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To: Matilda Ricci

From: Ben Sketcher

Date: 30 May 2024

Subject: As discussed

Tilda,

I’ve gathered together everything I think is relevant. This includes the coursework, final essays and tutor reports I downloaded from Central, plus everything I could get hold of from the Doodle message board, email cache, diaries and chat groups.

After our first message exchange today, I’ve placed everything in chronological order from when they started the course last year.

Ben

Message group: 2024 Examiners, 30 May 2024

Ben Sketcher

Anyone else read the Multimedia Art MA submissions yet?

Tilda Ricci

Hello Ben. Who are you?

Ben Sketcher

Sorry, should introduce myself. I’m from Central. Your external examiner.

Karen Carpenter

Ooh-er! Sounds rude!

Ben Sketcher

External examiners are appointed from a separate college, Karen – in my case, Goldcrofts – to oversee the grading of courses otherwise marked internally. This verifies that no over- or under-marking has taken place.

Karen Carpenter

I know. Just being mad ol’ me!

Tilda Ricci

No, I haven’t read the submissions yet, but sounds joyous. Will probably read tomorrow.

Ben Sketcher

Couldn’t sleep, so went through these submissions last night. The whole thing is odd.

Tilda Ricci

It’s a revamped MA . We’ve had to overhaul our art courses and qualifications, make them workplace-relevant, employer-friendly, etc.

Karen Carpenter

Not so airy-fairy.

Tilda Ricci

Promote logical problem-solving as well as creative solutions. The department has been drastically reduced and all our Fine Art MA s have been discontinued. Of course there’ll be hiccups during the transition, but Gela will soon knock any corners off!

Ben Sketcher

The tutor, Gela Nathaniel. Do you know her?

Tilda Ricci

Oh yes, she’s a stalwart of Royal Hastings. She’s devised and taught our postgrad art degrees for many years.

Ben Sketcher

I asked the tech department to retrieve what they could from Doodle. I’m sending you the group’s messages so you know what they were discussing behind Gela’s back.

Tilda Ricci

I’m sure everything’s fine.

Ben Sketcher

Nonetheless, please give me a shout when you’ve read. I don’t want to sound alarmist. I may be mistaken. But I can’t help thinking something awful has happened.

Ben Sketcher

Let me clarify that. Something awful *may* have happened, and if it did, then everyone else is covering it up.