Teacher With Bible Divides Ohio Town

An Ohio teacher, who apparently forgot that he represents the state, provided a field guide for those who would establish religion in the public schools.

He led his football players in prayers before games; before practices; before team meetings. His district had to settle a $18,000 suit as a result.

Later, he proposed that the school board adopt a policy to teach evolution as theory, not proven scientific fact and was denied. He taught Intelligent Design instead and his colleagues began to complain that when they received his former students they had not mastered the basics, causing them to have to reteach.

Students complained that he said, “Science is wrong because the Bible states that homosexuality is a sin, and so anyone who is gay chooses to be gay and is therefore a sinner.”

Then there was the time he burned a cross (he says it's an X) on the arm of one of his students with a tesla coil.

More recently he posted the Ten Commandments on his classroom door, adorned his room with three more copies of the decalogue and other posters with scripture on it. Supported by a religious activist, he drew battlelines refusing to remove a Bible from the view of his students.

His persistent effort over time to impose his strongly held views promoting a specific religion is the clearest case of establishment of religion in recent memory.

This from the New York Times:

Most people in this quiet all-American town describe themselves as devoutly Christian, but even here they are deeply divided over what should happen to John Freshwater.

Mr. Freshwater, an eighth-grade public school science teacher, is accused of burning a cross onto the arms of at least two students and teaching creationism, charges he says have been fabricated because he refused an order by his principal to remove a Bible from his desk.

After an investigation, school officials notified Mr. Freshwater in June 2008 of their intent to fire him, but he asked for a pre-termination hearing, which has lasted more than a year and cost the school board more than a half-million dollars.

The hearing is finally scheduled to end Friday, and a verdict on Mr. Freshwater’s fate is expected some months later. But the town — home to about 15,000 people, more than 30 churches and an evangelical university — remains split.

To some, Mr. Freshwater is a hero unfairly punished for standing up for his Christian beliefs. To others, he is a zealot who pushed those beliefs onto students...

KSN&C Backstory:

Teacher's 'branding' case opens a religious divide

This in the Los Angeles Times, by Tim Jones of the Chicago Tribune:

John Freshwater, who teaches middle school science,

is said to have burned a student's arm during class;

the parents are suing.

His supporters say his creationist beliefs are on trial.

MT. VERNON, OHIO -- It's the kind of story that turns heads and stomachs alike, especially in a small town. A well-known and popular middle school science teacher known for strong religious beliefs is charged with branding the shape of a cross onto the forearm of an eighth-grader.The teacher is in big and possibly career-ending trouble, a quiet college town is bitterly divided and the Bible is at the center of it.

The case of John Freshwater, a 21-year veteran of the Mt. Vernon City School District, has split this politically conservative town of 14,000 into camps -- those who see Freshwater as a heroic figure, persecuted for his Christian beliefs and his insistence on having his personal Bible on his desk, and those who condemn him as a religious predator promoting creationism and intelligent design and undermining the teaching of evolution in violation of school policy.

Around town, some suggest that the unidentified child made up the branding story or that the photo of the child's forearm was doctored. Others say Freshwater, who teaches creationism and intelligent design at Trinity Worship Center, has been pushing his personal religious agenda in the public school for years.

In 2003, Freshwater proposed a policy to "critically analyze evolution," which the school board rejected.Freshwater, 52, has vehemently denied branding anyone and insists he teaches evolution. In a brief interview, Freshwater said the investigation into his activities was biased. All this is prelude to an Aug. 26 hearing at which a referee will consider the school board's unanimous recommendation that Freshwater, who has been suspended without pay, be fired.

The alleged branding occurred in December during a classroom science experiment. Freshwater was using an electrostatic device common in science classroom demonstrations. Science teachers at the school say they have used the device for many years to identify the color of gases.

Freshwater told investigators, according to an independent probe, that students often ask if they can touch the device, which carries high voltage but low current. On that day, several students volunteered, including one unidentified child whose parents complained of a crosslike "burn that remained on their child's arm for three or four weeks," the report said.

The parents are suing Freshwater and the school system.

Many here wish the whole matter would go away, along with the television crews that have swooped in for another chapter in the simmering national saga of creationism versus evolution."There's a battle of ideology going on here," said Don Matolyak, a Freshwater supporter and pastor at the church where he teaches. "I believe the ultimate issue is the Bible on the desk." No way, argues Beth Murdock, who runs a downtown bakery. "This makes us look like a bunch of hicks, and that's not what this is."

"I don't think he meant to burn anybody," she said. "He got some bad counsel to make this all about the Bible and God. All he needed to do was say he was sorry, but he wouldn't do that."

The alleged branding has overshadowed a more complex story of religious beliefs and public education. Freshwater supporters argue that religious freedom is on trial here, along with the teacher.

The school district begs to differ.

"To try to put this in the context of Scopes would not be appropriate," said school board attorney David Millstone, referring to the Tennessee teacher tried in 1925 for teaching evolution. "This is about the safety and well-being of students and protecting their constitutional rights to get an education."

Mt. Vernon is home to several thriving manufacturers and Mt. Vernon Nazarene University. A few miles down the road in Gambier is Kenyon College, founded in 1824 to educate clergymen "for frontier America," according to the Kenyon website. Alumni include President Rutherford B. Hayes, author E.L. Doctorow and actor Paul Newman.

Freshwater's case has strained the community. One yard sign read, "The student goes. We support Mr. Freshwater. The Bible stays!"Lori Miller, a mathematics teacher at the middle school, said Freshwater was being singled out for his religious beliefs. Miller said she kept a Bible on her desk too and, like Freshwater, had posters on her classroom walls with religious themes. Other teachers have Bibles in their rooms, she said."Nobody's ever told me to remove my Bible or to remove the other religious material hanging on my walls," Miller said.

Freshwater is teaching children to ask questions "and not just to take what a teacher said as a fact."The investigative report said Freshwater "challenged kids to question [Charles] Darwin," the English naturalist who formulated a theory of evolution.

The report also cited work sheets given to students that ask, "Is there an I.D. [intelligent design] involved?"On Main Street, opinions reflect the community's discomfort.Anne Storan, who runs a bookstore, called Freshwater "a wonderful man" who is well-liked by the community. "And because they like him they've protected him."

Up the street, Lori Metcalf, who runs a music store with her husband, said Freshwater was the best teacher her daughter ever had."Do I think he might have overstepped his bounds? Yes," Metcalf said. "But he should be reprimanded, not fired."

Backstory from KSN&C.

Town split over teacher accused of preaching

This from MSNBC:

Ohio science teacher, 53, accused of

burning crosses into students' arms

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - Demonstrations on the town square show how divided people are over the school board's decision to fire a science teacher accused of preaching his Christian beliefs in the classroom and burning crosses on students' arms.

John Freshwater, 52, was fired last month after an outside consulting firm released a report concluding that he taught creationism and was insubordinate in failing to remove a Bible and other religious materials from his classroom at Mount Vernon Middle School.

Some residents consider him a courageous fighter for religious freedom. Others say he has brazenly violated the church-state divide.

"This is going to be a mess," said Dr. Allan Bazzoli, who has written letters to the local newspaper criticizing Freshwater. "Resident against resident, and worse, student against student."

Freshwater's supporters have rallied on the town's square urging school board members to resign. A much-viewed sign about a mile from town reads: "If the Bible goes, the school board should follow." ...

...Jessica Philemond, an attorney for the unnamed student's family that is suing Freshwater and the school district, said that raises some troubling questions.

"I want to find out who had complained, to whom they complained and why for 11 years nothing was done," Philemond said. "They could have taken action a
while ago."

Bazzoli and other critics say the public's support for Freshwater may be wavering. A demonstration last month in which supporters urged school board members to resign attracted just 25 people...

Here's the KSN&C's backstory: "What Establishment of Religion Looks Like"

What Establishment of Religion Looks Like

There are probably many teachers who have Bibles in their classrooms and it's never a problem.

There were probably times when I had a Bible in my classroom. In fact, I'm not completely sure how one teaches western civilization and the persistent conflicts between the church and the state without some understanding of the Book of Matthew.

That said, an Ohio teacher provides a field guide for those who would establish religion in the public schools.

He led his football players in prayers before games; before practices; before meetings. His district had to settle a $18,000 suit as a result. Later, he taught Intelligent design. More recently he posted the Ten Commandments on his classroom door, and now, supported by a religious activist, refuses to remove a Bible from the view of his students.

His persistent effort over time to impose his strongly held views promoting a specific religion smells like ...establishment.

This from the Columbus Dispatch:

Teacher, school district battle over Bible in classroom

A Mount Vernon science teacher said today that he will refuse to remove a Bible from his classroom desk, despite his school district's order.

"Thousands of citizens in this community have built their lives on deeply held religious convictions, and it is for them that I stand today," John Freshwater, 51, who teaches at Mount Vernon Middle School, said in a news release.

The religious activist Dave Daubenmire, Freshwater's friend, acted as his spokesman today. "This is not a religion issue; this is a free-speech issue," Daubenmire said. "He didn't take the Bible to read to anybody."

Mount Vernon Superintendent Steve Short said Freshwater's characterization of the events leading to the district order that he remove religious items from his classroom was "not entirely accurate," but Short wouldn't elaborate.

The district later released a one-paragraph statement saying that district officials don't oppose religion but are required "under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution to protect against the establishment of religion in the schools. As a public school system the district cannot teach, promote or favor any religion or religious beliefs."

Freshwater and Daubenmire believe that separation of church and state "is a fraud" and that the framers of the Constitution never intended it to be practiced the way it is today, Daubenmire said.

The district asked Freshwater last week to remove the Ten Commandments from the door to his classroom and to remove the Bible from the view of students. About 3,900 students attend Mount Vernon schools. Mount Vernon is about 52 miles northeast of Columbus.

Freshwater took down the Ten Commandments but decided that being prevented from taking a Bible into the classroom was going too far.

In the past, Freshwater has taught his students about the "holes in evolution" and intelligent design, the theory that a supernatural power created complex forms of life, Daubenmire said.

"Would our government ask a follower of Islam to remove her burqa in order to teach school?" Freshwater said in his written statement. "Would we ask a science teacher to remove The Origin of Species from his desk merely because the origin of man has never been proven?

"I cannot with a clear conscience follow a directive that makes religion and the religious viewpoint any less credible by those who deem themselves more enlightened."

Freshwater wouldn't answer questions directly because of the likelihood he will file a lawsuit charging "viewpoint discrimination," Daubenmire said.

Daubenmire is the former London High School football coach whose district was sued in 1999 by the American Civil Liberties Union because he led his players in prayer at games, practices and meetings. The district settled out of court, and its insurance company paid the ACLU $18,000 for court costs.

And this from the Mount Vernon News: Photo by Pamela Schehl.

AUDIO of Rally.

MOUNT VERNON — Nearly 100 people gathered on Mount Vernon’s Public Square on Wednesday afternoon, in a show of support for middle school science teacher John Freshwater.

The Mount Vernon City School administration has demanded Freshwater remove a Bible from his desk at school, even though a Bible has been a fixture in his classroom for many years.

The school district told Freshwater he cannot, as a public school teacher, engage in any activity that promotes or denigrates a particular religion.

Freshwater complied with a request to remove a a copy of the 10 commandments from display in his classroom, but is resistant to removing the Bible. He said the district’s mandate is an infringement of his First Amendment rights to free speech and to freely express his beliefs.

It is unclear as to what prompted the school district’s action.

September 12, 2007:
Parents’ objections spark cancellation of FCA speaker—Administrators of public institutions, such as schools, are sometimes caught up in a balancing act, trying to ensure the rights of citizens are not violated while at the same time following established rules and procedures. That seems to be the case with regard to an occurrence Tuesday at Mount Vernon Middle School.

June 3, 2003:
Mount Vernon Board of Education turns down proposal— The Mount Vernon Board of Education turned down a proposal on the teaching of evolution at its board meeting Monday at the Mount Vernon Middle School library.