The troubled University of Canberra has its fourth vice-chancellor inside a year, following stand-in boss Stephen Parker¡¯s prompt resignation.

Chancellor Lisa Paul told the university community that Professor Parker, who had been?recruited?to hold the reins pending former federal opposition leader Bill Shorten¡¯s?arrival?in February, had asked to depart immediately because he had lost confidence in the institution¡¯s governing body.?

Professor Parker had been teleported back to the university he previously headed to deal with a?budget and leadership crisis?marked by the abrupt departures of vice-chancellor Paddy Nixon?last December, and interim head Lucy Johnston about a month ago.

Professor Nixon¡¯s exit was?revealed?four weeks after he left the university with 15 months remaining on his contract. It subsequently?emerged?that his final year¡¯s pay had totalled A$1.785 million (?913,000), an all-time record for any Australian vice-chancellor.

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Canberra is Australia¡¯s third smallest university. It has never explained why it paid Professor Nixon so handsomely, saying only that he ¡°received payment as per contractual arrangements¡±. In October the university?refused?a National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) freedom of interest request for details, insisting that disclosure would be ¡°contrary to the public interest¡±.

Less than a month after his arrival, Professor Parker announced that?at least 200 jobs?would go in a sweeping restructure of Canberra. ¡°The university itself is responsible for this unsustainable position,¡± he said at the time. ¡°We cannot expect any external assistance and must take urgent and significant measures to rebalance the institution.¡±

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Deputy vice-chancellor Michelle Lincoln will now take over pending Mr Shorten¡¯s arrival. NTEU branch president Craig Applegate said that having set a record for vice-chancellor remuneration, Canberra was now setting ¡°unwanted records¡± for leadership changes. ¡°How can job losses continue with this turmoil at the top?¡± he asked.

The union¡¯s Australian Capital Territory (ACT) secretary, Lachlan Clohesy, said the cuts should cease immediately. ¡°If UC¡¯s leadership can¡¯t sort itself out, we cannot have confidence in their ability to sort out the rest of the university,¡± he said.

Dr Clohesy said the NTEU had been raising governance issues at Canberra for the past year, and both the governing Labor party and the Greens ¨C which together form a voting majority in the territory¡¯s legislative assembly ¨C had committed to a review.

He said the federal government¡¯s promised?expert council on university governance?was not enough, and the ACT government should honour its pledge. ¡°We need a parliamentary inquiry.¡±

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Ms Paul said the council had ¡°acknowledged¡± its governance obligations. Changes had been made to both the governing body and the executive team, and the council had committed to a governance review following an earlier ¡°positive¡± review in 2023.

She said the council had ¡°been clear¡± about its financial challenges and most Australian universities were in deficit for similar reasons. ¡°This has been a challenging period for all of us at UC,¡± she said.

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com