California Catholic school teacher departs after ’emotionally charged’ classroom discussion on sexuality

A teacher has unexpectedly departed Stella Maris Academy in La Jolla following an “emotionally charged” discussion in an eighth-grade classroom.

Stella Maris Academy at 7654 Herschel Ave. began in 1947 as the parochial school for Mary, Star of the Sea Catholic Church. It serves children in transitional kindergarten through eighth grade.

Last month, math teacher Megan Flores asked her students to submit anonymous questions about high school for an in-class discussion May 20, according to a parent whose daughter was in the class. Topics could be anything the students were curious about, and no question was to go unanswered.

Some questions skewed toward sexuality, including homosexuality and sex before marriage.

“Mrs. Flores responded as best she could, at times referencing the Bible,” said the parent, whose name is being withheld to preserve his daughter’s privacy. “Based on my daughter’s report, she adhered to the Scriptures. However, given the emotionally charged nature of the discussion, some of her comments might have been mischaracterized in reports to parents.”

For example, the parent said, his daughter reported that on the topic of homosexuality, the teacher “quoted the Bible, saying that men should go with women. Then she added that people should be tolerant of others.”

However, other comments Flores is said to have made raised additional alarms among some parents and school officials.

“From what I have heard afterward, Mrs. Flores told the kids that if management … entered, they would need to stop,” the parent said. “Some kids repeated that to their parents, who contacted the school, and I think this was one of the contentious points — that Mrs. Flores was doing this knowing that management would not necessarily approve.”

The La Jolla Light could not immediately reach Flores for comment.

The school emailed a letter to eighth-grade parents about “an incident that recently came to our attention involving a classroom discussion that occurred without the knowledge of the administration or our pastor.” The email was signed by co-Principals Katie Zack and Francie Moss and pastor Patrick Mulcahy.

The letter did not name Flores or describe the nature of the conversation but said “While we believe the teacher’s intentions were well-meaning, we agree that topics of this nature are best addressed by parents or individuals specifically trained in these sensitive areas, always guided by Catholic moral teaching and with the knowledge and consent of parents. As a school rooted in our Catholic faith, we regret that this situation occurred and sincerely apologize for any concern or discomfort it may have caused students or families.”

The message added that the school was “reviewing our procedures and taking steps to ensure situations like this do not happen again.” It offered families an opportunity to meet with Mulcahy about any additional questions.

Soon after, another letter was sent to the school community announcing that Flores was retiring.

“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to … Mrs. Flores,” the letter stated. “She has made the decision to remain at home full time to spend precious moments with her two beautiful children. We wish to thank Mrs. Flores for her commitment to our students and to all she has offered to Stella Maris Academy. She will be dearly missed.”

Representatives of the school declined to provide additional information to the Light, saying they could not discuss personnel issues. ♦