CLEVELAND, Ohio - The identity of St. Ignatius High School, the nationally recognized Jesuit institution for boys in Ohio City, is the subject of a robust debate among some of its alumni, parents and students.

The debate is fueled by the departure of two long-time theology teachers, whose contracts were not renewed for the coming school year, and mirrors our recent presidential election with divisions running along multiple conservative and liberal lines. It also is emotionally charged by, among other issues, gay rights and refugees.

To some proud alumni, the school's traditional, conservative-leaning approach to Catholicism is being eroded by a growing progressive philosophy and an emphasis on social justice issues. As a result, they believe, the school is pushing out good teachers who don't fall in line with the new agenda. Others dismiss such claims as irrational and argue the school's Catholic identity, mission and quality education remain intact.

"Make Ignatius Catholic Again"

The debate is playing out publicly online to the dismay of school officials. The debate, for instance, has spawned a Facebook page, several blogs and a petition drive to reinstate the teachers. It also has generated heated comments, leaked documents and social media hashtags, including "Make Ignatius Catholic Again."

Joe McAuliffe, the president of the school's board of regents, said in a March letter sent to fellow board members (and posted by a critic anonymously online) that critics are "inappropriately" linking the departure of the two teachers and the Catholic identity of the school. McAuliffe offered a number of talking points to his colleagues to address concerns raised by alumni and parents.

Father Raymond Guiao, St. Ignatius' president, said in an email to me that the online debate is not a reflection of what is going on at the school.

"Unfortunately, many of the comments are based on false assumptions about why certain members of our faculty are not being offered contracts, leading to an online debate based not on facts but on speculation and erroneous conclusions about ideological or political agendas," he wrote. (You can read his full letter below this article.)

The debate gained attention earlier this year after the school told longtime theology teachers Martin Dybicz and Jim Hogan, who have about 60 years of teaching between them, that their contracts would not be renewed. Their backers quickly turned to the internet to rally support. They created a Facebook page called "Men for Dybicz & Hogan," which is a reference to the school's motto, "Men for Others."

Several blogs also popped up, including one with the tagline "Jesuit Identity doesn't equal Catholic." A petition calling for the teachers' reinstatement attracted 2,000 signatures.

Blog posts and comments referred to Dybicz and Hogan as "orthodox" and "solidly Catholic" and teachers who "unequivocally teach the Holy Catholic Faith," suggesting that they were being persecuted for not being more liberal. (The teachers have not spoken publicly and the school said it can't discuss personnel matters.)

Pulling back donation

Ignatius has a powerful network of alumni, which includes attorneys, elected officials and business owners in Northeast Ohio, who closely watch the school and help fund its projects. William Coughlin, a partner at law firm Calfee, Halter & Griswold, recently rebuked his alma mater over its decision to not bring back Dybicz and Hogan. He was so upset that he asked that the school return a donation he made to the school's new grotto that is dedicated to the former long-time Ignatius theology teachers Jim Skerl and Michael "Doc" Pennock.

"In light of the administration's continuing refusal to reinstate Jim Hogan and Marty Dybicz--Jim Skerl's friends and colleagues for 30 years--to the Theology faculty, I have asked the school to return my donation for the Skerl/Pennock grotto," he wrote in a letter to the school, which was later posted on a blog supporting the teachers. "The non-renewal of Hogan and Dybicz defiles Skerl's memory. ...The grotto is a farce."

Ignatius president opposes Trump order

The right-wing website, Churchmilitant.com, also picked up the story and added fuel the dispute by mischaracterizing or overstating several aspects of the debate. It claims "Faithful Catholics are fighting to reclaim one of the most prominent Jesuit schools in the nation." The website, which is frequently critical of the Catholic Church and whose headlines have been compared to those on the right-wing news site Breitbart News, highlighted the departure of Dybicz and Hogan as the latest example of the school's drift "towards heterodoxy." The article also noted that the school's quarterly magazine, "Ignatius," recently featured an article on the school's Ignatian Alliance, a group for gay students. The theme of the issue, which featured on its cover a photograph of two students with arms across each other's backs, is "Preparing students to meet a diverse world." In the issue's opening letter, Guiao, who is Asian-American, said the school must continue to make the school more inclusive by recruiting students from varying socio-economic backgrounds. The school's student body is predominately white. (Tuition is $15,000 a year, though the school's strong network of alumni has helped raise a healthy endowment that helps offset tuition for 50 percent of the students.)

One Ignatius graduate (whose identity I confirmed) posted a comment under the Churchmilitant.com story blasting critics of the school.

"I went to Ignatius. Great school and still is," he said. "It's hilarious hearing right-wing nuts claim to be Christians. You're not. Send your kids to Trump-loving Walsh if you have a problem with Ignatius." (He is referring to Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls.)

Some conservative-leaning Ignatius alumni told me they support the school's efforts to be more inclusive, but worry such efforts could become what one described as a "social platform for the Jesuit order." They point to Guiao's letter on the school's website in which he advocates that the school add its voice to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Pope Francis and others condemning President Trump's executive order regarding immigration and refugees.

Review says changes needed

The critics see the departure of Dybicz and Hogan as directly related to a recent school audit by Chicago-Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus, which regularly reviews Jesuit school operations and teachings. (The Society of Jesus is a Roman Catholic order of priests and brothers founded by Ignatius Loyola. They are known as "the Jesuits.")

The audit, known as the Ignatian Identity Review and which was leaked online, compliments the school's academic excellence and commitment to Catholic teachings. But the review, which is posted below, says the school's Theology Department still needs to change and that it needs to realign the curriculum, an issue identified in earlier audits. The audit does not identify specific curriculum changes.

"We believe that these issues lie with a small number of Theology faculty members, but they are significant, not merely matters of style and/or pedagogy, but matters of substance," the review says.

One school alum told me the school's identity is strong and that changes to the theology department should have been made years ago.

Guiao said in his email to me that the audit is being misinterpreted by some.

"The most recent audit makes clear that we are a flagship school and we are successfully achieving our identity goals," Guiao wrote. "However, while I am proud of the report's results, it was never meant to be shared with a broad audience and, when taken out of context, is subject to misinterpretation by those not familiar with our history, culture and way of proceeding."

The school has no plans to discuss the issue publicly. The board of regents recently moved to end discussion among themselves about the departure of the teachers.

But like with our recent presidential election, debate is far from over.