Emails between Padua principal, St. Anthony's pastor Waseline show why she was fired

Emails obtained by The News Journal show Padua Academy Principal Cindy Mann was fired after she questioned the financial relationship between St. Anthony's of Padua parish and the school.

Her ouster on March 16 set off a series of protests by students and parents.

On Feb. 2, Rev. Nicholas Waseline, pastor of St. Anthony's, ordered that money be assessed against Padua Academy in the form of a "stewardship collection," according to an email dated the same day.

Mann questioned the justification for the assessment in an email to the Board of Trustees. On March 16, Waseline sent a letter to Mann informing the principal she was being terminated immediately.

On Wednesday, the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington released a statement saying it wants to come to a peaceful resolution, but Mann said she won't meet with them.

Feb. 2: Statement of Intent

In a Feb. 2 email, Waseline lays out a plan to assess money from Padua Academy. The plan would be phased in over five years, the email says, with Padua paying the church $275,000 in 2021. Waseline says the fee is far below the market value of rent or lease for a campus of Padua's size, which he believes would be close to $1 million annually.

In the email, he also says "a school governance transition to a president-principal model must be studied carefully." Under such a scenario, Mann would have more authority of financial decisions.

Mann's contract with the school was set to expire in three and a half months, though the email hints Mann was seeking to have it renewed for the next school year.

Waseline also tells Mann in the email that he does not approve of making the school's Board of Trustees, which currently serves in an advisory capacity, into one with limited jurisdiction, because "a board of that nature is not commensurate with the identity of Padua Academy as a parish-administered high school."

A board of limited jurisdiction would have the authority to make final decisions relating to a limited set of issues. The model is used in more than 40 schools in four dioceses, including Allentown, Camden, Philadelphia and Baltimore, according to the Healy Education Foundation.

Local control is the key tenet of this approach. The pastor serves as one of the board members with one vote.

He retains his canonical authority in the following way: If the board votes in the majority on an issue to which the pastor is opposed, the board and pastor can take that issue to the diocese (schools office/bishop) for mediation, according to the foundation.

The board oversees the majority of governance issues, with a few reserved powers (e.g. maintaining Catholic identity, approving transactions such as selling property or modifying the school building). According to the foundation, 70 percent of schools using this model have increased enrollment and all consistently saw an increase in giving.

If you cannot read the document, please refresh the screen.

Feb. 16: Final letter about tuition

In a Feb. 16 email to Padua Academy's Board of Trustees, Mann says she does not believe all the assertions presented by Waseline in his Feb. 2 email.

She points out there are several parish schools that have boards of limited jurisdiction and that his argument is untrue.

"However, he would have to agree to relinquish financial authority and give control to boards," Mann wrote. "All statements made to weave the story around an ethical assessment is false. Our documentation proves this. The payment in year three of $275,000 will be impossible to make without a considerable tuition hike as well as capital, facility and personnel possible loss. Until we have a person willing to pay $1 million per year rent, I don't see how this assertion can be made."

Mann said in the email she talked to a well-respected real estate broker who said the building would not come close to fetching that kind of rent. She says the broker also told her the building would need many costly code upgrades.

"To compare $1M annual rent is just not a rational number," Mann wrote.

If you cannot read the document, please refresh the screen.

March 16: Termination of employment

In a short letter on March 16, Waseline informs Mann that her Feb. 16 email to the board "evidences insubordination" and her employment with the school has been terminated.

She is asked to vacate her office immediately.

If you cannot read the document, please refresh the screen.

PADUA NEWS

St. Anthony of Padua Parish statement on Padua change of leadership

Pink protests begin in support of ousted Padua principal

Padua students continue protest as school resumes Tuesday

Contact Jessica Bies at (302) 324-2881 or jbies@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @jessicajbies.