appalled that everyone's so appalled! - it's just not that important, or offensive."
Humour
Adding his own voice to the online debate, Dr Kealey said his article was a "moral piece" which used humour to encourage people to exercise self-restraint.
"Sex between academics and students is not funny, and should not be a source of humour," he wrote.
"But employing humour to highlight the ways by which people try to resolve the dissonance between what is publicly expected of them and how they actually feel - not just in this context - reaches back to origins of humour itself."
A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "Harassment is not something to be taken lightly and I would be surprised, and deeply concerned, if any university, or vice-chancellor, tried to laugh it off."
Dr Kealey has been vice-chancellor at Buckingham - the UK's only independent university - since 2001.
Colin_147 said:
A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "Harassment is not something to be taken lightly and I would be surprised, and deeply concerned, if any university, or vice-chancellor, tried to laugh it off."
Upon what basis is looking at someone in the Lecture Theatre wearing limited clothes harassment? Jasandjules said:
Colin_147 said:
A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "Harassment is not something to be taken lightly and I would be surprised, and deeply concerned, if any university, or vice-chancellor, tried to laugh it off."
Upon what basis is looking at someone in the Lecture Theatre wearing limited clothes harassment? 
Colin_147 said:
Dr Kealey recalled the days when sex between student and tutor, in return for academic favours, could go by unchecked.
"Thanks to the accountability imposed by the Quality Assurance Agency [the university watchdog] and other intrusive bodies, the days are gone when a scholar could trade sex for upgrades."
And I bet the lecturers love that "Thanks to the accountability imposed by the Quality Assurance Agency [the university watchdog] and other intrusive bodies, the days are gone when a scholar could trade sex for upgrades."
turbobloke said:
The humourless pc drones are already out in force over this.
Clearly some dungarees are pinching a few bluestocking harridans today.
Clearly some dungarees are pinching a few bluestocking harridans today.
Yeah. Absolutely typical that the idiots would take a humourous article and use bits totally out of context for their own ends. They could have a field day at the Daily Mash.
Men in "like to look at young, attractive women" shocker.
FFS
Don said:
turbobloke said:
The humourless pc drones are already out in force over this.
Clearly some dungarees are pinching a few bluestocking harridans today.
Clearly some dungarees are pinching a few bluestocking harridans today.
Yeah. Absolutely typical that the idiots would take a humourous article and use bits totally out of context for their own ends. They could have a field day at the Daily Mash.
Men in "like to look at young, attractive women" shocker.
FFS
ewenm said:
Jasandjules said:
Colin_147 said:
A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "Harassment is not something to be taken lightly and I would be surprised, and deeply concerned, if any university, or vice-chancellor, tried to laugh it off."
Upon what basis is looking at someone in the Lecture Theatre wearing limited clothes harassment? fido said:
Even when i was a student, i couldn't stand the NUS .. then again they didn't do much for the 'average' student at L.S.E.
We wanted nowt to do with them either. IIRC they wanted to charge over £40k in affiliation fees - and still couldn't match the rates our unions have with the breweries! 
So looking at attractive females and admitting to liking it is disrespctful to women?
I didn't realise we live in a society where it seldom happens and I guess universities is pretty much the only remaining place where men were "getting away" with it until now.
I am sorry to admit, I like to look at pretty women, but since it's bordering on illegal these days I may as well do away with millions of years worth of evolution and get myself castrated...
I mean WTF!?
Maybe we, men should start complaining when pretty women use charm to get away with something wrong they have done? Next time a pretty waitress gets my order wrong and apologises by smiling very cutely at me and does the "puppy eyes" thing, I will sue the s
t out of that bh! Not only has she inconvenienced me by getting my order wrong, she then proceeded to insult and disrespect me as a man, thinking that a cute face and a smile will make a difference!
I didn't realise we live in a society where it seldom happens and I guess universities is pretty much the only remaining place where men were "getting away" with it until now.
I am sorry to admit, I like to look at pretty women, but since it's bordering on illegal these days I may as well do away with millions of years worth of evolution and get myself castrated...
I mean WTF!?
Maybe we, men should start complaining when pretty women use charm to get away with something wrong they have done? Next time a pretty waitress gets my order wrong and apologises by smiling very cutely at me and does the "puppy eyes" thing, I will sue the s
t out of that bh! Not only has she inconvenienced me by getting my order wrong, she then proceeded to insult and disrespect me as a man, thinking that a cute face and a smile will make a difference!
Dr Kealey recalled the days when sex between student and tutor, in return for academic favours, could go by unchecked.
Dr Kealey said:
"Thanks to the accountability imposed by the Quality Assurance Agency [the university watchdog] and other intrusive bodies, the days are gone when a scholar could trade sex for upgrades."
Dr Kealey said:
Unfortunately I never got offered any sex from my curvy students because my head looks like it's been turned inside out
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