The University of Western Sydney has threatened to kick residential students off Richmond’s UWS Village Hawkesbury Campus for wearing jumpers displaying nicknames which it argues are associated with bastardisation and hazing rituals.
UWS resident students were sent an email last month warning that “certain initiation activities that continue to occur at the Hawkesbury campus” were not accepted or condoned by management, and any student found to be involved in hazing would be disciplined and potentially evicted from the residence’.
It also demanded students remove or cover the nicknames – referred to as “mott names” – from their college clothing.
The president of the college’s student association explained that “mott names” are nicknames assigned to first-year students by older students, with current “mott names” including Stereo, Aussie, Otter, Dyson, Boy and Lighter.
“They’re not crass or rude at all,” said the third-year student, adding that the university’s fears about hazing were based on outdated concerns.
A first-year student whose “mott name” was Matches, said the students would not have paid $75 each for their jumpers if they felt their “nicknames were horrible and hurting us”.
“Out of all of the things they could pick on they chose one no-one involved has a problem with,” Matches told the Gazette.
Matches said she was given her nickname because when she started she had “mega-bright red hair”. She said “mott names” have been part of the culture at the college for generations, and for her it’s a family tradition.
“My father went to HAC [Hawkesbury Ag College] in 1989. His name was AWOL because he had just left the army when he moved on campus. I also have two uncles and an aunt that were ‘motts’. It’s a long running family tradition in my case,” she said.
“The culture and traditions are about community, making our friendships based on things we experience together and less about what makes us different. From the outside it looks like bastardisation but the people who are a part of it don’t see it that way.”
Ex-student Mark Challender told the Gazette these traditions were designed to “grow spirit and create bonds”.
“My great grandfather, my brother and I all graduated from Hawkesbury Ag College (UWS) and my friends who did not have the opportunity to do so all comment on the volume and strength of my college friendships,” he said. According to a UWS spokesperson, UWS does not believe anti-social behaviours and on-campus rituals are acceptable in today’s modern Australian university.
“UWS is committed to ensuring a safe, healthy and welcoming learning and work environment for its students and staff, where students and staff treat each other with dignity and respect,” the spokesperson told the Gazette.
“As a University, we make no apologies for our very strong and principled stand on what is acceptable behavior, both on campus and within our student residences.
“UWS has a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to any practices associated with bastardisation - also called "motting", “initiations” or "hazing" – which can cause significant psychological distress and physical harm to students, by involving public humiliation, embarrassment, harassment, bullying.
“These types of behaviors can often put students’ own personal safety or the safety of their fellow students at risk.”
The spokesperson said UWS has several policies in place to identify and deal with this type of conduct, and the University enforces these policies for the protection of all students.
“There are serious consequences for any student who is found to have engaged in hazing or motting,” said the spokesperson.
“Under the Student Non-Academic Misconduct Policy, students found to be engaging in this type of behaviour risk not only being removed from residential colleges, but also having their university enrolment terminated.
“Residential students are fully informed of UWS policies and rules which stop all motting activities, including wearing ‘mott names’ on clothing.
“Mott names are usually degrading, abusive or humiliating. Even seemingly innocent names often have a degrading or embarrassing story behind them.”