The University of Oklahoma has fired a teacher who a student accused of religious discrimination over a failing grade on a psychology paper in which he quoted the Bible and argued that promoting “belief in polygamy” was “satanic.”
The university said in a statement posted Monday on X that its investigation found that a graduate teaching assistant “arbitrarily” gave 20-year-old junior Samantha Fulnecki zero points on an assignment. The university declined to comment beyond its statement, in which the teacher was suspended from teaching.
Through her attorney, the instructor, Mel Kurth, denied Tuesday that she “engaged in any arbitrary behavior regarding student work.” The attorney, Brittany Stewart, said in an emailed statement to The Associated Press that Kurth is “considering all of her legal remedies.”
Conservative groups, commentators and others quickly blamed Fulnecki’s failing grade online, highlighting his argument that he was punished for expressing conservative Christian views. Her case has become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate about academic freedom on college campuses as President Donald Trump seeks to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and restrict how campuses discuss race, gender and sexuality.
Fulnecki appealed her grade on the assignment, which was worth 3% of the final grade for the class, and the university said the assignment did not count. It also put Kurth on leave, and Oklahoma’s conservative Republican governor, Kevin Stitt, declared the situation “deeply troubling.”
“The University of Oklahoma strongly believes in both the right of its faculty to teach with academic freedom and integrity and the right of students to receive an education free from unacceptable evaluative standards of lecturers,” the university said in a statement. “We are committed to teaching students how to think, not what to think.”
The law, approved by Oklahoma’s Republican-dominated legislature this year and signed by Stitt, prohibits state universities from using public funds to finance DEI programs or positions or mandate DEI training. However, the law says it does not apply to scholarly research or “the academic freedom of any individual faculty member.”
Home telephone listings for Fulnecki in the Springfield, Missouri, area were disconnected, and his mother — an attorney, podcaster and radio host — did not immediately respond Tuesday to a Facebook message seeking comment about the university’s actions.
Fulnecki’s failing grade came on an assignment for a psychology class on lifespan development. Kurth instructed students to write a 650-word response to an academic study that examined whether conforming to gender norms was associated with popularity or bullying among middle school students.
Fulnecki wrote that she was disappointed with the basis of the assignment because she does not believe there are more than two genders based on the Bible’s understanding, according to a copy of her essay provided to The Oklahoman.
“A society that pushes the lie that there are multiple genders and that everyone should be whatever they want to be is satanic and seriously harms America’s youth,” she wrote, adding that it takes society “away from God’s original plan for human beings.”
In a response received by the newspaper, Kurth said the paper “didn’t answer the questions for the assignment,” contradicted itself, relied on “personal ideologies” in the evidence and was “occasionally offensive.”
“Please note that I am not deducting points because you have certain beliefs,” Kurth wrote.
