Skip to main contentTop administrators at St. Mary's Academy addressed the firing of Lauren Brown—and the school's brand new policy regarding gay staff members—this morning at a community meeting in the school's auditorium.
School principal Kelli Clark joined President Christina
Friedhoff and theology teacher Patty Gorman on stage to take questions from an audience
of about 100 people.
Most of the questions centered on two themes: how the
decision was made to hire and later terminate Brown, and whether the school now
risks losing its official status as a Catholic institution.
The one thing that did not seem to be at issue was whether
Brown should have been hired in the first place – students and parents both
expressed support for Brown, although some questioned why the issue of Brown's
sexual orientation was not raised sooner in the hiring process if it was going
to be a problem.
Clark told the audience that Brown did not disclose her sexual orientation
during interviews.
She reiterated the school's position that Brown told her explicitly in late July that she intended to marry her girlfriend.
"She did come to us and express an intent to enter into a gay marriage," Clark says. (In an earlier interview with WW, Brown said she made no such assertion).
Clark said that in making the decision to withdraw Brown's job offer, St. Mary's acted "out of fear," but that in voting to change the school's policy Wednesday night, the board was concerned only with doing the right thing.
"It's time to bring our practices and policies in line with our mission and values," Clark said.
All of the parents who spoke were supportive of Brown and the
board's abrupt vote Wednesday night to adopt a new school policy explicitly welcoming gay faculty members, including those who are married.
Some community members asked questions, however, about whether the policy change would endanger the school's affiliation with the Catholic Church. The basis for that fear is the Portland archdiocese's opposition to same sex marriage.
Clark, the St. Mary's principal, said that the school's status depends on Archbishop Alexander
Sample, who has in the past told local Catholic high schools not to hire staff
members who are in same-sex marriages. Clark acknowledged last night's board decision may have jeopardized St. Mary's status. (Sample's spokesman told WW yesterday that Sample had no involvement with St. Mary's decision to fire Brown).
"We don't know," said Clark. "The archbishop has given
conflicting statements, but he was very clear to Catholic schools: 'You will
not do this.'"
Most of the students spoke solely about the issue of Brown's
termination, but they also expressed concerns about the affiliation with the church.
Towards the end of the one-hour meeting, Clark said it was
important to avoid "taking on" Sample.
"The board didn't intend to launch a war or rebellion," she
said. "It's important not to vilify the archbishop."
Gorman, a longtime faculty member, expressed confidence that the school could find a way
to move forward from the decision.
"This landed with us, and we're the best people for it to
land on," she said. "This is changing so fast, and the church has to catch up,
and it's going to take a while."
When a parent asked what they could do to make sure there
were no repercussions for the school, Gorman's response was simple: "Pray."
WWeek 2015