Massachusetts Teachers' Oath - in Force

In Force

Harvard Geology Professor Kirtley Mather took a strong stand against the oath, but under pressure from President Conant he submitted a signed oath form in December 1935. The Quaker Harvard Professor of Religion, Henry Cadbury, rejected the teacher's oath in the 1930s, for reasons of conscience, telling the truth, and as a form of social activism. He turned down the Hollis Professorship in Divinity at Harvard.

The controversy also cost the long-serving state Commissioner of Education Payson Smith his job. Smith had spoken out against the legislation during the hearings, but nevertheless strictly enforced the law despite a compromise worked out with leading educators and the Attorney General, Paul Dever. Despite this, Democratic Governor James Michael Curley wanted Smith out. Smith's term expired on December 1, 1935, and he continued to serve as Acting Commissioner while he awaited his fate. The media and educational leaders pressured Curley to re-appoint Smith, so Curley met with the Democrats on the Governor's Council in closed session shortly before they were to vote on the issue. When the Council met, Curley submitted Smith's name and it was promptly rejected. Curley then nominated Adams, Massachusetts school superintendent James G. Reardon, and the Council voted to approve him. Reardon, a graduate of Boston College, had spoken out in favor of the oath law.