Archdiocese deems former Bishop Miege president 'not suitable for ecclesiastical employment'

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After a year-long investigation into multiple misconduct allegations, the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas determined former Bishop Miege President Phil Baniewicz is unsuitable for "ecclesiastical employment" within the Archdiocese.

Baniewicz will no longer be able to work, volunteer, or take on any ministerial role within the Archdiocese following an independent investigation.

According to the Archdiocese announcement on Thursday, "The investigation disclosed concerns regarding Mr. Baniewicz’s conduct and determined a consistent pattern of imprudent professional conduct, repeated failures to maintain appropriate ministerial and professional boundaries with minors, deficient safeguarding practices, and conduct incompatible with the standards expected of those entrusted with ecclesiastical service involving children and vulnerable people."

The Archdiocese investigated 16 different allegations against Baniewicz.

KSHB 41's Sarah Plake was the first to report on Baniewicz when he was hired at Miege in 2023, including allegations that he sexually abused a teenager in the 1980s in Mesa, Arizona.

Multiple former students at Maur Hill Mount Academy, where Baniewicz worked before being hired at Miege, came forward to KSHB 41 with their own allegations of inappropriate behavior.

Miege families and alumni expressed their concerns about Baniewicz's hiring and pushed the school for answers. Some families reported those concerns to the Archdiocese.

In June 2025, the Miege board of trustees put Baniewicz on administrative leave due to "concerns about his inability to oversee a safe environment," and Archbishop Shawn McKnight announced an investigation.

Baniewicz was subsequently restricted from all active ministry and fired from Miege in August.

Two former students KSHB 41 spoke with, Taylor Kelsey and Parker Valdez, said they gave statements in forensic interviews at the Child Protection Center this past winter.

According to the Archdiocese, the independent investigation "was led by a professional investigation firm that conducted a comprehensive process that included 68 interviews, review and analysis of extensive records and reports, and consultation with authorities from multiple jurisdictions."

The investigation "examined 16 distinct allegations against Mr. Baniewicz spanning from approximately 1985 to 2025." The review included reports regarding his work as a youth minister in Mesa, Arizona, from 1985 to 1993; a senior officer of Life Teen Inc. from 1993 to 2006; president of Maur Hill Mount Academy in Kansas from 2010 to 2023; and president of Miege from 2023 to 2025.

The Archdiocese's announcement said Baniewicz had multiple opportunities to address the allegations. He was interviewed and submitted a written statement.

KSHB 41 has requested that written statement. We have never received a response from Baniewicz after multiple attempts to reach him over the last three years of reporting this story.

Baniewicz has never been charged with a crime.

While the Archdiocese's investigation did not "establish a level of certainty required by Church law to initiate a canonical disciplinary process, it revealed a persistent and deeply concerning pattern of conduct that reached the level at which administrative action must be taken."

“The protection of minors and persons in vulnerable situations is fundamental to the mission of our church,” Archbishop Shawn McKnight said in a statement Thursday. “As believers and followers of Jesus Christ, we have a sacred responsibility to safeguard the innate human dignity of every person and to hold one another, especially those who exercise authority and power in the Church, to the high moral standards of our faith.”

This story is developing and will be updated throughout the day.

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