Kansas City, Kan., Mar 8, 2019 / 17:03 pm
A K-8 Catholic school in Kansas is defending its decision to deny admission to a kindergarten student who is the child of a same-sex couple, citing archdiocesan admissions policies.
Father Craig Maxim sent a letter dated Feb. 27 to the families of St. Ann Catholic School in Prairie Village, a suburb of Kansas City. Maxim, the church's pastor, wrote that when the question of whether to allow the child to enroll first arose, he sought the guidance of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.
He wrote that diocese has the ability to "form policy on these matters while individual diocesan schools do not." The archdiocese advised against admission, he said.
A petition dated March 1 asks the school to "prayerfully reconsider" its decision. The petition has reportedly garnered over 1,000 signatures and was sent to Archbishop Joseph Naumann and the school's superintendent Kathy O'Hara.