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Oklahoma teaching assistant fired after uproar over flunking Christian student who referenced Bible in essay

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Oklahoma teaching assistant fired after uproar over flunking Christian student who referenced Bible in essay

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Weeks after a University of Oklahoma student’s story about being flunked on a paper that touted her Christian faith caused a viral uproar, the teaching assistant behind the grade has been fired.

“Based on an examination of the graduate teaching assistant’s prior grading standards and patterns, as well as the graduate teaching assistant’s own statements related to this matter, it was determined that the graduate teaching assistant was arbitrary in the grading of this specific paper,” the state’s flagship school said in a Monday evening statement. “The graduate teaching assistant will no longer have instructional duties at the University.”

Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at the school, received zero out of 25 on an assignment in which she referenced the Bible after graduate teaching assistant William “Mel” Curth, who uses she/they pronouns, scored the paper.

The teaching assistant tasked Fulnecky and her classmates with writing a response to a scholarly article titled “Relations Among Gender Typicality, Peer Relations, and Mental Health During Early Adolescence,” which discusses results of a study about gender norms among middle schoolers and the social ramifications children may face for not conforming to gender norms.

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OU student Samantha Fulnecky, with her Bible, in the Oklahoma Memorial Union, Nov. 24, 2025. (Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman/Imagn Images)

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They were asked to provide a “thoughtful discussion of some aspect of the article.” The rubric for the assignment did not require students to provide empirical evidence in their responses.

The third-year student responded by saying that gender norms should be celebrated, not denigrated. She cited Genesis, the first book of the Bible, in which God created men and women equally, but with separate purposes.

“Gender roles and tendencies should not be considered ‘stereotypes,’” Fulnecky wrote in her essay. “Women naturally want to do womanly things because God created us with those womanly desires in our hearts. The same goes for men. God created men in the image of His courage and strength, and He created women in the image of His beauty. He intentionally created women differently than men and we should live our lives with that in mind.”

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UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA REMOVES PROFESSOR FOR ALLEGED DISCRIMINATION RELATED TO TA WHO GAVE CHRISTIAN STUDENT 0

Students walk on campus between classes at the University of Oklahoma on March 11, 2015, in Norman, Oklahoma. (Brett Deering/Getty Images)

She later described the societal push toward nonbinary gender identification as “demonic.”

Curth took exception to Fulnecky’s essay, and gave her a zero out of 25.

“Please note that I am not deducting points because you have certain beliefs, but instead I am deducting point [sic] for you posting a reaction paper that does not answer the questions for this assignment, contradicts itself, heavily uses personal ideology over empirical evidence in a scientific class, and is at times offensive,” Curth’s explanation for the grade said.

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Curth said the concept of only two sexes is not backed by science.

“You may personally disagree with this, but that doesn’t change the fact that every major psychological, medical, pediatric, and psychiatric association in the United States acknowledges that, biologically and psychologically, sex and gender is neither binary nor fixed,” Curth said.

Samantha Fulnecky, with her Bible, in the Oklahoma Memorial Union, Nov. 24, 2025. (Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

The graduate teaching assistant also called Fulnecky’s essay “highly offensive.”

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“I definitely think that I was being punished for what I believe because I very clearly stated in my essay in my response to the article, I very clearly stated my beliefs and stated what — not just my beliefs — but what the Bible and what God says about gender and about those roles,” Fulnecky told Fox News Digital amid the uproar.

Curth was placed on administrative leave after the student filed a discrimination claim, as the university conducted an investigation.

In its statement announcing Curth’s firing, the university said the school’s provost, described as the “highest-ranking academic officer,” personally reviewed the incident before the decision to fire Curth was made.

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“Because this matter involves both student and faculty rights, the University has engaged in repeated and detailed conversations with the Faculty Senate Executive Committee to ensure there is an understanding of the facts, the process, and the actions being taken,” the statement said.

The essay grade at the University of Oklahoma caused an uproar. (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

The school also noted that Fulnecky’s grade had been restored. 

“The University of Oklahoma believes strongly in both its faculty’s rights to teach with academic freedom and integrity and its students’ right to receive an education that is free from a lecturer’s impermissible evaluative standards. We are committed to teaching students how to think, not what to think. The University will continue to review best practices to ensure that its instructors have the comprehensive training necessary to objectively assess their students’ work without limiting their ability to teach, inspire, and elevate our next generation.”

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Los Angeles, Ca

‘What’s going on with our society?’ Elderly L.A. street vendor violently beaten

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‘What’s going on with our society?’ Elderly L.A. street vendor violently beaten

WARNING: Video footage contains graphic violence

A 62-year-old street vendor is recovering after a brutally violent attack by another woman in broad daylight as bystanders in downtown Los Angeles looked on.

The attack happened around 4 p.m. on June 15 in the 700 block of Figueroa Street, where Arabelia Martinez has sold hot dogs for years to support herself and her family.

Video of the incident, which has since circulated widely online, appears to show a woman confronting Martinez at her stand before spraying sauce across the vendor’s cart. Martinez responds by throwing what appears to be Tajín seasoning in the woman’s direction, and the confrontation quickly escalates.

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A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia)

The difficult-to-watch footage shows Martinez being shoved to the ground and struck multiple times as people look on. Some can be seen attempting to intervene, but the assault continues for roughly a minute before coming to an end.

“I was speechless,” Martinez’s son, Constantino Garcia, said after watching the video. “I couldn’t even see the whole thing.”

According to Garcia, the suspect approached his mother before the attack and attempted to intimidate her into giving her money.

“The lady came up to my mom trying to intimidate her and extort her for money, telling her she needed a permit to sell, which my mom does have,” Garcia told KTLA’s Carlos Saucedo.

When Martinez refused, Garcia claims the woman became verbally abusive.

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“After she didn’t get her way and tried to extort my mom, she said, ‘Go back to Mexico,’ and made some racist remarks,” he said. “She said some disgusting things to my mom.”

Garcia said his mother continues to suffer lingering effects from the attack.

“She keeps complaining about her head,” he said. “We need to go see a head specialist because her head doesn’t stop hurting. As you could see in the video, she got slammed to the ground.”

  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack
  • Elderly downtown L.A. street vendor brutally beaten in attack

The video has also sparked outrage over the response from some witnesses who were nearby during the assault.

“What’s going on with our society?” Garcia said. “Are we getting desensitized to an elderly woman being beaten in broad daylight and being surrounded by people doing the bare minimum to help her? That was horrible for me to watch.”

Witness Sebastian Gutierrez said he arrived moments after the confrontation and saw Garcia’s attacker causing additional chaos in the area.

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“The lady began to flip over the tables of vendors,” Gutierrez said, describing the woman as possibly unstable. “It definitely seemed like there were mental health issues or drugs involved, like we see with a lot of things here in downtown L.A.,” he said.

The Los Angeles Police Department has launched a battery investigation into the incident KTLA confirmed, though no suspect information or news of a potential arrest has been released.

Meanwhile, Martinez’s family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with her recovery and raise awareness about the dangers street vendors face daily.

“I hope that my mom gets justice for what happened to her,” Garcia said. He added that he’s been encouraged by the public response to the video.

“I’m grateful people are sympathizing with my mom,” he said. “People are giving it the attention it deserves.”

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Los Angeles, Ca

Air quality concerns remain as the Boyle Heights warehouse fire continues to burn

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Air quality concerns remain as the Boyle Heights warehouse fire continues to burn

The South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended its particle pollution advisory as smoke from the warehouse fire in Boyle Heights continues to affect air quality across the region. Officials said the incident remains fluid, and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is continuing to monitor conditions. Residents are urged to follow […]

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Los Angeles, Ca

School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho steps down. Now what for LAUSD?

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School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho steps down. Now what for LAUSD?

Four months after federal agents searched his home and office as part of an investigation into a controversial artificial intelligence contract, Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho has resigned. News that Carvalho was submitting his resignation to the LAUSD Board of Education broke late Sunday evening, with a board spokesperson confirming the development […]

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