Portland Catholic Schools Are Struggling With LGBTQ Hires

Friday, August 28, 2015

Brendan Murray, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Catholic High Schools in Portland are dealing with a difficult reality. While the rights and protections of LGBTQ individuals have been increasing, the Catholic Church still forbids same-sex relationships or sexual activity, and school administrators are struggling to find the right balance.

Paul Hogan, Principal of Jesuit High School, told GoLocalPDX that "the Catholic Church calls for those individuals to be treated with dignity as children of God,” he said. “They should not suffer discrimination because of their sexuality.”

On Monday, local Catholic high school St. Mary’s Academy found itself thrust into the spotlight after it rescinded an offer of employment to a recently hired college counselor because of her sexual orientation.

Lauren Brown, who identifies as a lesbian, was hired by St. Mary’s Academy after working in the Lewis and Clark University admissions office for five years.

Before she began her first day at the school, however, her employment was terminated after she raised questions about what to say in a biography on the school’s website regarding her same-sex relationship.

St. Mary’s quickly changed their position on the issue. On Wednesday night, the school’s Board of Directors met and voted to include sexual orientation protections in its hiring practices.

In light on the controversy, GoLocal spoke with Catholic high schools in Portland about their hiring policies and practices.

Changing their Tune

Christina Friedhoff, President of St. Mary’s Academy and its Board of Directors, issued a statement following the vote.

"This evening the board of St. Mary's Academy voted unanimously to support the administration's recommendation to amend and broaden St. Mary's policy on equal employment, bringing our employment policies in line with our mission and beliefs,” she said.

“Effective immediately, St. Mary's has added sexual orientation to its equal employment opportunity policy. St. Mary's is a diverse community that welcomes and includes gay and lesbian students, faculty, alumnae, parents and friends, including those that are married. We are proud of our work preparing the next generation of women leaders for service and leadership. We are still deeply committed to our Catholic identity."

The change in policy seems to be too little, too late for Brown. Despite the new protections, she has not been offered her job back. The school said that is because a replacement was already hired in anticipation of the beginning of the school year.

Friedhoff also said in a statement that the school would be reaching out to Brown and her attorney in an attempt at reconciliation.

Others Claim Open Door Policy

Other Catholic high schools in Portland said that a prospective employee’s sexual orientation is not and would not be a part of their hiring process.

Hogan, of Jesuit High School, said he would not bring up sexuality during an interview.

“Our policy is…there are questions you do not ask and cannot ask during the interview process,” he said. “I would never ask about someone’s sexuality, just like I wouldn’t ask about someone’s marital status, health status or whether they have kids.”

Hogan said that while the Catholic Church’s teachings forbid sexual activity between same-sex couples, it does not call for LGBTQ individuals to suffer because of their sexuality.

Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, expressed similar feelings on homosexuality near the end of a trip to Brazil in July.

“If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?”

Hogan also said he would not ask LGBTQ staff members to avoid conversations with students questioning their sexuality, or other aspects of their identity.

“We work with adolescents to teach them,” he said. “We want them to explore their identities… and make sure they explore all the different parts of themselves.”

Diocese Holds Strong

Following the news of Brown’s firing, the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, presided over by Archbishop Alexander K. Sample, put out a statement defending St. Mary’s Academy for their decision.

“The Archdiocese of Portland supports St. Mary’s Academy and the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary in upholding the teachings of the Catholic Church,” the statement read.

“We expect that given certain reassurances by the Federal Government in the wake of the recent Supreme Court Ruling making ‘Same-Sex Unions’ the law of the land, our religious liberty would be protected in this case as well as any future cases of this sort.”

The diocese issued a second statement on Thursday, following St. Mary’s decision to include sexuality protections in their hiring practices.

"The Archdiocese is aware of the decision made by St. Mary’s Academy, and will continue our conversation with school officials."

Related Slideshow: Top 100 Oregon High Schools

GoLocalPDX has ranked high schools across the state based on a method developed at Babson College, Mass. See below for the top 100 schools in the Beaver State.

Portland Catholic Schools Are Struggling With LGBTQ Hires

Related Slideshow: Top 100 Oregon High Schools

#100

#99

#98

#97

#96

#95

#94

#93

#92

#91

#90

#89

#88

#87

#86

#85

#84

#83

#82

#81

#80

#79

#78

#77

#76

#75

#74

#73

#72

#71

#70

#69

#68

#67

#66

#65

#64

#63

#62

#61

#60

#59

#58

#57

#56

#55

#54

#53

#52

#51

#50

#49

#48

#47

#46

#45

#44

#43

#42

#41

#40

#39

#38

#37

#36

#35

#34

#33

#32

#31

#30

#29

#28

#27

#26

#25

#24

#23