The American Association of University Professors is circulating a national petition calling for OU administration to reaffirm a commitment to academic freedom and protect faculty and staff under political attacks.
OU recently made national headlines after psychology junior Samantha Fulnecky publicly claimed religious discrimination after she received a failing grade for a Bible-based essay in a psychology course.
The course’s graduate instructor, Mel Curth, was placed on administrative leave Nov. 30, according to a statement released by the university, and an appeal process is currently underway.
The petition, which was shared in a Monday Facebook post, states that OU has failed to stand for its commitment to academic freedom or defend Curth, who has been the subject of harassment and discrimination, including death threats.
“The OU administration may view their actions as the best strategy to mitigate institutional risk,” the petition reads, “but it comes at the expense of the educators and researchers who make our university function.”
The petition, which is addressed to OU President Joseph Harroz Jr., calls on the university to:
• Release full details on the policies and processes that led to Curth being placed on administrative leave,
• Publicly reaffirm the right of OU faculty and instructors to teach, grade and research free from political interference, unlawful mandates or pressures that inhibit authentic engagement,
• And work with the campus community to develop a Harassment Response and Prevention Plan that provides clear guidelines for faculty, staff, chairs and administrators for responding to political attacks.
The petition states AAUP plans to continue engaging with OU administration in the spring to develop and implement a harassment response and prevention plan, similar to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, to protect OU educators and researchers.
“When the University stands firmly on the side of academic freedom, integrity, and its own stated values, we all flourish—students, faculty, staff, and the broader communities we serve,” the petition reads. “In that spirit, we express our confidence that through principled dialogue, consistent policy, and mutual accountability, the University of Oklahoma can move forward with renewed unity and strength.”
The petition is planned to be delivered to Harroz before the holidays. As of noon Wednesday, the petition currently has 450 of its 800-signature goal.
Background
Fulnecky contested a grade on an essay assignment in an OU psychology course, stating she believed she received the grade because of her religious beliefs. Fulnecky reportedly received zero points out of 25 for her assignment. Fulnecky also filed a formal claim of illegal discrimination based on religious beliefs.
In the essay, published by The Oklahoman, Fulnecky cites the Bible to argue that traditional gender roles should not be considered stereotypes. She wrote eliminating gender would put people “farther from God’s original plan for humans.”
The instructor stated the grade was based on the essay’s lack of empirical evidence and said parts of the essay were offensive, according to reporting by The Oklahoman.
Fulnecky reportedly asked her instructor to reconsider the grade, stating she met the requirements of the essay, but the instructor denied the request.
Grade appeal process
On Dec. 9, OU’s AAUP chapter called for the university to publicly disclose all facts regarding Curth being placed on administrative leave, claiming the university’s public statement gave no defense to the instructor’s academic freedom.
Michael Givel, OU political science professor and OU-AAUP president, told the Daily that OU students must first attempt to resolve disputed grades informally with instructors before they can file a grade appeal. According to Givel, if a student wishes to continue the appeal process after appealing to the department chair, a student may request a hearing from their college’s academic board.
Givel said in Fulnecky’s case, the next steps following speaking with the instructor would be to contact department leadership.
“You need to contact them and try to resolve this informally, …” Givel said. “If that doesn't work, then the next route of appeal is the department chair, (in this case), the chair of the psychology department.”
Givel added that time constraints and staff commitments often stretch an appeal into a weeks-long process. He said that due to these traditional time constraints, Fulnecky’s grade appeal results being released quickly was unusual.
“There is usually a time lag in terms of when people can meet with you, …” Givel said. “Doing it within 24 hours or 48 hours is ordinarily not what happens in reality.”
Givel said that Fulnecky effectively waived at least some of her FERPA protections after talking with local and national media about her essay. Givel added that the expedition of Fulnecky’s grade appeal raises questions about the manner and nature of the appeal.
“Ordinarily, grade appeals take several weeks,” Givel said. “A reasonable question of this is, ‘Why was this expedited so quickly?’ particularly when it became public information at The Oklahoman and the governor is talking about (it).”
Givel said the local, national and international attention Fulnecky’s appeal brought to OU could have been a factor in its expedition.
“Suddenly, this became very politically and publicly hot,” Givel said. “So did OU decide they were going to move quickly because of that? Are they making public statements about employment status and that sort of thing? That's a really good question.
“I suggest you ask them.”
The Daily reached out to OU Marketing and Communications twice via email on Dec. 12 for more information about the formal timeline of academic appeals, the status of Fulnecky’s religious discrimination appeal, and whether her grade appeal was expedited.
OU Daily asked the following questions:
• How many grade appeals have been filed so far this academic year?
• What colleges have these appeals come from?
• How many grade appeals were filed last academic year?
• How long does the grade appeal process traditionally take?
• Many believe Samantha Fulnecky's grade appeal process was expedited. Can OU confirm or deny these beliefs?
• Does OU have a statement or comment on the status of Fulnecky's religious discrimination appeal at this time?
An OU spokesperson referred the Daily to OU’s open records website and said to file a request for more information regarding the questions.
According to a Dec. 11 email obtained by the Daily, the OU Faculty Senate learned during its monthly meeting on Dec. 8 that it is now university policy to give paid suspension to any faculty member against whom a student has filed a complaint. Following multiple discussions last week with OU Faculty Senate, university leadership is working toward officially formalizing this policy, the email states.
This story was edited by Anusha Fathepure. Sophie Hemker, Gretchen Schultz and Avery Avery copy edited this story.
