Anglican Schools open letter: principal says gay staff welcome
A SYDNEY Anglican principal has insisted her school will always be a community that welcomes and embraces people regardless of their faith, sexuality or culture. More than 30 Sydney principals signed a letter in support of religious freedoms this week.
St George Shire Standard
Don't miss out on the headlines from St George Shire Standard. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Students hit back over Anglican letter
- Labor ‘rules out’ plan to scrub gender
- Father punched son in drunken rage
A SYDNEY Anglican principal has insisted her school will always be a community that welcomes and embraces people regardless of their faith, sexuality or culture.
Danebank Anglican School in Hurstville is one of 34 Sydney and Illawarra Anglican schools under fire after they co-signed an open letter demanding the right to employ staff who support their Christian ethos.
Sydney schools who signed the letter included Trinity, Barker, Abbotsleigh, Macarthur Anglican, Macquarie Anglican, Meriden, Mosman Prep, Tara and Penrith Anglican.
The October 25 letter stated it was reasonable to expect teachers would support the values, ethos and mission of the school.
“It is not appropriate, for example, for a teacher to undermine or denigrate the beliefs and teachings of an employing school,” the letter read.
“ … staff, who may not personally identify with the faith, are still expected to support the overarching mission and ethos of the school.”
The open missive was widely interpreted as a demand to retain the right to dismiss gay staff and students from the school.
However, the principals argued the debate had been incorrectly inflamed as “the right to expel gay students” or “dismiss gay teachers” with little evidence.
Danebank principal Maryanne Davis said she was saddened media coverage had caused present and past students distress.
“Our focus has always been to love, care and support students and staff through the challenges of life with compassion and grace, just as we have seen demonstrated through the life of Jesus,” Mrs Davis said.
“We will continue to be a place where every individual is valued, supported and cherished.”
Mrs Davis said she wanted every person associated with Danebank to know the school would fight for the right of every girl to become her best woman, to be empowered and to be confident in who she is and all she can become.
“Danebank does not wish to end the employment of any teachers based on their sexuality,” Mrs Davis said.
“Danebank does not and will never expel students based on their sexuality.”
The letter concluded the exemptions in the Sex Discimination Act were “clumsy” but were the “only significant legal protections available to schools to maintain their ethos and values with regard to core issues of faith”.
THE FULL LIST OF SCHOOLS ON THE LETTER
Megan Krimmer: Headmistress at Abbotsleigh
Graham Anderson: Principal at Arden Anglican School
Gareth Leechman: Principal at Arndell Anglican School
Phillip Heath: Headmaster at Barker College
Megan Hastie: Acting Head at Blue Mountains Grammar School
Don O’Connor: Headmaster at Broughton Anglican College
Douglas Thomas: Principal at Claremont College
Maryanne David: Headmistress at Daneback Anglican School
David Nockles: Headmaster at Macarthur Anglican School
Craig Mansour: Headmaster at Macquarie Anglican Grammar School
Cathie Graydon: Principal at Mamre Anglican School
Julie Greenhalgh: Principal at Meriden School
Garry Brown: Headmaster at Mosman Prep School
Lorrae Sampson: Principal at Nowra Anglican College
Naomi Wilkins: Principal at Oran Park Anglican College
Rev Louis Stringer: Headmaster at Orange Anglican Grammar School
Felicity Grima: Acting Head at Penrith Anglican College
Paul Cockrem: Principal at Richard Johnson Anglican School
Deb Magill: Principal at Roseville College
Peter Fowler: Principal at Rouse Hill Anglican College
Anthony Cummings: Principal at Shellharbour Anglican College
John Collier: Head of School at St Andrew’s Cathedral School
Julie Townsend: Headmistress at St Catherine’s School
Jann Robinson: Principal at Luke’s Grammar School
Brendan Gorman: Headmaster at St Peter’s Anglican Primary School
Tim Wright: Headmaster at Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore)
Susan Middlebrook: Principal of Tara Anglican School for Girls
Tony George: Headmaster at The King’s School
Ross Whelan: Principal at Thomas Hassall Anglican College
Gaynor MacKinnon: Principal at Trades Norwest Anglican Senior College
Tim Bowden: Headmaster at Trinity Grammar School
Judith Nealy: Head of The Illawarra Grammar School
Scott Marsh: Headmaster at William Clarke College
Stuart Quarmby: Headmaster at Wollondilly Anglican College