2025 University of Oklahoma essay controversy

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In November 2025, a controversy arose surrounding a failing grade given to an essay by University of Oklahoma (OU) psychology student Samantha Fulnecky, which she characterized as an example of religious discrimination. The essay was graded independently by two instructors, both graduate teaching assistants, who argued that Fulnecky had not done what was assigned. Fulnecky was enrolled in a psychology class in which students were instructed to read and discuss a research study which correlated gender typicality and the social lives and mental health of middle school boys and girls. Fulnecky's essay argued that there were only two genders and that gender roles were created by God, referring to the Bible. She wrote that while she did not want kids to be bullied, in the context of gender norm enforcement, it was morally justified. She also used biblical authority to call social acceptance of transgender people "demonic". The essay was unrelated to the study; transgender and nonbinary identities...

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