School Expels Girl...For Having Gay Parents

[wvrevy]

School Expels Girl for Having Gay Parents
Sep 23 7:05 AM US/Eastern
From Associated Press

ONTARIO, Calif.

A 14-year-old student was expelled from a Christian school because her parents are lesbians, the school's superintendent said in a letter.

Shay Clark was expelled from Ontario Christian School on Thursday.

"Your family does not meet the policies of admission," Superintendent Leonard Stob wrote to Tina Clark, the girl's biological mother.

Stob wrote that school policy requires that at least one parent may not engage in practices "immoral or inconsistent with a positive Christian life style, such as cohabitating without marriage or in a homosexual relationship," The Los Angeles Times reported in Friday's edition.

Stob could not be reached for comment by the newspaper. Shay and her parents said they won't fight the ruling.

School administrators learned of the parents' relationship this week after Shay was reprimanded for talking to the crowd during a football game, Tina Clark said.

Clark and her partner have been together 22 years and have two other daughters, ages 9 and 19.
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[DVCLiz]

My daughters attend a "Christian" school, too, but all are welcome and this kind of narrow-mindedness is completely opposite to our beliefs. So sad for that child - hope she finds an academic community that is welcoming.

If her parents were openly gay, wonder why the school didn't know about it from the beginning???? I can't imagine that there wasn't a lot of gossip about the family.

Edited to add: Just read that again. So one parent COULD be gay or shacked up with a girl/boyfriend, and that would be OK with the school, as long as both parents weren't? OK, that totally blows me away...

 

[AllyandJack]

Yet another reason I only go to church for weddings and funerals since leaving Catholic School.

Talk about a pack of hypocrits. They have people molesting kids left and right while other cover it up. My experience in Catholic School was year after year of emotional abuse for me and my classmates.

If they can pay for the Catholic School, they should just move on to a non-religious Private School. Same education, similar money, but no judgment from those who have no right to judge.

To quote my 8th grade teacher (a former nun): "If your mother had you when she wasn't married to your father, she's a (fill in the blank with a word that starts with W)." Nice to tell a bunch of 12 year olds, huh?

 

[bubie2.5]

How "christian" to punish that child for what her mothers do.

 

[jgmklmhem]

I don't like that it happened...but if the rules were in place to begin with and the mother wasn't completely honest about the situation going in then while I feel bad for the girl I almost feel she was set up for disappointment by the mother. Again I disagree with the rule, but it would be the same if the mother was single and decided to move in with some guy she was dating. That would be breaking the rule as well and would lead to her child being kicked out. Now if the rules were not available to be examined before signing the girl up it becomes different.

 

[cardaway]

And somewhere a group of Christians are quietly giving a chorus of golf claps out of agreement with the school. They don't want that kind of evil around their children.

Has anybody ever read about this kind fo thing happening at a non-Christian private school? Anybody?

 

[Pete's Mom]

It is sad, but hey, it's a private school so it's their rules.

 

[Aidensmom]

I don't agree with the rule, because I believe Jesus loves and accepts everyone, and that Christians should follow that example.

However, as a private school, they have the right to make that rule. As a parent, we have the right to choose not to send our children to a school with such a rule.

As far as would you see a non-Christian private school with this rule, probably not because I am sure that rule was based on the administration's Christian beliefs that sex outside of marriage is wrong. The Bible does that say that. There is nothing wrong with having that belief. I think where the controversy comes in is making a decision that this "sin" should separate someone from the rest of the community, or in this case the community of the school. As I said earlier, Jesus loves and accepts everyone, despite what their "sin" is.

 

[Pete's Mom]

Has anybody ever read about this kind fo thing happening at a non-Christian private school? Anybody?

You are kidding, right? I am sure there are non Christians out there who discriminate against gays too! And African Americans. Look at the United Negro College Fund, (you know, they discrimate against whites. I got turned down for a scholarship, you know). Oh, and don't forget about the Boy Scouts of America...

 

[Toby'sFriend]

My first thought is why would they want to send their daughter to a school which practices a doctrine that is in complete opposition to the way they live their life?

Has anybody ever read about this kind fo thing happening at a non-Christian private school? Anybody?

No, but I do have stories of students being dumped from a College Prep Academy because they needed to make room for a new students from a family whose Father just made a $25k + donation to the school Endowment fund. Same school but different story, a new student wasn't accepted into the Kindergarten class in spite of really high entrance test scores - The reason? Her parents hold "Non Professional" jobs.

Personally, I find that also reprehensible.

But I wouldn't dream of saying all Secular Private Schools are like that.

 

[cardaway]

As far as would you see a non-Christian private school with this rule, probably not because I am sure that rule was based on the administration's Christian beliefs that sex outside of marriage is wrong. The Bible does that say that. There is nothing wrong with having that belief. I think where the controversy comes in is making a decision that this "sin" should separate someone from the rest of the community, or in this case the community of the school. As I said earlier, Jesus loves and accepts everyone, despite what their "sin" is.

Two things.

1. Other religions believe these things, yet they don't seem to be rushing to make similar rules.

2. Always interesting what sins are picked out of the group. Especially when the sin in this case has little or no impact on the other children in the school.

 

[eclectics]

My first thought is why would they want to send their daughter to a school which practices a doctrine that is in complete opposition to the way they live their life?

That would be my question also. Did they not know the school's policies beforehand? If no, then they should have. If yes, then why put their daughter through that pain if they knew the probable outcome?

 

[jgmklmhem]

Two things.

1. Other religions believe these things, yet they don't seem to be rushing to make similar rules.

2. Always interesting what sins are picked out of the group. Especially when the sin in this case has little or no impact on the other children in the school.

You honestly believe there aren't Jewish or Muslim schools in this country out there with the same exact rules?

 

[cats7494]

I find this to be deplorable! Discrimination in any form is just beyond words!

 

[minkydog]

If they entered their daughter knowing that they were being less than honest by not revealing their relationship, then they knowingly broke the rules. I don't really care if the parents have a solid 22yr lesbian relationship, they weren't honest. A private school has the right to make any rules they want and if the parents or student have been willfully dishonest, the school has the right to remove them. My question is this: why would these parents want to put their child in a school knowing that this is the mindset of the administration? and what message does their dishonesty tesch their daughters?

 

[cardaway]

You honestly believe there aren't Jewish or Muslim schools in this country out there with the same exact rules?

I don't know. If you know of any please post about them.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

It is sad, but hey, it's a private school so it's their rules.

Agreed. That is what private is about.

 

[Chicago526]

Disgusting, but it is the school's right to do this. Sounds like they'd toss out a kid who's mom lived with a boyfriend, too (or dad with a girlfriend).

Well, it's probably for the best. Who would want their kid to go to a school that teaches such things, anwway? I hope they are able to find another school that is more open.

 

[Tuffcookie]

When you enroll in a private school, you pretty much know their rules going into it.

TC

 

[wvrevy]

I wonder how many of the people saying "It's a private school, they can do what they want" and blaming it on the parents are also in favor of school vouchers ? Seems to me that public money going to fund a bigotted institution would cause a little bit of a problem.

And did it occur to anyone that maybe the girl's parents sent her to that school because they are members of that particular religion ? I don't know what flavor of christianity the school professes to follow, but it's entirely possible that the girl's family are members of that religion, even though they happen to be gay.

Finally, how many that are saying "it's a private shcool, they can do what they want" would say the same if the girl was adopted and both her parents were black, and she was kicked out for that reason ?