Wednesday, December 16, 2009

1st Amendment in the Classroom

In this morning’s Inside Higher Ed:

First Amendment in the Classroom
At a time when faculty groups are increasingly worried that a Supreme Court ruling is being used to limit the free speech rights of public college professors, a federal judge has declined a college's request to do just that. ¶ The judge's ruling keeps alive First Amendment claims in a lawsuit by June Sheldon, who in 2007 lost an adjunct science teaching job … at San Jose City College. Sheldon lost her job following a student complaint about comments she is alleged to have made during a class discussion of the "nature vs. nurture" debate with regard to why some people are gay. ¶ Some students complained that her comments suggested that she did not believe anyone could be born a lesbian, and that the way she endorsed the "nurture" side of the debate was offensive….

Sheldon sued the college in federal court.... Judge Ronald M. Whyte, while rejecting parts of the suit, turned down a request by the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District to dismiss the First Amendment claims. ...[T]he ruling states that [Sheldon] has First Amendment rights and doesn't lose them by virtue of the speech in question taking place while she was teaching at a public college….

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

There's an interesting fact pattern underlying this case, I'm sure. Any further information as to what she actually said in the classroom?

Anonymous said...

For more on what Sheldon said in class, go to FIRE.

Anonymous said...

It takes a little work, but after finding the student complaint--if this teacher actually did say these things, she obviously has some problems. Not sure if it's a reason to fire her, though.

Anonymous said...

Seems like a severe lack of process (what else is new???) - though I'd like to know more about that doctor she cites - Dr. Gunther Dormer? Dorner? and his theories.

Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...