Alumni Protest New Hampshire Catholic School Over Firing of LGBTQ+ and Ally Teachers

St. Thomas Aquinas High School alumni and former staff

Community members of a New Hampshire Catholic school have launched protests alleging school administrators fired staff members over LGBTQ+ issues, possibly because the teachers refused to attend an anti-transgender training.

Alumni of St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Dover, started an online petition after they claim four teachers were unjustly terminated because they are LGBTQ+ or allies. The Advocate reported on the alleged firings:

“St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Dover did not renew the contracts of four faculty members, and two others ‘have made personal decisions to not return next year,’ the school’s president, Paul Marquis, told Seacoast Online, a site for several area newspapers. However, a GoFundMe page raising money to assist the faculty members describes them all as ‘terminated.’

“”‘While St. Thomas Aquinas High School denies these teachers were not renewed as part of an anti-LGBTQ+ movement, critical-thinking students, parents, and community members see a clear correlation,’ the GoFundMe page says. The teachers’ names have not been made public.

“The actions came after the school announced plans to have teachers participate in training provided by Person and Identity, an anti-transgender project of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a right-wing think tank.”

School officials have remained opaque about the terminations, refusing to provide information due to confidentiality. While the institution has not shared why the teachers will not be returning, Marquis asserted that it has nothing to do with LGBTQ-negative rhetoric, saying, “Our recent non-renewal of a total of four faculty member contracts has absolutely nothing to do with LGBTQ+ identity or alignment.” The Diocese of Manchester and its Catholic schools superintendent have refused to comment on the specifics of this incident.

The petition of nearly 1,500 signatures is directed not only at Marquis, but the school’s Board of Trustees and the Diocese of Manchester. Beyond the alleged firings and involvement of the Person and Identity Project, the petition claims further that administrators wrote to parents saying some teachers’ use of students’ chosen pronouns was “well-intentioned but misguided,” and tried to silence students objecting to all these issues.

Calling Marquis’ claim that the school respects every person’s dignity “misleading at best, hypocritical at worst,” the petition lists 16 requests of St. Thomas Aquinas leaders and the diocese. These include: removing the president, Paul Marquis, and the entire Board of Trustees; barring those board members for at least five years “from any position of authority over or oversight of any diocesan school;” having the employment terminations independently reviewed and possibly offering the teachers their positions back with apologies and back pay; issuing a wider apology to the school community; and including faculty and students on the Board of Trustees. The final request asks “for the Administration to make known its official stance on LGBTQIA+ students/staff with a written policy,” including whether the schools claims a religious exemption from federal non-discrimination protections.

Members of the St. Thomas Aquinas community are particularly surprised at  the terminations given the school’s a history of affirming of queer faculty and students. Alum Juanita Lord told Seacoast Online that back in the 1960’s, “I felt that people were really open to everybody. . .We knew that we had gay and lesbian priests, nuns and teachers, and we knew that there were kids at St. Thomas that were different.”

Kevin Collins, a former principal, lamented the firings and offered a critique of the way that the current church teaching burdens queer-affirming Catholic spaces, per The Advocate:

“‘Back in the day,’ he wrote, ‘we prided ourselves on being an open and welcoming institution to [LGBTQ+ students] — and I do believe that compared to many other schools (especially in the 80’s and 90’s), we were exactly that…to a degree. … When we said that we were ‘welcoming,’ it came with a caveat: We care for you, but we cannot acknowledge who you truly are. And so, many LGBTQ+ students who graduated from STA have admitted that, in general, they did not feel part of the school while they were there. They did feel accepted and supported by individual teachers and staff, but not necessarily by the school as a whole.”

Collins’ comments were echoed by LGBTQ+ alumni of St. Thomas Aquinas, who shared about their struggles while attending the school. Casey Flanagan, a trans alum whose siblings are current students, stated:

“‘I feel simultaneously disappointed, angry and sad, but not surprised just given my experience at the school. . .But there has been a silver lining. I am extremely pleased that everyone is so upset about it. Not that I want everyone to be upset, but it feels validating in some way.'”

Students and faculty at Catholic schools deserve affirming and empowering environments inclusive of diverse sexual and gender identities. Unfortunately, too many queer people at Catholic institutions still live in fear that they will face professional or academic consequences simply for existing as themselves. LGBTQ-negative policies and staffing decisions do not uphold the dignity of all people, including LGBTQ+ people. At St. Thomas Aquinas, it appears the struggle to reverse discrimination and build inclusion will continue.

Andru Zodrow (he/him) and Robert Shine (he/him), New Ways Ministry, May 26, 2023

2 replies
  1. Lillian Moskeland
    Lillian Moskeland says:

    It breaks my heart when people suffer because a Catholic institution has turned away from what Jesus teaches us- to love ALL. I miss the beauty of Catholicism, but no longer am Catholic not christian. I stand spiritually and pray to our Creator that sanity and listening prevail before further damage is done.

    Reply
  2. Loretta
    Loretta says:

    It saddens and disturbs me greatly that the Catholic high school where I taught for a couple of decades has become a haven of promoting MAGA ideology where once we were respectful to all and cognizant that all human persons, with all our differences, are loved unconditionally by the Creator of love, life and truth.

    Reply

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