On November 30th, 2025, at the University of Oklahoma, Professor Mel Curth, Graduate Teaching Assistant, was mandated to an administrative leave of absence after Samantha Fulnecky, a junior Psychology major, reported the professor to the university’s administration for religious persecution after receiving a zero on her academic paper.
As a part of the Psychology 2603: Lifespan Development curriculum, Fulnecky had to write an academic paper worth 26 points discussing gender roles in society with a minimum word count of 650 words. Fulnecky was required to base her essay on the “Relations Among Gender Typicality, Peer Relations, and Mental Health During Early Adolescence” academic journal by Jennifer A. Jewell and Christia Spears Brown. Once Fulnecky felt confident to begin her writing, her main objectives would be to discuss whether the topic was “worthy” of exploring further and “an application of the study or results to your own experiences.” Fulnecky would then be graded based on her connection between the topics, properly formed responses that are not a summary, and if the paper is written at the proper academic level (Turning Point USA University of Oklahoma chapter X account).
The structure of an academic essay is as follows: a clear guideline to follow–thesis statement, motive, evidence, analysis, keyterms, structure, stitching (connecting ideas or transition words), sources, reflection, stance, and style (Harvard Writing Project).
Upon grading Fulnecky’s paper, Professor Curthy discovered her argument about gender stereotypes solely utilized the Bible as her main source. In many cases the Bible can be properly integrated into academic writing. However, her paper only used that one source, contained several grammatical mistakes, incorrect citation and format, offensive language, contradictions, and extreme opinions (Turning Point USA).
As stated previously, Fulnecky is a junior at the University of Oklahoma. With this being said, there is a level of writing expectation that college juniors are held to. Despite this, there were several mistakes that occurred throughout her academic essay that made her paper informal. Proper writing structures are taught at a high school level. For instance, at Segerstrom High School in Orange County, students are graded on grammar, citing, formatting, language, and writing choices all within their freshman year. A portion of her final grade was due to issues that should all be second nature to her if proper writing was learned years prior.
According to Yahoo News, within 40 minutes of acquiring her final score of zero, Fulnecky contacted Professor Curthy requesting her to reconsider the score. Professor Curthy refused to reevaluate Fulnecky’s paper due to it not addressing any of the requirements set for the assignment. This prompted Fulnecky to email several notable political influences, pleading for help because she viewed this as religious persecution: “she emailed Stitt, OU President Joe Harroz Jr., her college’s dean, news outlets and the Teacher Freedom Alliance, led by former state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, asking for help. Walters, a conservative, has been a vocal supporter of incorporating the Bible in public school classrooms” (Yahoo News).
Fulnecky then submitted several appeals that would prompt her paper to be reevaluated, and sent formal complaints stating that her treatment was a result of a bias against her religious belief and political ideology.
With this news reaching the media, and several statements coming forward in support of Fulnecky, the University of Oklahoma published an official statement on the social media platform X. They stated their concerns, their seriousness in regards to the situation, and their course of action. To support their statements they would officially place professor Curthy on administrative leave on November 30, 2025.
With the release of official statements and media influence in relation to this story, there are several debates occurring across the country. There are arguments that requisitioned Professor Curthy be reinstated due to her outstanding record as a professor. For instance, approximately 4 weeks ago she was awarded the Outstanding Teaching Award for her exceptional work. Additionally, they find Fulnecky’s paper to be extremely weak for a university junior, and that the paper was graded fairly and apart from religious beliefs.
While others argue that Fulnecky is “an American hero”(Ryan Walters, X account) and inferring that Professor Curthy is “mentally ill” simply due to her being a transgender woman. Several conservatives are claiming that this issue is prejudice against their religious beliefs, and find this to be an attack on Christianity. Furthermore, it would contradict the placement of the Ten Commandments in classrooms within the states of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas.
There are many theories that Fulnecky knew exactly what she was doing because Oklahoma is considered to be a conservative state, and this situation happened to involve a transgender woman. As a result, it would be likely for groups within the state to side with Fulnecky. Their argument is prompted by the ideology that Professor Curthy was a target in the attempt to further spread “Christian propaganda” and create a political divide.
Whether this is a case of religious persecution or targeting transgender people, the discriminatory rhetoric that both sides face is inhumane. While these heated debates were prompted by a Christian student’s essay being scored at a zero by her transgender professor, they are not the only story. The argument of religious persecution is becoming either a new name for a discriminatory act or an escape route to further one’s ideology.
