Jason Atta Kwei Arday
Cambridge University Professor, Jason Atta Kwei Arday, has been found dead following controversial allegation levelled against him over plagiarism.
Jason Arday’s death has sparked questions over whether or not he was not a victim of racist attacks.
He has been a subject of social and traditional attack since news about the scrutiny began.
Jason Atta Kwei Arday was born in Clapham, London, on May 9, 1985 to Ghanaian parents. He was the third of four brothers and grew up in Clapham.
His mother was a mental health nurse and his father a chef.
At secondary school, Arday earned two GCSEs, in physical education and textiles, before studying for a BTEC course in sport and development at Merton College in Morden, South London.
Some statements Arday made about his life were called into question by different media.
Arday said that at age three, he was diagnosed with autism, global developmental delay, deafness, and dyscalculia, and was non-verbal until the age of 11, claim refuted by his schoolmates at Heathbrook Primary School, who stated that “he definitely wasn’t mute.”
In March 2023, the University of Cambridge announced Arday’s appointment as Professor of Sociology of Education in the Faculty of Education, making him the sixth black professor at Cambridge at the time and the youngest black professor ever appointed at the university.
Arday’s appointment received wide publicity because of his reported life story.
The Guardian later said Arday had been a “superstar academic”, The Daily Telegraph labelled him Cambridge’s “diversity poster boy”, and The Atlantic suggested he had become “the world’s most famous living sociologist”.
Arday resigned as a Cambridge Professor of Sociology of Education last week after allegations of plagiarism and questions about some of his achievements. He had denied the claims.
Arday’s family said in a statement that they were “in shock to have lost this amazing father, partner, brother, uncle and son.”
They added: “The campaign of misinformation was too much for Jason, who was a gentle man and who always wanted to see the best in everyone.”
Earlier on Friday, police officers were called to an address in Battersea by the London Ambulance Service.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said: “At this time his death is being treated as unexpected, but is not believed to be suspicious.”
Cambridge University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Deborah Prentice said: “We are desperately saddened to hear this tragic news.”
A Daily Guide Report