I attended a large public high school in the early 1970s. After I became a born again Christian at the age of fifteen, I purposed to carry my KJV Bible to school every day, hand out tracts to my classmates, invite them to church, and witness for Christ at every opportunity. I was one of the most religious students in the school. I wore my Christianity proudly, even when I was mocked and ridiculed. I still remember several of my classmates “stealing” my Bible and playing keep away with it, tossing it from student to student. Eventually, they tired of their game and let me have my Bible back. Was I embarrassed? Nope. I was proud to have been persecuted for Jesus.
I took biology in tenth grade — an anti-Evangelical class if there ever was one. My teacher expected me to give science answers to test questions, which I did. However, I also wrote Bible verses on my test paper, complete with theological commentary, making sure my teacher knew the TRUTH! I also wrote for my English class a report about the Baptists being the “true” Christian church. I got an A on the report. My teacher wrote “interesting” on my paper in red pencil.
Recently, University of Oklahoma student Samantha Fulnecky received an “F” for giving Bible verses and personal opinions as an answer to an essay question. Fulnecky screamed PERSECUTION, and the teacher was placed on administrative leave.
A University of Oklahoma student is in the national spotlight for claiming religious discrimination after she failed a psychology essay.
Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at OU, received a zero on an assignment, asking students to react to an article on gender roles. After receiving her grade, she filed a complaint with the university.
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Fulnecky is a junior at OU. She is from Nixa, Missouri, according to a biography on OU Women’s Tennis page. She was listed on the Women’s Tennis roster for the 2024-25 season.
She spoke to KOCO 5 after filing the complaint against the professor.
“I gave my opinion, and, not just my opinion, but that’s like the Bible says that God created male and female, and anything that’s not from God, is glorifying to God, is glorifying to the enemy,” Fulnecky said.
Fulnecky said she reached out to the teaching assistant to reconsider the grade before filing a formal complaint with the university.
“It’s that I think I should have gotten 100. I’ve gotten 100 on every single essay in this class, and I write them all the same—exactly the same. The TA has never had a problem with how I write my papers in this class. So, it has nothing to do with the title, or grammar, or how I write, or anything like that,” Fulnecky said.
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On the essay rubric, the grading was based on whether there was an understanding of the article, whether it was a clear reaction, and whether the main ideas were organized in a coherent discussion.
The assignment was worth 25 points.
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The graduate instructor, who did not wish the comment on the story, said the essay did not follow the assignment guidelines and was “at times offensive.” The instructor said it lacked empirical evidence.
“Please note that I am not deducting points because you have certain beliefs, but instead I am deducting points for you posting a reaction paper that does not answer the questions for this assignment, contradicts itself, heavily uses personal ideology over empirical evidence in a scientific class, and is at times offensive,” the instructor said in the grading comments, according to screenshots posted by OU’s Turning Point USA chapter.
“While you are entitled to your own personal beliefs, there is an appropriate time or place to implement them in your reflections. I encourage all students to question or challenge the course material with other empirical findings or testable hypotheses, but using your own personal beliefs to argue against the findings of not only this article, but the findings of countless articles across psychology, biology, sociology, etc. is not best practice”
The instructor also responded to Fulnecky’s claims that society pushing the idea of multiple genders is “demonic.”
“Additionally, to call an entire group of people “demonic” is highly offensive, especially a minoritized population. You are entitled to your own beliefs, but this isn’t a vague narrative of “society pushes lies,” but instead the result of countless years developing psychological and scientific evidence for these claims and directly interacting with the communities involved. You may personally disagree with this, but that doesn’t change the fact that every major psychological, medical, pediatric, and psychiatric association in the United States acknowledges that, biologically and psychologically, sex and gender is neither binary nor fixed,” the instructor, who is a transgender woman, commented.
Fulnecky told KOCO that she did not mean for the “demonic” comments to be offensive.
A second instructor for the course also commented on the essay, saying they agreed with the grade given to Fulnecky.
“This paper should not be considered as a completion of the assignment,” said the second instructor’s comments, according to screenshots from Turning Point USA.
When Fulnecky received zero out of 25 points on the assignment, filed a complaint against OU, claiming her religious freedom was violated.
The instructor was placed on administrative leave. The university confirmed to KOCO that the essay would not count toward Fulnecky’s final grade.
Welcome to the wonderful world for whiny, butthurt Evangelical Christians who scream persecution anytime they don’t get their way. The essay question in question required the student to access academic materials and respond accordingly. You know, materials specifically related to disciplines such as sociology, biology, and psychology. She refused to do this, choosing instead to give personal opinions and Bible proof texts. That she got an F was deserved.
Fullnecky will be lionized by the religious right. She will soon be featured on Fox News, ONN, and platformed at Turning Point USA events. She will likely sue the teachers and the university. Why? Cuz that’s what Evangelicals do.
This is yet another example of the preferential treatment Evangelicals demand, and if they don’t get it, there will be hell to pay. What say ye? Please leave your astute thoughts in the comment section.
Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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