SAN JOSÉ, Calif., July 26, 2010—Nearly three years after terminating her over her protected classroom speech, the San José/Evergreen Community College District (SJCCD) has agreed to pay adjunct professor June Sheldon $100,000 in lost earnings in exchange for dismissal of her First Amendment lawsuit. In 2007, Sheldon had led a brief discussion about the nature/nurture debate regarding sexual orientation in her Human Heredity course. After she was fired due to a student complaint, she turned to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) for help.

“This welcome settlement demonstrates that colleges cannot get away with punishing a professor for teaching relevant class material, even if a student finds it offensive,” said FIRE President Greg Lukianoff. “Professor Sheldon is finally able to put this ordeal behind her, but the district’s ignorance of academic freedom and the First Amendment has left the taxpayers of California on the hook for over $100,000.”

Sheldon’s trouble began in the summer of 2007 when, in her Human Heredity course at San José City College, she led a brief discussion on sexual orientation. The topic was covered in the course readings. When a student asked her to comment on the nature/nurture debate regarding sexual orientation, Sheldon noted the complexity of the issue, citing examples from the textbook as well as relevant research findings. A student complained a month later that the material was “offensive and unscientific.”

via Victory for Academic Freedom: ‘Human Heredity’ Professor Receives $100,000 Settlement – FIRE.

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