Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the latest news regarding a Connecticut anti-Catholic school administrator:
Yesterday, we enlisted the support of our email subscribers asking them to contact Dr. Toni Jones, Superintendent of Greenwich Schools, regarding revelations that Jeremy Boland, Assistant Principal of Cos Cob Elementary School, has admitted that he does not hire Catholics.
We are delighted to report that subsequent to our news release, Jones announced that Boland was placed on administrative leave, pending the completion of an investigation. Cos Cob is a prestigious public school in a wealthy neighborhood.
The reaction of public figures in Connecticut to this outrage has been heartening.
Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, condemned Boland’s anti-Catholic remarks, saying, “The Connecticut State Department of Education is aware of the incident, has been in contact with Greenwich Public School administrators, and is monitoring the situation’s progress.”
Bob Stefanowski, a Republican who will challenge Lamont in the upcoming gubernatorial election, went further, contending that if Boland is found guilty, “it is my hope that he is fully prosecuted and never sees the inside of a classroom again.”
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, said, “Of course I support a full investigation.”
Blumenthal’s Republican challenger, Leora Levy, blasted what Boland did as “un-American.” She also encouraged school officials “to initiate a review of hiring practices and curriculum.”
First Selectman Fred Camillo, a former Republican State Representative, attended Cos Cob School was taken aback by what happened. “This hits home. To think that Roman Catholic applicants may have applied for teaching positions and not received proper consideration due to their religion seems like something from a bygone era, not 2022.”
Majority Leader State Sen. Bob Duff, a Democrat, said he supports “a full investigation to determine if this illegal discrimination has been allowed to happen by leaders in Greenwich beyond this man and if so all parties need to be held accountable.”
State Rep. Kim Fiorello, a Republican, took a shot at the media, saying, “this is not bombshell breaking news to so many parents in Greenwich and parents across our state, who for months have been sounding the alarm. You have been ignoring them.”
State Sen. Ryan Fazio, a Republican, stated that “The greatest offense that we saw on that 12-minute video was, without doubt, the notion that our public education system does not answer to parents.”
Democrat Congressman Jim Himes said, “I have full faith this matter will be investigated thoroughly by the State Department of Education and Greenwich Public Schools and that parties will be held accountable.”
The Catholic League appreciates all of these comments.
We most fully endorse the position of Democrat Majority Leader State Sen. Bob Duff. It is not enough to conduct a probe of Boland: We need to know if anti-Catholic bigotry is entrenched in Greenwich public schools. At a minimum, this means, as Levy said, there must be a review of hiring procedures.
An Orthodox Jewish lawyer, and friend of the Catholic League, contacted me to say that “Boland is an anti-Catholic bigot and I’m sure he feels the same way about Orthodox Jews and all others who believe in traditional Biblical values.” He offered his legal assistance.
He’s right. Boland spoke so casually about his refusal to hire conservative Catholics that it suggests he has been doing so for some time, with impunity. If this is the case, then as Stefanowski said, he needs to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
We need to know how many Catholics have been turned away from employment in Greenwich public schools, and not simply at Cos Cob. We also need to know if religious profiling is systemic in the schools, and if those who hold to traditional moral values have been excluded from consideration by school administrators.
To this end, we are contacting officials at the State Department of Education and the Greenwich Public Schools, asking for such a probe.
Show your support for Sen. Majority Leader Bob Duff’s call for an investigation beyond Boland: Bob.Duff@cga.ct.gov
