Rev. Thomas D. Skotek– Assignment Record

Summary of Case: Skotek is known to have two "complaints" of "misconduct" against him. He was removed from ministry in April 2002. He had been evaluated at some point years before due to a complaint, was deemed not to be a pedophile or predator, and was returned ministry.

Ordained: 1963

   

Start Stop Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1963

Scranton bishop was Jerome Daniel Hannan (1954-1965), followed by Joseph Carroll McCormick (1966-1983).

1967 SS. Peter and Paul (Polish) Plains PA 3/4, 3/3 Parish had a school with 388-392 students.
1967 1969 St. Joseph's (Polish) Wyoming PA 2/2  
1969 1972 St. Mary of the Mount

Mount Pocono

• Accused publicly in 2002 of having engaged in "improper conduct" 30 years previously. (Wilkes Barre Times Leader
May 26, 2002)

PA 2/2  
1969 1972 St. Joan of Arc Pocono Summit PA   This was a mission of St. Mary of the Mount.
1969 1972   Pocono Manor PA   This was a station of St. Mary of the Mount.
1969 1972   Mount Airy PA   This was a station of St. Mary of the Mount.
1969 1972   Henryville PA   This was a station of St. Mary of the Mount.
1972 1977 St. Hedwig's (Polish) Kingston PA 2/2 Parish had a school with 142-122 students.
    Bishop O'Reilly High School Kingston PA   This assignment is per news reports. ([Wilkes-Barre PA] Times Leader
July 9, 2009)
1977 1979 Our Lady of Mount Carmel Lake Silkworth PA 1/1  

1979

Hannan was succeeded as bishop by James Clifford Timlin (1984-2003).

1985 St. Casimir's (Polish) Freeland PA 1/1  
1984 1986 Bishop Hafey High School

Hazleton

 

 PA Procurator

The school had 668-572 students.

Skotek is not indexed in the 1986 Directory, but he is listed in the Scranton diocesan pages at Bishop Hafey.

1986 1987  

 

• Bishop Timlin stated in 2002 that Skotek was the subject of a complaint "several years ago" for "misconduct", and that a professional evaluation determined that he was not a pedophile or predator. (Wilkes Barre Times Leader
May 26, 2002)

    Skotek is not indexed in the 1987 Directory, nor is he listed at his previous assignment.
1987 1999 St. Aloysius Wilkes-Barre PA 2/3, 2/2 Parish had a school with 327-235 students.
1999 2002 St. Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help Mocanaqua PA 1/1  
  2002 Ascension Mocanaqua PA Pastor Skotek was removed from this parish and St. Mary's in April 2002, due to "misconduct that took place" thirty years previously. Skotek admitted to the behavior. (Wilkes Barre Times Leader
April 18, 2002)


Source: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1964-2009 )

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Skotek's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on Oct. 2, 2010.