Posted on 06/28/2005 7:23:53 AM PDT by zlala
Term paper about 'God' earns student failing grade 'He told me you might as well write about the Easter Bunny. He wanted to censor the word God.'
VICTORVILLE — For using the "G" word 41 times in a term paper, Bethany Hauf was given an "F" by her Victor Valley Community College instructor.
Hauf's teacher approved her term paper topic — Religion and its Place within the Government — on one condition: Don't use the word God. Instead of complying with VVCC adjunct instructor Michael Shefchik's condition Hauf wrote a 10-page report for her English 101 class entitled "In God We Trust."
"He said it would offend others in class," Hauf, a 34-year-old mother of four, said. "I didn't realize God was taboo."
Hauf has received legal assistance from the American Center for Law and Justice. The ACLJ is a conservative Christian legal foundation founded by Dr. M.G. "Pat" Robertson, who is also the founder, chairman and face of the Christian Broadcasting Network.
"I don't loose my First Amendment rights when I walk into that college," Hauf said. She is demanding an apology from the teacher and that the paper be re-graded.
The college says the issue over Hauf's paper, written during the spring semester, has been satisfactorily resolved. "We settled this matter during the course of this class," said Judy Solis, chair of VVC's English department. "She was treated fairly and she knew what the options were."
Shefchik could not be reached for this report.
Hauf took her concerns about not being able to use "God" in her report to her teacher, then to the department chair. During a joint meeting between all three the options were laid out: Hand in the report with the "G" word or revise, edit or re-write the paper, Solis said.
"She continued to write her paper," Solis said. "She knew what the consequences were."
Hauf acknowledges she knew her teacher's condition for writing the paper, but argued it would be impossible to write about the affect of Christianity on the development of the United States without using the word God. "He told me you might as well write about the Easter Bunny," Hauf said. "He wanted to censor the word God."
Hauf first approached her teacher about writing her paper in an April 12 e-mail, according to a 12-page ACLJ paper sent to the college offering legal opinions in favor of Hauf.
Shefchik wrote her back an e-mail approving her topic choice, but at the same time cautioning her to be objective in her reporting. "I have one limiting factor," Shefchik wrote, according to the ACLJ. "No mention of big 'G' gods, i.e., one, true god argumentation."
The ACLJ said his actions are unconstitutional. "A student's constitutional free speech rights to express religious views are fully protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments," the ACLJ wrote.
In addition to an apology and a re-grading of Hauf's paper, the ACLJ demands Shefchik "receive some kind of training to sensitize him to the constitutional dimensions of his employment in a public educational institution, including his duty to respect constitutional freedoms of expression."
Hauf's husband supports his wife's position. "She has to pursue this. Not only has her civil rights been violated this is an English class she took, not a political science course," Fritz Hauf said. "She should be graded on the composition not the 'G' word."
Though getting an "F" on the research paper Hauf got a "C" for the class.
LeRoy Standish may be reached at 951-6277 or leroy_standish@link.freedom.com.
No, Thomas Paine was an atheist who claimed to be a deist.
Read up on him.
Thanks, it's already obvious that I know far more about him than you do. And I'm already familiar with Jefferson as well, so you can go deliver your elementary-school lectures somewhere else.
Jefferson was idiotic.
Riiiiiiiiight. I don't think I need to waste any more time with you.
As part of our grade we had to post all our work on a class blackboard, this is like a class website. I posted my paper on the site to get a peer review of my work prior to submitting my final draft. My paper was removed by the teacher along with my comments to my classmates regarding the matter at hand. not only was he trying to censor my work but denied me access others were afforded.
Brucifer bump!
;o)
you mean the other 84% of American Christains? or the 96% of Americans that beleive in a Higher power?
oops, I ment to direct that last comment to Former ACLUMember.
I can get as creative as the next guy, however, in God We Trust is our nations motto. The phrase is on our money. God is celebrated by government office closures on religious holidays. God is honored in our pledge to the flag and in our National Anthem( 4th verse). God is a part of our culture. I could have substituted the word GOD but I felt it would compromise the integrity of the paper. Whether you believe in God is irrelevant. No one should have to censor the truth about how millions of people feel to appease anyone.
> in God We Trust is our nations motto
"E Pluribus Unum," thank-you-very-much.
> The teacher approved my topic, however, it was not until one week before my final paper was due that I was told if I used the “G“ word I would receive a failing grade.
Wel, now, that's different.
However, a find-and-replace of "God" with "Redacted" or "Expurgated" or "Consored" would have been easy, funny, appropriate and A-worthy.
I would be happy to share my paper with you. send me an e-mail and i will forward it: bethany_1776@yahoo.com
For the 453rd time, the word is L-O-S-E. I would assume that basic English is still taught to journalism students. Maybe they could squeeze it in after their "The Ignorant Masses" and "How to Shape Public Opinion" classes.
This reminds me of the English teacher I had in high school, who wanted to study a couple of books of the Bible as literature, and didn't want to get into "religious discussions". Yeah, that makes sense. Not like the Bible has anything to do with religion.
She was certainly a very intelligent woman, otherwise. I could only assume that this ridiculous assignment revealed the mind of a leftist.
welcome to fr.
the poorly written news article had implied differently:
"Hauf's teacher approved her term paper topic — Religion and its Place within the Government — on one condition: Don't use the word God."
...
"Hauf acknowledges she knew her teacher's condition for writing the paper"
That is how I interpreted the article, as well.
atheism has been deemed a religion
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