UK Edition
A Roman Catholic pro-life midwifery student who was banned from her hospital placement has won an apology and payout from her university.
Julia Rynkiewicz, 25, faced suspension from midwifery studies and a four-month fitness-to-practise investigation as a result of her involvement in pro-life society
In January, The Telegraph reported how Ms Rynkiewicz, an undergraduate at the University of Nottingham, faced expulsion from her degree after lecturers raised concerns about her fitness to practice.
University officials later U-turned on their decision and dismissed the case against her, leaving Ms Rynkiewicz, who is Catholic and who lives in southeast London, demanding an apology from university bosses “as a matter of justice”.
Following the dismissal of the allegations against her, the midwifery student filed a formal complaint with the university. It has now conceded a settlement and apology.
In response, she said: “Putting my life on hold because of an unjust investigation was really difficult, both mentally and emotionally.
“The settlement demonstrates that the university’s treatment of me was wrong, and while I’m happy to move on, I hope this means that no other student will have to experience what I have.
“What happened to me risks creating a fear among students to discuss their values and beliefs, but university should be the place where you are invited to do just that.”
Ms Rynkiewicz served as president of ‘Nottingham Students for Life’, a pro-life student society that was initially denied affiliation by Nottingham University’s Students’ Union.
Concerns around Rynkiewicz’s fitness to practise centered on material available at the society’s freshers’ fair stall, as well as her public association with the society.
In the wake of the Fitness to Practise panel dismissing all allegations against her, she believes that she was unfairly targeted for her beliefs, that there were significant procedural failures compromising the investigation, and that the university should apologise to her.
A University of Nottingham spokesperson said: “While all universities take fitness-to-practice considerations extremely seriously, the university has offered an apology and settlement to Ms Rynkiewicz and is considering how we might approach such cases differently in future.
“The university and Students’ Union supports the rights of all students to bodily autonomy and access to safe, legal abortion services, which is the position in law.
“Universities should be spaces to debate, discuss and disagree points of view, and with more than 200 student societies, covering the full range of beliefs and perspectives, we are confident this is the case at Nottingham.”