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.

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.

Ohio Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal of Science Teacher

This from the School Law Blog:

The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld the termination of an 8th grade science teacher for refusing to remove religious displays from his classroom and continuing to inject his personal religious views in instruction after being told by his supervisors not to do so.

The state's highest court on Nov. 19 upheld the Mount Vernon City School District's dismissal of John Freshwater. The court's decision came after the district's board of education voted in 2008 to fire the teacher on four grounds: an incident in which Freshwater shocked a student with low-level electrical currents through a "Tesla" coil; his failure to adhere to the established curriculum; issues with his role as supervisor of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes; and disobedience of orders.

Freshwater sought a hearing before a state referee, who heard testimony from more than 80 witnesses in 38 days over 21 months. The referee sustained the termination on two of the grounds: failure to adhere to the curriculum, and disobedience of orders.

In its 4-3 decision in Freshwater v. Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education, the state supreme court upheld the termination solely on the disobedience charge.

Because there was "ample evidence of insubordination to justify the termination decision," the court said it "need not reach the constitutional issue of whether Freshwater impermissibly imposed his religious beliefs in his classroom."

Freshwater had argued that the district violated his First Amendment free speech rights based on the content or viewpoint of his curriculum-related materials with his students and his use of supplemental materials. Court papers show that Freshwater gave religious handouts to his students, showed videos on creationism and "intelligent design," displayed religious materials in his classroom, and referenced the Bible.

Administrators repeated[ly] advised Freshwater not to display religious materials and have particular religious discussions in class.

"Freshwater not only ignored the school district's directive, he defied it," Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor said. "After he was directed to remove the items, Freshwater deliberately added to them, incorporating the Oxford Bible and Jesus of Nazareth into the classroom. He then refused to remove his personal Bible from his desk, and refused to remove a depiction of former President George W. Bush and Colin Powell and others in prayer from his wall."

O'Connor said the court recognized "that this case is driven by a far more powerful debate over the teaching of creationism and intelligent design alongside evolution."

"The United States Supreme Court and at least one other federal court have held that teaching theories of creationism and intelligent design in public schools violates the Establishment Clause because they convey 'supernatural causation of the natural world' and therefore are inherently religious concepts," the state supreme court said, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's 1987 decision in Edwards v. Aguillard and the famous 2005 federal district court ruling in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District.

But the U.S. Supreme Court also held in Aguillard that teaching creationism is not prohibited in public schools as long as it is done "with the clear secular intent of enhancing the effectiveness of science instruction," the Ohio high court noted.

"Here, we need not decide whether Freshwater acted with a permissible or impermissible intent because we hold that he was insubordinate, and his termination can be justified on that basis alone," the state supreme court said. "Freshwater is fully entitled to an ardent faith in Jesus Christ and to interpret Biblical passages according to his faith. But he was not entitled to ignore direct, lawful edicts of his superiors while in the workplace."

Writing for the dissenters, Justice Terrence O'Donnell said the case was not one of "simple insubordination" but about "a veteran science teacher singled out" by the school district "because of his willingness to challenge students in his science classes to think critically about evolutionary theory and to permit them to discuss intelligent design and to debate creationism in connection with the presentation of the prescribed curriculum on evolution."

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"

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:

What is Freedom of Religion?

Issues involving our freedoms as Americans typically generate the most impassioned dialogue. I assume that is because those freedoms are so precious to all of us as a people. So I find it to be an important conversation to have.

Responding to a recent post on the US Supreme Court's refusal to hear a student-led prayer case, "Michael" commented,

This is ridiculous...whatever happened to freedom of religion which is one of the founding principles of this country...if it is "student" led prayer, then why is he being excluded from participating? "If we do not stand for something, we'll fall for anything"

I'm not so sure the court's ruling was ridiculous. But, cliche' aside, I think Michael expresses a feeling shared by many Christians. I have heard similar expressions from students, parents and others with some regularity. The topic has been a staple of talk radio for at least a decade. Heck, I've had the thought myself...before I went to the library.

But this was the first time someone brought it up on the blog, as far as I can recall. Whatever the case, this time I decided to take a swing at a response.

If America was founded upon the principle of freedom of religion - and the historical record clearly shows that it was - then what does freedom of religion mean?

Here's my (edited) answer to Michael; offered with the hope he can find something American to stand for:

Michael, If you are referring to the freedom of religion this country was founded upon - well... that "freedom" included established churches in most of the colonies, taxes paid to a particular church; Quakers hanged in Massachusetts, Baptist preachers jailed in Virginia, and much more.

The original notion of freedom of religion in America was much like what was happening in Europe at the time - small religious republics. It took a few years for that wear off and it only wore off as a result of the considerable efforts of America's founders.

In the founder's time, one’s civil rights - whether you could hold office, whether you could have custody of your own children, whether you could serve in the military, were all linked to one's religious expression.

America was not so much founded as a Christian nation, as Connecticut was founded as a Congregationalist republic, and New Hampshire was a Congregationalist republic, and North Carolina was an Anglican republic.... Understanding this makes it easier to understand what the founders were fighting against.

Protecting and perpetuating the value of religious liberty was thought of by our founders as freedom of thought. ...the same freedom of thought denied common folk prior to the Protestant Reformation, during the days of the Holy Roman Empire under "unam sanctum."

America was to become a place where, as Washington wrote to the Jews of Newport RI,

“the Children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other Inhabitants; while every one shall sit under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”

Washington had no notion whatsoever that Jews had to become Christian - or act like they were. (You may recognize Washington's quote from the book of Micah.)

He also wrote,

"...the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens in giving it on all occasions their effectual support."

It would seem that the court recognizes that any notion of freedom of religion that allows a government (including teachers paid by the government) to lead, or appear to lead prayers is a de facto, and constitutionally prohibited, "establishment" of religion."

Non-disruptive expressions of faith that come from the students, must not be infringed upon, but the state must not appear to establish.

In this case, the coach had been leading players in prayers himself for some period of time. When parents objected because he was imposing his religious views on others, he was ordered to stop. He refused, and ultimately resigned - on principle. I can only assume the principle he held to was the right to lead "his boys" to "his faith."

One can only imagine the response if a Muslim coach insisted upon the same rights. The Freshwater case in Ohio featured an individual who was similarly insistent upon pushing his own faith.

The court ruled properly.

One of my favorite stories is about some of Kentucky's earliest settlers - called the Travelling Church.

In Virginia, Baptist preachers were being thrown in jail for preaching without a license. They couldn't get a license, because they were Baptists and Virginia's established church was The Church of England (Anglican).

One the most frequently jailed preachers was Elijah Craig, not only a man of the Word, but later, a fine Kentucky bourbon-maker as well. Elijah would be denied a license, preach anyway, get thrown in jail, and continue to draw crowds as he preached through the bars of his cell.

Not exactly freedom of religion the way we think of it today.

Curiously, as John Meachem points out in American Gospel, “Baptists were the most ferocious defenders of religious liberty until they were no longer the minority.”

Craig and his big brother Lewis, led several congregations from Spotsylvania Virginia, through the Cumberland Gap, in winter, along with Lewis's slave Old Captain, who became the first African American to preach on Kentucky soil (Lexington).

The activity in Virginia greatly upset Madison, Jefferson, Henry and the other founders who fought against the repression of minority expression. Remember, many of the founder's actions were specific rejections of things they didn't like about Europe. These included being told what to think.

I also like the story about Noah Webster's Americanization of certain English words (i.e., "color" for "colour") for no other reason than to be different, and not beholden to England.

Perhaps the most explicit demonstration of how the founders saw America is found in the explicit language of the Barbary Treaties, written by Washington, and ratified unanimously by both houses of Congress during the Adams administration.

"ARTICLE 11: As the government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion, as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Musselmen [Muslims],and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan [Mohammedan] nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."

I find the early Baptists' struggle for religious freedom for all to be admirable - even patriotic, in the same sense that our founders were patriotic. I am proud that Kentuckians have largely come from such stock.

The British colonies may have been founded for Christianity, but America was not.