Re: [asa] Why the Iowa teacher was fired

Is telling someone to pop a prozac a reason to be fired? The student
felt that she had been attacked for her christian beliefs.
So why did the school tell the teacher by phone that he was fired for
teaching religion in a historical class?

So how do you know which of these stories presents the correct reason?
And is the reason perhaps evolving ?

Of course, the way a professor presents a view could be an actionable
offense, but being fired by phone suggests that there was a more
pressing reason such as students claiming that their religious
freedoms had been violated and that they were going to sue?

On 9/26/07, John Walley <john_walley@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Pim,
>
> A student left in tears after being told in a heated debate to pop a Prozac is somewhat different than a statement on religion.
>
> Remember these words to me from another post?
>
> "Surely you do understand the differences here between what you seemed to claim and what [was] really said?
>
> John
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: PvM <pvm.pandas@gmail.com>
> To: James Mahaffy <mahaffy@dordt.edu>
> Cc: asa@calvin.edu
> Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2007 10:49:53 PM
> Subject: Re: [asa] Why the Iowa teacher was fired
>
>
> strangely he was told that he was fired for his statements on
> religion. What makes this somehow different?
>
> On 9/25/07, James Mahaffy <mahaffy@dordt.edu> wrote:
> > Folks,
> >
> > This evening there is another lead story in the Des Moines register that makes it clear that the professor that was fired from an Iowa Community College was fired for his style and not his beleifs. He had a heated debate with students over their literal belief in the Bible and picked on one of them enough that she left in tears after being told in a heated debate to pop a Prozac. By his own admission he was trying to challenge some of the student's beliefs.
> >
> > He was also an adjunct and not a full time staff member. When Pim brought this up I suggested that there was likely more to the story. We as professors have a responsibility to respect the students beliefs. Even though I believe in an old earth, I try hard to not undermine the core YEC beliefs of students, while still showing them what are some of the weaknesses of their positions.
> >
> > James Mahaffy (mahaffy@dordt.edu) Phone: 712 722-6279
> > 498 4th Ave NE
> > Biology Department FAX : 712 722-1198
> > Dordt College, Sioux Center IA 51250-1697
> >
> >
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> >
>
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Received on Wed Sep 26 11:35:09 2007