EXCLUSIVE TO FOX: U.S. senators are voicing their concerns after a University of Oklahoma student claimed she received a failing grade on an assignment due to her “Christian worldview” that questioned gender norms.
The incident has caught the attention of Congress members, notably former presidential candidate and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who represents the university’s district.
“That’s outrageous,” Mullin expressed to Fox News Digital. “Particularly in Oklahoma, we should have zero tolerance for educators who disguise themselves as ‘woke activists,’ penalizing students without cause and prioritizing their political agendas over our children’s education.”
A student at the University of Oklahoma, who identifies as Christian, reported receiving a zero on a psychology essay about gender after critiquing an academic article from a faith-based perspective.
Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at the institution, was marked zero out of 25 on her essay, which offered a faith-oriented analysis of gender identity in response to the scholarly article titled “Relations Among Gender Typicality, Peer Relations, and Mental Health During Early Adolescence.”
The article in question examines a study involving middle school students who have encountered “gender‐based teasing” and other issues related to non-conformity to traditional gender norms.
“College professors should be focused on core subjects — not woke political indoctrination. The First Amendment, including religious freedom, should be at the core of higher education,” Mullin added. “A student was given a ZERO for citing the Bible and stating reality: that there are only two genders.”
Sen. Markwayne Mullin told Fox News Digital “there should be zero tolerance for woke activists disguised as ‘educators’ who punish students for no reason and put their toxic political agendas ahead of our kids’ education.” (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Part of the grading criteria included five points for the paper simply being “clearly written.”
“Gender roles and tendencies should not be considered ‘stereotypes,’” Fulnecky’s essay read. “Women naturally want to do womanly things because God created us with those womanly desires in our hearts. The same goes for men. God created men in the image of His courage and strength, and He created women in the image of His beauty. He intentionally created women differently than men, and we should live our lives with that in mind.”
The teacher’s assistant who graded the assignment, Mel Curth, uses she/they pronouns.
Scott, who is an outspoken Christian and widely known as a man of faith, called the TA’s decision to give Fulnecky a zero “pathetic.”
Sen. Tim Scott told Fox News Digital the TA’s decision to give the student a zero was “pathetic.” (Reuters)
“I think it’s pathetic that a young lady gets a zero on her work because the instructor has a different opinion,” he told Fox News Digital. “Students should be able to express themselves on a college campus and be judged on how well they performed, not based on whether one likes what the student has to say.”
“The question is, ‘Do we have freedom of expression on college campuses?’ If not, they should not be getting federal funding and, frankly, it’s not a school at all — it’s an indoctrination camp,” Scott added.
Fox News Digital interviewed Fulnecky earlier this week, and she said the TA “left submission comments saying that my work was offensive, that I need more empathy in my writing, things like if I’m going to argue against the consensus of every medical field, in every medical association in the United States, then I need empirical evidence to back that.”
The University of Oklahoma placed the TA on leave following Fulnecky’s complaint. (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Fulnecky filed a discrimination complaint claiming she was graded for her Christian beliefs, prompting the university to place the graduate instructor on leave while investigating.
The University of Oklahoma did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, but did post to social media that the public college takes “concerns involving First Amendment rights, certainly including religious freedoms,” seriously.
Fox News Digital reached out to Curth but did not receive a response.
Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news. Story tips can be sent to Preston.Mizell@fox.com and on X @MizellPreston
