News, Views and Careers for All of Higher Education
July 5, 2005
Instructors place all sorts of limits on students’ term paper topics. But can they ban God from them?
That’s the question being raised by an unusual legal dispute at Victor Valley Community College, in southern California. A student there — backed by a national legal group that focuses on the rights of religious people — says that she was given a failing grade on a term paper because she repeatedly mentioned God in the paper, against her instructor’s wishes.
The legal group is demanding that the college change the grade and apologize to the student. The college is investigating the complaint and won’t comment on the specifics of the case, except to say that the student didn’t utilize the grievance process that was open to her at the college. And some faculty members say that their colleague had every right to restrict the topics he would accept for the term paper.
The student — Bethany Hauf — wrote a paper called “Religion and Its Place Within the Government,” to fulfill a research paper requirement in English 101 this spring. Her instructor, Michael Shefchik, approved the topic. But according to Hauf, he imposed a restriction, sending her an e-mail message saying, “I have one limiting factor: no mention of the big ‘G’ gods, i.e. one, true god argumentation.” After she handed in her paper with repeated references to God, Hauf says that Shefchik told her the highest possible grade she could receive on the paper was a 69, because she had ignored his instructions and her references to God could be “offensive” to other students. Taking off additional points for other matters, he gave Hauf a 49, a failing grade, she said.
Shefchik could not be reached for comment and an automatic e-mail reply indicated that he is away for the summer.
The American Center for Law and Justice is representing Hauf and threatening to sue the college if it doesn’t back down. “It is absolutely unbelievable that a student would be punished for presenting a thoughtful and well written paper that included references to God,” said Jay Sekulow, a lawyer at the center, in a statement. Sekulow said that the instructor at Victor Valley had demonstrated “a profound hostility toward religious expression.”
Bill Greulich, a spokesman for the college, said that officials there took the complaint “very seriously,” and were investigating it. “It’s a convoluted story and we don’t have all the facts yet,” he said.
While declining to discuss details of the case, Greulich stressed that Hauf had not exhausted her options at the college when she obtained legal help. She went to the department chair, Greulich said, but she had other internal options available to her and did not use them.
Greulich said he did not know the precise instructions Hauf was given, but said that it was not strange to have professors set guidelines for papers. “Instructors give specific instructions all the time,” he said.
Some of his fellow adjuncts are backing Shefchik. One, Judith Pfeffer, published a letter in The Victor Valley Daily Press last week saying, “Students who refuse to follow their teacher’s specific instructions should expect an unsatisfactory grade, just as employees who defy clear orders from their employer should expect appropriate consequences.”
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“Therefore, if someone could post the entire paper to the web ..”
Are you a lawyer? Have access to one?
Bart, at 7:46 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Bart,
Yes, I am a lawyer. Why do you ask? I have been for about 10 years now. If lawsuit actually happens, the student will have waived any rights to keep this paper secret. If you are referring to FERPA, I suggest that you explain to me how 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(4) (or the regulations promulgated by the Dept. of Education) prohibits the disclosure of the underlying paper. You would have to show that the paper itself was, among other things “Maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution.”
Even assuming that this student has a protected interest in non-disclosure of the paper, (though they the Supreme Court held in Gonzaga University v. Doe that they don’t have a private right of action under FERPA and 42 U.S.C. 1983), since the student is asserting that their paper was unfairly treated, you would think that they would be more than happy to provide the specific paper that they are whining about. Otherwise, to complain that a paper was unfairly judged, but then to argue that the school can’t disclose the paper without losing federal funding seems a little far-fetched.
If I am wrong on the FERPA issues, can you please respond with specifics.
Larry, at 9:24 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Larry, you comment: “...you would think that they would be more than happy to provide the specific paper that they are WHINING about.” (emphasis added)
Whining? I think your opinion in this case goes beyond the legal aspects.
Tom McCool, at 10:03 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Yes, I said whining. Based on this article it seems like yet another grade-grubbing kid. (Or a grade-grubbing kid with a political axe to grind.) Maybe I am wrong. I could be easily be convinced by a link to a.pdf of the paper and the professor’s instructions.
Of course, the country thinks that anyone who sues anyone for anything (especially a tort) is whining. So, why not extend this appellation to all causes of action ? Heck, why not preach the virtues of “personal responsibility” and blame the “victim” for her grades ?
Larry, at 10:27 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Dude .. chill .. Have you ever taught undergrads? Do you have any idea, how sensitive some are? Can you imagine, the effect someone like you, acting as you are, would have on them?
Yeah — there are probably public court record issues here. So, sure — release them, and probably lose the confidence of students in whatever talents that you might have.
Frankly, I hope you don’t teach. I’d never want my students (econ), around somone with your ‘I know everything’ attitude. Teaching involves issues like focus and adaptability. You may have one — but not the other.
Bart, at 10:37 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Undergrads are sensitive because professors let them be sensitive In fact, a few undergrads have confessed to me that their “sensitivity” is really manipulation. Usually it works as most professors and instructors fall for it hook, line, and sinker.
I don’t see why people want to keep papers of students confidential. If the student is asserting that they are capable of doing good work, they should be able to assert it to the world. I know when I was in school (before the age of almost free internet access and cheap server space) I let everyone see my stuff, and I thought that people who didn’t had something to hide.
I don’t think I know everything. There are many things I don’t know. However, I expect everyone to live up to the standards that they claim to be able to meet. If you are an undergrad, you are expected to live up to college-level standards. If your work doesn’t live up to college-level standards – get out!
(Oh, some years ago I taught an Econ 101 course, but the students were mostly older. Does this count?)
Larry, at 10:57 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Without knowing any of the the interpersonal specifics between the teacher and the student, it is difficult to comment on this particular situation.
However it does seem as if a reasonable request by a professor, to challenge a student to be inclusive of a larger world view when discussing religeon, has become politicized. It no longer about the student or the professor. It is about perceived discrimination of the relgious christian right to stick its nose where it does not belong.
Seth, at 11:29 am EDT on July 5, 2005
Seth is right. We need details. Of course, everyone else on here seems to be saying that for either (I think, incorrect) legal reasons or policy reasons both the “scholarly” product of students and their interactions with the professor need to be sealed and kept under lock and key for fear of offending a student’s sensitivities!
The way I see it, this student is asserting that their 1st amendment rights were violated by expressing themselves one of three clauses of the 1st amendment by punishing her for her written work. Problem is, she won’t say what her written work was. She claims that she knows that somehow her first amendment rights were violated because of the professor’s subjective intent, but we don’t really know what that professor was thinking, because we don’t have any written or oral statements from him
Of course, the way to deal with these whiners would be to assign very specific papers and require that they all be posted on the web.
Larry, at 1:22 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
I also find it interesting that the student lost an additional 20 points for other errors. Apparently, this was not a “good” paper, but assuming that the student HAD actually followed the instructor’s directions, she was at a “C” or “D” level depending upon the grading scale.
Let’s look at this as the utterly ridiculous case that it is. If the instructor requests that she not write about God, and she does, what does she expect? Really?
I, too, think this is a case of whining, as the instructions were clear; they were not followed; and the consequences—also clearly spelled out—should be no surprise to this bright student who writes good papers.
JC, at 2:01 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
“I don’t see why people want to keep papers of students confidential ..”
It is difficult to think think of a faster way to the dean’s office than possibly violating FERPA, whether in fact, or in word. IMHO, this shows a serious lack of real-world understanding of educational law.
U.S. colleges are filled with over-bearing boobs, carrying inferiority complexes, who think they can teach/reach young minds. That’s why there are so many stories like this.
Bob, at 3:03 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
I appreciate that you have “real world” understanding of this statutory scheme, but you don’t seem to be able to provide any specific legal arguments as to why my interpretation is wrong and your is correct other than that you might, at some point be called to the dean’s office.
It is great and all to say that “this isn’t the way it works,” but to us out there who have to examine the way government entities do things, day in and day out, the mere fact that one person interprets or construes a statute or regulation one way doesn’t make that determination definitive.
Anyway, at some point, colleges are going to have to stop hiding behind FERPA and start ascertaining 1) what the statute really means; 2) who has the power to enforce it; 3) how any rights under it can be waived; and 4) the extent to which it may be unconstitutional. Some institutions have already done this. Whatever the case, if this case goes to court, it will make this school a posterchild for educational transparency.
LArry, at 3:46 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
It’s interesting the various statements that I’ve read about this subject. My conclusion would be, “the point has been missed here.”
Faculty throughout the country fight for “freedom of expression” in the classroom. They don’t want their class or teaching methods censored. Yet a teacher is censoring a research paper by a student. I thought research was, “systematic inquiry into a subject in order to discover or check facts.” How then can you determine what can or can not be included in the inquiry, before the inquiry is done? Therefore if the student found that God, Christanity and the need for Godly principles, were indeed apart of government, then the student should be given the opportunity to present the discovered information in the paper without a penalty.
Most teachers grade papers based on a student starting with 100 points and then the paper is graded to determine the reduction of points based on the type of paper it is to be... compare/contrast... pro/con... etc. then points are reduced, this case 20 points... but this teacher started this students paper at 69 points... that doesn’t seem right...
WH, at 4:03 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
It’s hard to imagine how a professor could be biased against religion if he approved the topic in question. On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine how a student could write a research paper on this subject without writing of God with a capital G. It’s far more likely that the term would find its way into legitimate research under both species — God and god, in the latter case more likely with a definite article.
The professor’s instructions seem arbitrary in retrospect and their basis without foundation. Offending other students? How? When? Where? Under what duress would other students be driven to read an undergraduate paper, unless, of course, it were superb, which this one apparently was not?
The professor’s instructions, however, were clear, and the student clearly disregarded them, for which she must bear responsibility for the failing grade. It is possible to abide by those instructions, regardless of how arbitrary they may seem. If it were a matter of those instructions violating the student’s faith, then she ought not to have been on that subject at all.
In a case like this, context is everything, and without the paper itself, few of us on the outside can know whether the student’s charges have any merit. My point here would be that it need not have come to this. The professor’s instruction need not have been given. The student need not have been disobedient. There is certainly no need for a cause at law, except for those who will jump to the erroneous conclusion that religion is under attack in this case.
Please, let’s stop talking about whiny students and whether FERPA applies. The issue now seems to be whether a series of missteps by professor and student alike will result in legal donnybrook wherein truth is an orphan and right-wing bloggers set the tone.
Ron George, Texas A&M University, at 4:59 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
Prof. Du Fuss: “Hi, Dean Know-nothing. I’m going to do something, borderline questionable about FERPA.”
Dean K.: “Sure! Make my day longer! Use up our limited budget on legal fees. No problem! I won’t mind! I won’t remember, when making class assignments! I’ll even vote for your promotion! And so will your colleagues!”
Bob, at 5:46 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
WH, First of all, the teacher isn’t “censoring” anything. The teacher is evaluating whether the student fulfilled the criteria for getting a given grade. The student is free to preach about their religion all the time. Second of all, you don’t know what the student did. The ACLJ won’t post the paper on their website, nor will they post the instructions that were given to the student. Therefore, I assume that the student, like most community college students (according to community college professors), did a substandard job and didn’t even follow the instructions given. If the ACLJ would post the paper they could also post the professor’s notes so we could see exactly how the grade was calculated.
Back before the days when (usually) girls could bat their eyelashes and get an extension of time, professors would dock a paper 20-50 points for being a day late. Today, everyone gets extra time with the flimsiest of excuses, and those who don’t ask for extra time are penalized by having less time. This is why some students might start out with less than “full” credit. But, I digress.
Larry, at 5:47 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
It was never easy to understand what Academia is about, the academic standards and ethics that apply to all fields. People who think that religious expression can enter into the research process simply do not understand Academia. What is going on here, like the case where an anti-evolutionist almost got a PhD by the cherry-picking of advisors, is another politically motivated attack on Academia. The religious legal group behind the student is promoting specifically the content of the paper, that religion can be part of government and scholarship. If so, there will be no standards left to defend. Academic standards and ethics, applied to the Constitutional separation of religion and American government, or to the separation of subjective opinions and beliefs from scholarly tests of truth, are quite sufficient to any aspect of a rational life. Lose this and the U.S. will truly drift into fiction and ersatz perception, becoming an irrelevant laughing stock in the world community of scholars. Professors do need to be diplomatic and understand the power issues involved. But just reading the incredible stories and comments in this forum that are out of bounds academically, I think there is an urgent need to clarify what Academia stands for.
Japanned, Professor at Osaka Jogakuin College, Japan, at 8:17 pm EDT on July 5, 2005
Larry: are you the same Larry who wrote provocative, ignorant comments regarding the UVA cheating scandal? Or are there two of you? Just wondering.
Christine, at 1:53 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
Yes, Christine, I am the same Larry. If my comments were “provocative” so be it. If you think they are ignorant, then perhaps you could explain why. Whatever the case, I don’t see why my comments about UVA have any relevance to this issue. So, perhaps, Christine, you can explain.
I am not sure if I should take your designation of my comments as “ignorant” as an insult or not, Christine. I do not think they are ignorant. Only people who a vested interest in UVA seem to call them “ignorant.” Perhaps in your culture, calling someone’s comments “ignorant” is acceptable. I was raised to respond to arguments on a point by point basis, so perhaps we have a culture clash here.
Anyway, Christine, if you disagree with any of my points, please say so.
Larry, at 4:10 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
All I have on this is the newspapers. But it surely looks like one more instance of indoctrination rather than education — whether or not the paper was good.
Rick, alumnus at UC Berkeley, at 4:59 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
That is the problem – what it “looks” like is being carefully “spun” to avoid letting people actually review the pedagogy. Judging by the responses on here, the school is taking an overly conservative view of FERPA, and letting what, in all likelihood, was substandard work be endowed with a mantle of somehow being a legitimate, yet rigorous view.
It is too bad that scholars rely on newspapers.
Larry, at 5:20 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
“It is too bad that scholars rely on newspapers.”
Better David Broder or Nick Kristof than someone whose analysis of honor codes arrives second-hand. Having been under an honor code (UNC-Chapel Hill) and best friends under one (West Point), I’ve seen first-hand, the positive results.
If you really ever taught, I feel sorry for your students — conflict for the sake of conflict, rather than accuracy and understanding.
Art, at 6:01 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
How am I being inaccurate by demanding to actually see the paper in question ?
But, in my view, if students want understanding they should go whine to their families. Not their professors. (My culture disapproves of seeing therapists.)
The rest of your comment doesn’t make any sense. How does “honor” have anything to do with whether this person performed adequately on her assignment or not ?
Larry, at 7:15 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
“How am I being inaccurate by demanding to actually see the paper in question ?”
This reminds me, of the rookie lawyer, constantly objecting, until the word-weary presiding judge pulls him aside and tells him “counselor, take a break.”
“The rest of your comment doesn’t make any sense. How does “honor” have anything to do with whether this person performed adequately on her assignment or not ?”
After the comments you made here ..
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/06/30/uva
it is clear to me, determining basic facts and perceiving reality are socio-cultural challenges for you. Try the Paul Krugman message board at nytimes.com — they’re looking for reality, too. Have a nice day.
Art, at 8:52 pm EDT on July 6, 2005
Larry: Ignorant—without knowledge of the subject—clearly demonstrated in your UVA rant, based on comments that countless UVA grads supposedly made to you. No, you didn’t “attend” UVA, but you “work around” and near these grads. I don’t think we have a culture clash, Larry, it’s more like a veracity clash. I’ll look forward to your future comments on the many subjects I’m sure you will expound on.
Christine, at 4:29 am EDT on July 7, 2005
So let me get this straight: I say that some UVA grads have represented to me that they cheated when they attended school there. You don’t believe me because UVA grads can do no wrong. Therefore, in Christine’s world, my argument insistence on actually seeing the document in question is void.
I don’t see what one has to do with the other. Secondly, Christine, I think you are just hurt that someone actually questioned your school. Get over it. Not everyone loves every school.
Larry, at 8:25 am EDT on July 7, 2005
Honor codes are simple and direct: students will not steal, cheat or lie, and will report those who do. Thus, it is said, if a student leaves a laptop out, it will not be stolen. Also, students are allowed to leave an exam room, with the understanding that will not be done to cheat.
Violators caught are brought before Honor Courts for a process that is confrontational and painful. I’ve had friends testify in Honor Court against cheaters.
In today’s world of parsing and uninformated yapping, honor codes may seem quaint. They are not. They are powerful tools to build identity, community, tradition, and high standards.
Yes, there are cheaters who are not caught — and they are known to their peers. Those peers will hesitate to associate with violaters, given their dishonorable behavior. Those cheaters pay a price for their behavior — working below their classmates.
Art, at 11:02 am EDT on July 7, 2005
Larry: This is my last comment on the matter—gotta get back to the real world. I was not discussing the document question. Nor did I attend UVA. I saw a similarity in the type of comment—provocation for its own sake—made by someone named Larry on two different issues. Larry, you’re the star of your own soap opera. Enjoy.
Christine, at 11:55 am EDT on July 7, 2005
Larry, I have to agree with Christine. Your comments seem to be motivated by a need for attention and a need to put others who post down. Congratulations, you’ve once again turned the attention from the subject at hand to yourself. Grow up.
Jennette, at 6:16 pm EDT on July 7, 2005
I am quite sure that this is not the last I will hear from you. You seem to see something wrong with saying things that conflict with your vision of the “real world.” You call these things “provocative.” So what? If you disagree, you are welcome to provide specifics. However, it seems the best you can do is insult me.
Well, here is my vision of the “real world": 1) Some UVA grads told me that they cheated ; 2) I am withholding judgment as to who is right or wrong on this “paper” matter until I can actually view the paper and assignment given for myself.
In the real world, you will learn, people will say things that you disagree with. Unless you are prepared to rebut them, people will laugh at you. Pretty provocative stuff, there.
Larry, at 6:16 pm EDT on July 7, 2005
Larry,I agree with you, how can anyone base an opinion on this case until all the facts come out into the open. Oh wait, I know-if your mind was made up already. Articles on this site that deal with right-wing religious issues are linked by FrontPageMag, Academic Watch, and other advocacy sites, and the comments section gets overrun with true believers. It’s too bad that we can’t have anything approximating a real debate about some of these issues, but I don’t think that is the goal of these advocacy groups. They want to either purge academia of whatever thought they deem objectionable or destroy it altogether. I expect a straw man rebuttal to this post that talks about tenure...
Tom Trent, at 5:43 am EDT on July 8, 2005
Being academically curious, I google’d Mr. T’s words, and came up with this ..
http://www.frontpagemag.com/articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=16946
If I understand this, Mr. H. is asking for alternative viewpoints, in courses involving controversial political and social issues.
This is, as opposed, to a senior-level U.S. political economics course I took, a decade ago, from a burnt-out hippie (and, yes, tenured) that featured his vision of “socialist America.”
He was dull and pendantic, it was dull and pendantic, and everyone got 3.0/B grades.
If you’re wondering why, so many people are complaining about the quality of K-16 — try sitting through 10 weeks of endless preaching about theoretical Utopias. At least Mr. W.L. Churchill yells and screams — an entertaining freak show.
Of course, the university did not widely disclose, a priori, this professor’s political schtick. Why? Was it, had that information been widely disclosed, enrollment might have dropped off significantly?
If there is going to be a discussion of issues — require the faculty to post their syllabuses and assignments, before enrollment. That might save some legal angst — and increase enrollment in courses requiring thinking and not stenography.
Homer, at 6:55 am EDT on July 8, 2005
Anyway, Homer, it is likely that everyone has a political viewpoint. Indeed, even “established” textbooks in “real” subjects begin with certain assumptions about what the discipline should be doing. The question is whether and how they should be disclosed from the beginning. So, for example, I will be quite up front about telling people that they should have four years of atheist science, which, unless god is proven under the framework of that discipline then she should not be mentioned.
I don’t think that there is any legal impediment to requiring that faculty post their syllabuses before enrollment. What might be a problem, however, is that some schools are too disorganized to actually know how to make this work.
Finally, I am glad that someone actually wants to have a look at the documents first. Whatever the case, I am somewhat amused that I have become a target for a round of “girl power” taunts from girls who can’t seem to get that the issue is Victor Valley Community College not UVA. I hope they feel empowered by their irrelevant comments.
Larry, at 8:47 am EDT on July 8, 2005
The situation in question sounds very much like one I encountered a year or two ago. A student in one of my lit classes was assigned a 3-pg paper on a poem we had studied in the course. The paper was to consist of literary analysis. What I received was a 3-pg paper on her relationship with God (launched by a poem we didn’t read in my course), and the poem—in this case, “Pied Beauty"—was hardly a factor beyond her labored intro. “F”
steven, at 9:52 pm EDT on July 8, 2005
Larry: Dismissing comments from women who take issue with your postings as an attempt at “girl power” is obnoxious and sexist. Many readers lost interest in your rants after the UVA cheating article, and now even more (especially women) are just going to tune you out.
LA, Girl Power??, at 3:24 pm EDT on July 12, 2005
LA, Since people are still responding to my posts, I think that your assertion that people are not “interested” is incorrect. In fact, I think that you said it because you disagree with their substance and/or are jealous of me. Therefore, I think you seriously consider why you said it and consider whether you are capable of responding directly to something that someone said.
As to whether or not I am sexist, it doesn’t matter. I addressed all of your concerns, point by point. Whether I assume that women are going to make vague arguments without substance, and rely on slogans and idle chatter is irrelevant to the substance of the debate. Besides, everyone is a little sexist, right ?
As to UVA, I don’t know why you are so upset that one of their alums told me that they cheated. Get over it. People cheat. Even at UVA. In fact, even people who teach there say the UVA’s procedures may discourage people from reporting a lot of incidents.
Larry, at 7:55 am EDT on July 13, 2005
Yes Larry, I’m SO jealous. I wish I were as abrasive and sexist as you. I enjoy this site greatly but your posts infuriate me. I don’t respond (besides this time) because I don’t want to give you the attention you seek. Guess I’m doing that now though, so I’ll stop.
LA, give me a break, at 10:17 am EDT on July 13, 2005
I am sorry that my posts infuriate you. A lot of arguments infuriate me, but I have learned to address them point by point rather than insulting people as you seem willing to do. This is pretty much a basic part of being a scholar, or a lawyer, or a human.
Perhaps if you were to respond directly to them, rather than insulting me you might be able to get more out of them. Look, my only point was that we would ALL benefit by getting a chance to look at this girl’s paper. We could judge the scholarly quality of the paper, and we could judge for ourselves whether she was treated unfairly. You have, to date, never offered a critique of my suggestion. At least the people who offered legal reasons (that I think were incorrect) could stay on topic.
I am sure that you will respond again.
Larry, at 10:30 am EDT on July 13, 2005
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Post the paper
In my experience, a lot of these “oppressed” kids didn’t follow directions. Therefore, if someone could post the entire paper to the web, we could judge for ourselves whether the accusations are true or not.
Larrry88, at 7:26 am EDT on July 5, 2005