The University of Oklahoma suspended applied social and development psychology graduate assistant Mel Curth over the recent grading of their student’s gender studies essay.
The assignment, as part of a psychology class about lifespan development, required students to write a 650-word response to an academic study examining whether gender role conformity was associated with popularity or bullying among middle school students.
Felensky responded to the prompt by referencing the Bible and providing insight that Curth said did not reflect the assignment. In her essay, Felensky wrote that it was “perfectly normal for kids to follow ‘gender stereotypes’ because that is how God made us.”
“Society pushing the lie that there are multiple genders and everyone should be whatever they want is demonic and severely harms American Youth,” she wrote.
The student also references the book of Genesis in her essay, explaining that God created women to be a “helper for man.” Jill Hicks-Keeton, an associate professor of religion in USC Dornsife’s department of religion and a former professor at OU, explains that although Felensky’s view is a common conservative Christian viewpoint about “how the Bible should be used to construct norms around gender,” it is not the only interpretation.
“It is not ‘what the Bible says’ because the Bible doesn’t say one thing,” she said. “When I taught biblical studies in the religion department at OU, I had students read transgender biblical scholars’ interpretations of Genesis that deconstruct binaries, including gender binaries. The undergraduate student’s interpretation of Genesis is also not the only way that Christians — even conservative ones — read Genesis and apply it to gender construction and performance.”
Felensky received a zero on the assignment and filed a complaint with the university, claiming that she deserved a perfect score.
In response, the university suspended Curth on administrative leave. “OU [The University of Oklahoma] remains firmly committed to fairness, respect and protecting every student’s right to express sincerely held religious beliefs,” they said in a statement on Sunday.
Chris Belcher, an associate professor of gender and sexuality studies at USC Dornsife, believes Felensky’s usage of religion in her work was “inappropriate to the assignment itself.”
“If a student were to respond with a religious treatise on what their religious belief is about gender and sexuality, there could be a space for that,” Belcher said. “But it would have to be one in which there was some interrogation … trying to do some negotiation of how to reconcile the two in a critical manner that is engaging in critical thinking.”
Felensky sent her information to the Turning Point USA Oklahoma Instagram, which drew 40 million views and over 41,000 likes in seven days. The post included references to Curth’s feedback, which stated that the essay “heavily uses personal ideology over empirical evidence” and was “at times offensive.” The organization claims that the comments “punish(es) viewpoint, not performance.”
“While there is no constitutional right to receive an A in a class at a public university, there is a right to not be academically penalized due to discrimination against your viewpoint,” the statement said. “Academic freedom belongs to every student, not only those who mirror the instructor’s beliefs.”
Belcher explains that, although some people on the right believe this is an issue regarding freedom of speech, grading is not simply based on “your freedom.”
“You’re not free to answer however you like, and then also get an A,” she said. “You have to answer based on what [is] agreed upon as the content of the course and the purpose of the course.
As a former faculty member, Hicks-Keeton expressed embarrassment at how the university’s administration handled the situation.
“I am disappointed at the OU administration’s apparent pre-emptive affirmation of the undergraduate student’s claim and the failure to follow due process,” said Hicks-Keeton. “In the face of all available evidence, I think the graduate student instructor deserves better from the OU administration.”
Annenberg Media reached out to both Samanatha Felensky and Mel Curth. Curth declined to comment at this time on the advice of her lawyer. Felensky did not respond to a request for comment.