OU student who claimed religious discrimination over essay grade speaks out
By Chantelle Navarro
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NORMAN, Okla. (KOCO) — The University of Oklahoma student who received a zero on a psychology essay after citing the Bible is speaking out after claiming religious discrimination.
Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at OU, said after bringing up what happened to the university, the school decided that the grade, which was worth 25 points, would not count against her. But that doesn’t mean the conversation is over just yet.
“I just did the assignment and turned it in, and I talked about the Bible in it. That is, I view all my opinions in the world through, the Bible,” Fulnecky said.
When she submitted the essay reacting to an article for her class, she received a zero. Her graduate instructor, who is transgender, was the person grading the essay.
They called the essay offensive and said it lacked empirical evidence.
“I gave my opinion, and, not just my opinion, but that’s like the Bible says that God created male and female, and anything that’s not from God, is glorifying to God, is glorifying to the enemy,” Fulnecky said.
Excerpts of the essay said society is pushing the lie of multiple genders, and that is demonic. She said she believes it is against God’s will.
“What I meant by that, the demonic thing, is that I didn’t mean for that to be offensive, but the truth will naturally offend people, and so I think that’s why people are kind of viewing that as offensive,” Fulnecky said.
“So, would you have a problem having a transgender teacher?” KOCO 5’s Chantelle Navarro asked.
“I would not if they were able to separate their kind of beliefs and things from grading, then I don’t really care who my professors are,” Fulnecky said.
She was supposed to be graded on whether there was an understanding of the article, whether it was a clear reaction, and whether the main ideas were organized in a coherent discussion.
She received zero out of 25 points and filed a complaint against OU, claiming her religious freedom was violated. The instructor was placed on administrative leave.
Fulnecky said she isn’t sure whether she will seek any legal action.
“In the end, I really do not see this lawsuit going anywhere, as there is no constitutional guarantee to an A in a class at a public university,” attorney Ed Blau told KOCO.
The graduate instructor, who was contacted through email, declined to comment.
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