OU Student Files Bias Claim Over Failing Grade on Gender Essay

A University of Oklahoma psychology student received a failing grade on an essay assignment after incorporating biblical references to argue against societal views on gender norms, prompting her to file a discrimination complaint and leading to the instructor's administrative leave.

Samantha Fulnecky, a junior psychology major, submitted a 650-word reaction paper in response to an article discussing how peers enforce gender expectations through teasing. The assignment required students to demonstrate engagement with the material through thoughtful reactions, such as applying findings to personal experiences or discussing the topic's importance, and was graded on criteria including clear ties to the article, substantive response rather than summary, and clear writing. It was worth 25 points.

In her essay, Fulnecky expressed disagreement with the article's perspective, writing that she did not see teasing as a problem because "God made male and female and made us differently from each other on purpose and for a purpose." She argued that efforts to change gender distinctions would cause harm and described societal promotion of multiple genders as "demonic and severely harms...