KANSAS CITY. MO. — The investigation into former Bishop Miege High School president Phil Baniewicz is still ongoing, but on Aug. 6, the school board decided to let him go before it wrapped up, one week before classes begin.
On Wednesday, KSHB 41 first reported on this update. It comes after parents, students, and alumni have spoken out for the past two years against Baniewicz's position at the school.
Two former students told us they received a call from the Archdiocese Wednesday night, informing them Baniewicz was let go.
"There's still a lot of work to be done and reform needed in the church, and with these institutions that continue to protect abusers," Parker Valdez said. "But, this is good news."
Taylor Kelsey said she's been waiting all summer to hear the outcome of the investigation. Hearing Baniewicz will not return to Miege was welcomed news.
"I'm very thankful that it happened, even if it took this long," Kelsey said.
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Valdez and Kelsey were students at Maur Hill-Mount Academy in Atchison, Kansas, when Baniewicz was president there, before he was hired at Miege in 2023.
In early summer, Kelsey complained to the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas about his alleged inappropriate behavior. About a week later, on June 6, he was put on leave.
Valdez made a complaint after he was put on leave, but told KSHB 41 she had already written a letter to then-Archbishop Naumann in 2023. She never heard anything back from the Archdiocese, saying it "didn't even dignify my experience with a response."
Both women said that when they were students, Baniewicz called them into his office for one-on-one meetings, where he pried for details of their sex lives and shamed them about purity.
Valdez said in her meeting that Baniewicz made up a lie that people at school were calling her a "whore."
They described their experiences as traumatic and boundary-blurring.
"I held this burden that Phil Baniewicz placed on me, and I did exactly what I feel he intended, which was to shame and convince myself that I deserved it or it wasn't that bad," Valdez said.
They weren't the only two to complain, however.
On June 17, the Archdiocese restricted Baniewicz from all ministry activities pending an investigation.
The Archdiocese said it was "due to an allegation of inappropriate behavior with a minor. These restrictions are based on previously unknown information, which has not been released in public media..."
"I would like to know more about the process, and I think the public has the right to know, as far as down to who's been hired for this private investigation," Kelsey said.
KSHB 41 is asking those questions, too. The Archdiocese said to "protect the integrity of the investigation," it will not release the name of the firm.
Helen Osman, a communications consultant for the Archdiocese, said it's the same firm that was hired earlier this summer.
We asked if Baniewicz would receive a severance package, and Osman said they "also aren't able to discuss any of the details related to Mr. Baniewicz's departure."
We also want to know how many complaints Miege and the Archdiocese received about Baniewicz since he started his position.
Families were outraged about his hiring after the I-Team broke the story that he was accused in a civil lawsuit of sexually abusing a teenage boy at a Mesa, Arizona, parish in the 1980s.
The lawsuit was settled for $100,000, and Baniewicz was never charged with a crime.
Two of the other defendants named in the lawsuit, priests who were later banned from the church, were found guilty in separate cases involving crimes against children.
"I’m relieved to hear Baniewicz’s employment at Bishop Miege has ended," Kelly Kincaid, a Miege alumna, told KSHB 41.
Kincaid has been one of the loudest voices against Miege's move to hire and keep Baniewicz, sharing her own story of sexual abuse as a student at Miege 25 years ago.
"His removal is a step toward restoring safety within the Miege community. While I am pleased with the outcome, there is still much work to be done surrounding transparency and trust. It took over two years for the removal of Baniewicz after multiple complaints and concerns were raised. I hope the school and diocese prioritizes the safety and well-being of the most vulnerable members of our community over any other agenda they may have," Kincaid said.
Valdez said the question remains: "How was he even hired in the first place?"
In the Archdiocese statement, Miege's board of trustees president said they are reviewing their practices and, at the request of Archbishop Shawn McKnight, will "work with the archdiocesan Catholic Schools Office and the Office for Protection and Care to create opportunities for the school community to be heard and supported. We’ll share more information as it becomes available.”
"I just hope that people just trust the victims," Kelsey said. "And I hope everybody knows that their voice matters and that even if one voice is quiet or not loud enough, those voices add up and we can get somewhere."
The Archdiocese previously told KSHB 41 that "civil authorities" are also involved, and we're waiting to find out the outcome of that investigation.
We've also requested an interview with Archbishop Shawn McKnight.
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