Professor Jason Arday - plagiarism etc

I cant see it all, but this bit stands out

"Let’s be really clear about what this means. The UK’s biggest police force attempted to shut down a journalistic investigation, apparently because the man at the centre of it played the race card. As Grove himself states, ‘I was just doing my job. Journalists should be free to ask questions of anyone, even star professors.’

And yet if we’ve learned anything from the Arday debacle, it is that asking questions is beyond the pale for the powers that be. At best, you’ll be accused of attempting ‘to undermine Black people who hold positions of influence’ – as a ‘solidarity letter’ organised by the left-wing pressure group the Good Law Project recently alleged. At worst, it’ll lead to a phone call from the Old Bill and legal threats from one of the country’s most expensive law firms. "

This is the take on this from The Spectator

spectator.com/article/the-jason-arday-debacle-is-becoming-a-national-scandal/?fbclid=IwY2xjawThtjxwZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMHpEMzBKZUg2U2lVbkE0WUNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeLNusE9Oua50gZPCpheMnp8iVJI9QuIT_khpv4eo3mwuW9aeAkROzSuGW-qc_aem_5eJVj027lDUUyahRnVehHA

Well going by the responses on their twitter page, quite extensively I would say. Some of the responses have made me laugh out loud.

It is farcical. Sadly.

How much will it damage the University? I dont know.

MawsRosie

It’s funny but also exposes the apparent blindness of institutions who want to bend over backwards to be seen to be inclusive, right-on, trendy or whatever.
But in an earlier thread on dodgy CVs, politicians and inflated egos we asked how on earth these people think they can get away with it when facts are so easily checked.
And that said, why the heck dont those in charge check their claims. The tempting answer is that they don’t want to know because an appointee or candidate ticks all the other boxes.
This guy has made a laughing stock of his university employers and most of all himself - but also the rest of us for trusting them.

Good post Maws Rosie
Mentioned all the right points. He is obviously in the wrong
The whole thing is like a farce or worse still a pantomime.
Tut Tut

The conviction was quashed. That poor poor girl.
There were also very serious claims of domestic abuse and assaults on the other children by his first wife.
I doubt Billie Jo will ever get justice.

Thank you Primrose for your reference to Sion Jenkins, the Deputy Head who murdered his daughter. I was trying to recall his name this morning. When they investigated his records they found false qualifications and posts held; among other charges he was accused of gaining pecuniary advantage. He lied and lied and lied but was eventually found guilty of her murder.
I saw him once in Lymington with his latest wife, and he had that expression that many actors have: are you looking at me, are you noticing me? Difficult not to; he was dressed in a well-tailored pale linen suit and wearing a panama hat, in the middle of the market where most people wore jeans. Good-looking and very conscious of it.

It occurs to me that students under his tutelage and supervision, particularly those who were disappointed by their results, may now be gearing up to sue the College or University for not providing adequate tuition.

Oh what a mess this academic institute has got itself into.

The 'Professor' is indeed complicit in his own downfall, and understandably has resorted to to claiming he is the victim of racism. Indeed he is: racism in the form of the arrogance of various academic institutions, publishers and college faculties who have given Arday so many awards and so much awesome praise, are themselves being racist - as If they're shouting: Look! here is a young man of colour who has risen to the top in academia, despite reduced circumstances and serious health issues. (Thereby inferring that if you're someone who looks like Arday, and who has suffered his difficult early circumstances, this would be impossible). I do find myself feeling sorry for him. He has been led down the wrong path by people pushing their own agendas and unsurprisingly, has believed his own publicity.

BTW: in my day the honorary title 'Professor' was awarded only after an academic had had a long career, and had published significantly. What might have happened if this young man had been left alone and given time to work hard and fashion himself an academic career in the usual way? He might have had success, a good career, and a nice life. That's been ruined now. Very sad.

welbeck

Isn't it an offence to gain pecuniary advantage by misrepresentation.
ie getting a job by falsifying particulars on job application.

This made me remember Sion Jenkins who was the foster parent of teenager Billie-Jo and who was tried for her murder, imprisoned then had two appeals the second of which he won.

He was a Deputy Head Teacher who lied on his CV about his qualifications and was in the process of applying for a Headship when Billie was murdered at their home. He obtained “pecuniary advantage by deception.”

I’m not surprised he wants to avoid further scrutiny

!!

No chance now.
He has said far too much, and publically, for that to happen.

MawsRosie

Dreadwitch

That's claiming he's admitted to lying, he hasn't... So I don't think I'd believe any of the article of they lie like that.

He has dialled down on some of his claims however which is tantamount to saying he had been economical with the truth.
Eg the Seven Up tv programme which started before he was born (now clams he was talking about something else
The charity fundraising - now admits a group of 12(?) people involved
The book(s) - not actual published but apparently accepted for publishing,
(He claimed between 2019 and 2023 that he had published a book titled Considering Racialised Contexts in Education: Using reflective practice and peer-mentoring to support Black and Ethnic Minority educators
The title was listed on his staff profile on Durham University’s website as being published in 2019 by Routledge publishing company. He was still claiming the book was published when he took up the post as Cambridge’s youngest black professor in March 2023.
It was not until December 2023 that the Durham website was finally altered to say the book was “in press”, meaning it had passed peer review and been accepted for publication, but had not been published yet.)
The 600 miles in 6 days - now says it was 12 days

Some claims are still fraudulent and have yet to be «explained away»such as the visiting professorships - as the University of Glasgow, Ohio State University and Nelson Mandela University, in South Africa, have all denied claims by Prof Arday that he had been a visiting professor at their institutions.
It has also emerged that he falsely claimed to hold a master’s degree in psychodynamic counselling from Birkbeck University and to be an “honorary professor” in Durham University’s sociology department.
Prof Arday had repeatedly claimed that he was the author of a book called Being Young, Black and Male: Challenging the Dominant Discourse.
The book was listed in his biography description in published essays as well as in promotional material for speaking events, and was attributed to the Palgrave Macmillan publishing house. There is no evidence that any book was written or published.

I’m not surprised he wants to avoid further scrutiny.

Sounds like he is a pathological liar. I worked with a young woman once who used to come into work saying she had been attacked by a gang of youths on her way home. Other times she would say she had won a load of money or passed loads of exams at evening classes etc.

At first she got a lot of sympathy and interest but then the lies came more frequently and if anybody got suspicious or asked questions she would just walk away.

Kathleen Stock has read much of his output and her analysis is informative.

Isn't it an offence to gain pecuniary advantage by misrepresentation.
ie getting a job by falsifying particulars on job application.

Hope he has to pay back all the remuneration that he has taken under false pretense. .Fraud on a massive scale. Has the gall to play the mental health AND racism card.

Dreadwitch

That's claiming he's admitted to lying, he hasn't... So I don't think I'd believe any of the article of they lie like that.

He has dialled down on some of his claims however which is tantamount to saying he had been economical with the truth.
Eg the Seven Up tv programme which started before he was born (now clams he was talking about something else
The charity fundraising - now admits a group of 12(?) people involved
The book(s) - not actual published but apparently accepted for publishing,
(He claimed between 2019 and 2023 that he had published a book titled Considering Racialised Contexts in Education: Using reflective practice and peer-mentoring to support Black and Ethnic Minority educators
The title was listed on his staff profile on Durham University’s website as being published in 2019 by Routledge publishing company. He was still claiming the book was published when he took up the post as Cambridge’s youngest black professor in March 2023.
It was not until December 2023 that the Durham website was finally altered to say the book was “in press”, meaning it had passed peer review and been accepted for publication, but had not been published yet.)
The 600 miles in 6 days - now says it was 12 days

Some claims are still fraudulent and have yet to be «explained away»such as the visiting professorships - as the University of Glasgow, Ohio State University and Nelson Mandela University, in South Africa, have all denied claims by Prof Arday that he had been a visiting professor at their institutions.
It has also emerged that he falsely claimed to hold a master’s degree in psychodynamic counselling from Birkbeck University and to be an “honorary professor” in Durham University’s sociology department.
Prof Arday had repeatedly claimed that he was the author of a book called Being Young, Black and Male: Challenging the Dominant Discourse.
The book was listed in his biography description in published essays as well as in promotional material for speaking events, and was attributed to the Palgrave Macmillan publishing house. There is no evidence that any book was written or published.

I’m not surprised he wants to avoid further scrutiny.

He has resigned

.

This year's 'The Salt Path'!!!
.

I'm a finance manager. I always check things like references and qualifications. Had one application from someone who impressed HR, claiming to be an FCCA. Checked and er no, he wasn't. HR said it wouldn't have occured to them to check - which made me wonder what we were actually paying them for.

I'm afraid that being very bright - as in many at Cambridge - doesn't necessarily endow them with common sense. Yes they wanted a diverse candidate in terms of ethnic background. I think "poster boy" is somewhat demeaning to all concerned

But I also agree with you lizzypopbottle, that he was a fantasist. If you have ever had to engage long term with someone like that, they truly believe their own lies.

However since as others have said above, it is not uncommon at all in applications: and not as such related to diversity. that actually shocked me reading it.

It was far easier when we were young to check someone out:

a certificate?
Some phone calls?
Networking from a much smaller pool - many of whom knew each other?
Time to close question on the subjects themselves to really see how much the person actually knew?

.... than now when so many go to university and time pressures are so very strong on staff.

That's claiming he's admitted to lying, he hasn't... So I don't think I'd believe any of the article of they lie like that.

If you search 'fantasist' on Google, you can find an explanation of the difference between a fantasist and an out and out liar. I think we might be able to cut this man some slack. I'd say he can't help it. But the university certainly should've checked him out more thoroughly.

I would have thought an intensive interview in such a place as Cambridge would have been sufficient to tease out this candidate's inadequacies. I have said elsewhere that this man's swift passage through posts was an indication of his lack of ability, and that was before I learned that he had lied about placements at three other universities, work published (not) and an additional MA in psychodynamic Counselling from Birkbeck University. Cambridge was clearly in pursuit of a Diversity poster boy, and ignored the need to check his application, but the lies were Arday's own.
Judging by his resignation letterI have no doubt that he will sue the College for failure in support.
At that level of post, he should have been supporting others.

Vintagewhine

I'm afraid this sort of behaviour is not uncommon. It's just rare for it to be reported in the media, especially as much as this has been.

I agree. I always made a point of personally checking references and can tell you that sheer lying fraud is rampant ( about qualifications, employment history, references).

Shock horror, this includes educated people and professional careers.

I blame the employers who never check on their credentials