Cincinnati principal leaves job after police respond to school uniform dispute

A Catholic school principal at a suburban Cincinnati, Ohio, parish left her job this week after a student claimed she acted inappropriately while scolding her about the way she wore her skirt.

Pastor Don Siciliano notified parishioners at Our Lady of the Visitation in a Nov. 18 letter that the principal, Jo Mathieson, had mutually agreed with church leadership to step down from her post at the Green Township school.

Siciliano’s letter did not say what prompted Mathieson’s departure, but it did note that school administrators had “received an allegation of concern involving our principal.” The allegation, he wrote, prompted an internal review and a referral to the Green Township Police Department, which determined no crime occurred.

The letter did not provide details about the allegation, but a police report indicates the incident occurred in a classroom Nov. 12 when Mathieson confronted a 13-year-old student about her school uniform. According to the report, the girl’s mother contacted police because her daughter was upset about what she considered inappropriate conduct by Mathieson.

Student said principal embarrassed her in class over uniform violation

The report states the girl approached her teacher with a question about a math problem when Mathieson, who was in the room assisting the teacher that day, noticed the student’s skirt was “rolled up at the top,” a violation of the school’s uniform policy.

The girl said Mathieson then reached through her shirt, which was untucked and covering the top of her skirt, and touched the skirt. Mathieson then told the girl she’d get a demerit if she wore her skirt the same way the next day, the police report states.

According to the report, the girl’s mother, Sara Kramer, told police “her daughter was embarrassed from the principal doing this while class was in session.”

Kramer told The Enquirer her daughter was in tears when she shared the story with her after school Nov. 12. She said her daughter told her Mathieson did not mention her skirt or the dress code until after putting her hand up her shirt in front of her classmates.

“There was no warning,” Kramer said.

After emailing Mathieson and Siciliano that evening, Kramer said, she got a call from Siciliano promising to look into the matter. She said Siciliano told her he reported the allegation to police, but the report the officer wrote is based on Kramer’s call, not Siciliano’s.

Kramer said she does not believe Mathieson acted maliciously. “It was just an impulsive behavior that was very inappropriate,” she said. “I’m not glad anyone lost their job, but there needs to be clear-cut policies on this, and leadership needs to step up.”

Mathieson could not be reached to comment and Siciliano did not respond to a call. Archdiocese of Cincinnati spokeswoman Jennifer Schack said she could not comment beyond the information Siciliano provided in his letter to parishioners.

Although church officials would not discuss the findings of their internal review of the incident, the archdiocese’s Decree on Child Protection, which was adopted more than 30 years ago in the wake of clergy abuse scandals, sets strict rules about the type of physical contact permitted between children and teachers, coaches, priests and other adults.

The decree forbids “touching without the permission of the child,” regardless of whether the contact could be considered sexual or threatening in nature.

Uniform incident is the latest for West Side parishes

The incident is the latest in what has been a tumultuous year for the three West Side parishes under Siciliano’s leadership: Our Lady of the Visitation, St. Jude in Bridgetown and St. Joseph in North Bend. Parishioners have complained about his oversight of the parishes and have said he has not been transparent with them about his decisions.

Those concerns boiled over in late May when the Rev. Martin Bachman, a priest at Our Lady of the Visitation, left the parish after admitting he viewed adult pornography and played inappropriate video games on a computer that was not owned by the parish.

Earlier this year, parishioners launched a change.org petition  that listed a string of complaints and concerns from members of all three parishes about the operation of their churches and schools.

“We … are deeply concerned about the current direction of leadership and decision-making within our parish,” the petition states. It goes on to request better communication from church leaders, more transparency in parish finances, more autonomy for school faculty and protection from retaliation for parishioners who speak out.

When word spread about Mathieson’s departure this week, dozens of parishioners weighed in on a Facebook page where church members often air grievances and share concerns about parish operations. Anonymous posts on the page, which has 1,400 members, were mostly supportive of the girl and critical of Siciliano’s decision not to share details about the incident.

Some posted screenshots of his letter and the police report, along with commentary and complaints about how the matter was handled.

“The lack of leadership here is astounding,” one member wrote.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati principal leaves Catholic school after dress code uproar