Oklahoma university instructor on leave after failing Bible-based essay on gender

People walk on the Oval at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., Tuesday, March 10, 2015. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)

An instructor at the University of Oklahoma has been placed on leave after a student complained that she received a failing grade on a paper that cited the Bible to assert that the “belief in multiple genders” was “demonic.”

Samantha Fulnecky, 20, filed a complaint with the administration, the latest flashpoint in the ongoing debate over academic freedom on college campuses amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and restrict how campuses discuss issues of race, gender and sexuality.

“OU remains firmly committed to fairness, respect and protecting every student’s right to express sincerely held religious beliefs,” the university wrote in an email on Wednesday.

The school added that the failing grade — which was supposed to account for three per cent of Fulnecky’s final grade — would not affect the junior’s academic standing. An investigation into Fulnecky’s discrimination complaint is still ongoing.

The assignment was for a psychology class about lifespan development. Students were asked to write a 650-word response to an academic study that examined whether conformity with gender norms was associated with popularity or bullying among middle school students.

Fulnecky wrote that she was frustrated by the premise of the article because she doesn’t believe that there are more than two genders based on her understanding of the Bible, according to a copy of her essay provided to The Oklahoman.

“Society pushing the lie that there are multiple genders and everyone should be whatever they want to be is demonic and severely harms American youth,” she wrote.

She argued that promoting the belief in multiple genders would lead society to move “farther from God’s original plan for humans.”

The essays were graded out of 25 points, broken down by whether the student demonstrated an understanding of the article and addressed a specific aspect of the argument put forth. Fulnecky received zero points for her work.

“Please note that I am not deducting points because you have certain beliefs,” the instructor wrote in feedback obtained by The Oklahoman. Instead, the instructor said the paper did ”not answer the questions for the assignment.”

The paper “contradicts itself, heavily uses personal ideology over empirical evidence in a scientific class, and is at times offensive” the criticism went on.

A contact for the instructor, whose name has not been confirmed by the university, was not immediately available.

Fulnecky’s complaint to the administration soon went viral after the school’s chapter of Turning Point USA, a conservative group founded by Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated in September, posted about Fulnecky’s experience on the social media site X.

“Professors like this are the very reason conservatives can’t voice their beliefs in the classroom,” the group posted.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt appeared to affirm that perspective, posting on X that the situation was “deeply concerning.”

“I’m calling on the OU regents to review the results of the investigation & ensure other students aren’t unfairly penalized for their beliefs,” he wrote.

The firestorm comes after a professor at Texas A&M was fired earlier this year after a video where a student confronted the instructor over her teaching of issues related to gender identity in a class on children’s literature went viral. A university committee in late November ruled that the firing was without good cause, and flouted formal procedure.

Since Trump took office, student affinity groups have shuttered campus offices and professors have altered curriculums.

The president has also threatened federal funding for schools who don’t comply with standards for teaching, admissions and gender in sports supported by the administration. Both supporters and opponents of the Trump administration’s campaign say that freedom of speech is at stake.

Safiyah Riddle, The Associated Press