Kenney: Waldron Mercy should reinstate lesbian educator

THE LIKELY next mayor of Philadelphia has urged administrators at a Montgomery County Catholic elementary school to reinstate a gay teacher who was fired for her marriage to a woman.

"Discrimination and hate have no place in the Church's teachings and certainly not in its schools," Democratic mayoral candidate Jim Kenney said in a statement released by his campaign yesterday. "I urge the school administrators to reinstate Margie Winters."

Winters, the popular religious education and outreach director at Waldron Mercy Academy in Merion Station, was fired last month after complaints about her marriage were lodged with the school and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Irate parents, many of whom live in Philadelphia, have rallied around the ousted teacher in hopes that the school and its principal, Nell Stetser, would reverse the decision.

In his statement, Kenney also said: "I applaud the parents and community members at Waldron Mercy for their outcry over the dismissal of a clearly beloved, talented educator."

Archdiocese spokesman Kenneth A. Gavin said last night that the Archdiocese was surprised by comments attributed to Kenney in connection with Winters.

"He has not contacted the Archdiocese directly regarding this matter and reportedly stated that he has no direct knowledge of the process involved with the personnel decision at Waldron-Mercy," Gavin said in a statement.

"Waldron-Mercy is a private Catholic school. As such, it is not under the administrative purview of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The Archdiocese neither made nor influenced the personnel decision in question."

Online: ph.ly/DNEducation