Comment A Christian math teacher who sued Kansas school officials this year alleging she was unfairly reprimanded and suspended for refusing to use a student’s pronouns is receiving $95,000 in a settlement with the school district. Pamela Ricard, a former teacher at Fort Riley Middle School in Kansas, claimed in the lawsuit that using the student’s pronouns was against her personal and religious beliefs. Instead, Ricard called the student by his legal name during class last spring. Ricard’s attorneys called the settlement “a victory for free speech in public schools” in a press release. Ricard should never have been punished for referring to a student by his legal name, especially when the school had no policy on the matter at the time of the incident and other teachers routinely addressed students by their last names, Tyson Langhofer, one of her lawyers, she told the Washington Post. “The school district wants to send a message that gender and sex are fluid and can change, but Pamela and many other teachers believe that sex is biological and because they are forced to use different pronouns [from students’] biological sex, teachers are forced to use the school district’s beliefs about sex and gender rather than their own.” Langhofer told The Post. Fort Riley High School Principal Kathleen Brennan declined to comment when reached by The Post. Geary County Schools Unified School District legal counsel Mark Edwards did not respond to a message from The Post. In a statement shared with The Post, Ricard criticized the district’s previous policy. “Teachers should not be forced to mislead parents and say things that are untrue and harmful to students, but that is exactly what Geary County Schools was trying to do,” Ricard said in an email. A Christian teacher has been suspended for refusing to call students by their pronouns. Now he’s suing. On April 7, 2021, Ricard called a student “Miss” followed by her last name to get the student’s attention at the end of class, court records say. When the lesson was over, another classmate emailed the teacher to let her know that the student was now using pronouns and a different first name. The next day, the lawsuit states, Ricard used the student’s last name instead of the new name or pronouns. That’s when the classmate got frustrated, stormed out of the room without permission after leaving a note on the teacher’s desk accusing her of being “transphobic,” adding their pronouns and asking to be called by an alternate name. “My pronouns are he/they btw,” the note read. Two days later, Ricard was suspended for three days while school officials investigated her for 11 possible violations of board policies, court records say. On April 15, when Ricard had returned to school, school officials gave her a written reprimand for allegedly violating three of the board’s policies. They also ordered Ricard to use the same names and pronouns her students used for themselves, the complaint states. Ricard signed the written reprimand but wrote “I do not agree with this!” The teacher appealed the disciplinary action at least three times, the complaint states, but school officials denied all of her appeals. In October the district instituted a policy that requires all teachers to use the same names and pronouns their students do while in class, the complaint says. When speaking with parents, teachers were asked to use the students’ legal name, Langhofer said. Those actions “violated her conscience,” the news release said. In May, a judge ruled that Rickard could continue to use the names the students chose, but didn’t have to use the pronouns the students shared if they didn’t match their biological sex. After the court’s decision, the school voted to revoke the policy that required teachers to refer to students by their legal names when speaking with their parents. As part of Wednesday’s settlement, school officials also agreed to release a statement saying Ricard was in “good standing with no disciplinary action against her at the time of her retirement in May.” “Thankfully, because of the court’s decision that respects the rights of parents and teachers, my record has been cleared and I am able to communicate honestly with parents while teaching according to my beliefs,” Ricard said in her statement to The Post. Ricard now teaches at a school in another state because of family matters unrelated to the lawsuit against the Kansas school, Langhofer told The Post.
title: “Kansas Teacher Wins Settlement After Suspension Over Student Pronouns Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-11” author: “Marlin Meyer”
Comment A Christian math teacher who sued Kansas school officials this year alleging she was unfairly reprimanded and suspended for refusing to use a student’s pronouns is receiving $95,000 in a settlement with the school district. Pamela Ricard, a former teacher at Fort Riley Middle School in Kansas, claimed in the lawsuit that using the student’s pronouns was against her personal and religious beliefs. Instead, Ricard called the student by his legal name during class last spring. Ricard’s attorneys called the settlement “a victory for free speech in public schools” in a press release. Ricard should never have been punished for referring to a student by his legal name, especially when the school had no policy on the matter at the time of the incident and other teachers routinely addressed students by their last names, Tyson Langhofer, one of her lawyers, she told the Washington Post. “The school district wants to send a message that gender and sex are fluid and can change, but Pamela and many other teachers believe that sex is biological and because they are forced to use different pronouns [from students’] biological sex, teachers are forced to use the school district’s beliefs about sex and gender rather than their own.” Langhofer told The Post. Fort Riley High School Principal Kathleen Brennan declined to comment when reached by The Post. Geary County Schools Unified School District legal counsel Mark Edwards did not respond to a message from The Post. In a statement shared with The Post, Ricard criticized the district’s previous policy. “Teachers should not be forced to mislead parents and say things that are untrue and harmful to students, but that is exactly what Geary County Schools was trying to do,” Ricard said in an email. A Christian teacher has been suspended for refusing to call students by their pronouns. Now he’s suing. On April 7, 2021, Ricard called a student “Miss” followed by her last name to get the student’s attention at the end of class, court records say. When the lesson was over, another classmate emailed the teacher to let her know that the student was now using pronouns and a different first name. The next day, the lawsuit states, Ricard used the student’s last name instead of the new name or pronouns. That’s when the classmate got frustrated, stormed out of the room without permission after leaving a note on the teacher’s desk accusing her of being “transphobic,” adding their pronouns and asking to be called by an alternate name. “My pronouns are he/they btw,” the note read. Two days later, Ricard was suspended for three days while school officials investigated her for 11 possible violations of board policies, court records say. On April 15, when Ricard had returned to school, school officials gave her a written reprimand for allegedly violating three of the board’s policies. They also ordered Ricard to use the same names and pronouns her students used for themselves, the complaint states. Ricard signed the written reprimand but wrote “I do not agree with this!” The teacher appealed the disciplinary action at least three times, the complaint states, but school officials denied all of her appeals. In October the district instituted a policy that requires all teachers to use the same names and pronouns their students do while in class, the complaint says. When speaking with parents, teachers were asked to use the students’ legal name, Langhofer said. Those actions “violated her conscience,” the news release said. In May, a judge ruled that Rickard could continue to use the names the students chose, but didn’t have to use the pronouns the students shared if they didn’t match their biological sex. After the court’s decision, the school voted to revoke the policy that required teachers to refer to students by their legal names when speaking with their parents. As part of Wednesday’s settlement, school officials also agreed to release a statement saying Ricard was in “good standing with no disciplinary action against her at the time of her retirement in May.” “Thankfully, because of the court’s decision that respects the rights of parents and teachers, my record has been cleared and I am able to communicate honestly with parents while teaching according to my beliefs,” Ricard said in her statement to The Post. Ricard now teaches at a school in another state because of family matters unrelated to the lawsuit against the Kansas school, Langhofer told The Post.
title: “Kansas Teacher Wins Settlement After Suspension Over Student Pronouns Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-21” author: “Janice Martin”
Comment A Christian math teacher who sued Kansas school officials this year alleging she was unfairly reprimanded and suspended for refusing to use a student’s pronouns is receiving $95,000 in a settlement with the school district. Pamela Ricard, a former teacher at Fort Riley Middle School in Kansas, claimed in the lawsuit that using the student’s pronouns was against her personal and religious beliefs. Instead, Ricard called the student by his legal name during class last spring. Ricard’s attorneys called the settlement “a victory for free speech in public schools” in a press release. Ricard should never have been punished for referring to a student by his legal name, especially when the school had no policy on the matter at the time of the incident and other teachers routinely addressed students by their last names, Tyson Langhofer, one of her lawyers, she told the Washington Post. “The school district wants to send a message that gender and sex are fluid and can change, but Pamela and many other teachers believe that sex is biological and because they are forced to use different pronouns [from students’] biological sex, teachers are forced to use the school district’s beliefs about sex and gender rather than their own.” Langhofer told The Post. Fort Riley High School Principal Kathleen Brennan declined to comment when reached by The Post. Geary County Schools Unified School District legal counsel Mark Edwards did not respond to a message from The Post. In a statement shared with The Post, Ricard criticized the district’s previous policy. “Teachers should not be forced to mislead parents and say things that are untrue and harmful to students, but that is exactly what Geary County Schools was trying to do,” Ricard said in an email. A Christian teacher has been suspended for refusing to call students by their pronouns. Now he’s suing. On April 7, 2021, Ricard called a student “Miss” followed by her last name to get the student’s attention at the end of class, court records say. When the lesson was over, another classmate emailed the teacher to let her know that the student was now using pronouns and a different first name. The next day, the lawsuit states, Ricard used the student’s last name instead of the new name or pronouns. That’s when the classmate got frustrated, stormed out of the room without permission after leaving a note on the teacher’s desk accusing her of being “transphobic,” adding their pronouns and asking to be called by an alternate name. “My pronouns are he/they btw,” the note read. Two days later, Ricard was suspended for three days while school officials investigated her for 11 possible violations of board policies, court records say. On April 15, when Ricard had returned to school, school officials gave her a written reprimand for allegedly violating three of the board’s policies. They also ordered Ricard to use the same names and pronouns her students used for themselves, the complaint states. Ricard signed the written reprimand but wrote “I do not agree with this!” The teacher appealed the disciplinary action at least three times, the complaint states, but school officials denied all of her appeals. In October the district instituted a policy that requires all teachers to use the same names and pronouns their students do while in class, the complaint says. When speaking with parents, teachers were asked to use the students’ legal name, Langhofer said. Those actions “violated her conscience,” the news release said. In May, a judge ruled that Rickard could continue to use the names the students chose, but didn’t have to use the pronouns the students shared if they didn’t match their biological sex. After the court’s decision, the school voted to revoke the policy that required teachers to refer to students by their legal names when speaking with their parents. As part of Wednesday’s settlement, school officials also agreed to release a statement saying Ricard was in “good standing with no disciplinary action against her at the time of her retirement in May.” “Thankfully, because of the court’s decision that respects the rights of parents and teachers, my record has been cleared and I am able to communicate honestly with parents while teaching according to my beliefs,” Ricard said in her statement to The Post. Ricard now teaches at a school in another state because of family matters unrelated to the lawsuit against the Kansas school, Langhofer told The Post.
title: “Kansas Teacher Wins Settlement After Suspension Over Student Pronouns Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-22” author: “Harriet Petersen”
Comment A Christian math teacher who sued Kansas school officials this year alleging she was unfairly reprimanded and suspended for refusing to use a student’s pronouns is receiving $95,000 in a settlement with the school district. Pamela Ricard, a former teacher at Fort Riley Middle School in Kansas, claimed in the lawsuit that using the student’s pronouns was against her personal and religious beliefs. Instead, Ricard called the student by his legal name during class last spring. Ricard’s attorneys called the settlement “a victory for free speech in public schools” in a press release. Ricard should never have been punished for referring to a student by his legal name, especially when the school had no policy on the matter at the time of the incident and other teachers routinely addressed students by their last names, Tyson Langhofer, one of her lawyers, she told the Washington Post. “The school district wants to send a message that gender and sex are fluid and can change, but Pamela and many other teachers believe that sex is biological and because they are forced to use different pronouns [from students’] biological sex, teachers are forced to use the school district’s beliefs about sex and gender rather than their own.” Langhofer told The Post. Fort Riley High School Principal Kathleen Brennan declined to comment when reached by The Post. Geary County Schools Unified School District legal counsel Mark Edwards did not respond to a message from The Post. In a statement shared with The Post, Ricard criticized the district’s previous policy. “Teachers should not be forced to mislead parents and say things that are untrue and harmful to students, but that is exactly what Geary County Schools was trying to do,” Ricard said in an email. A Christian teacher has been suspended for refusing to call students by their pronouns. Now he’s suing. On April 7, 2021, Ricard called a student “Miss” followed by her last name to get the student’s attention at the end of class, court records say. When the lesson was over, another classmate emailed the teacher to let her know that the student was now using pronouns and a different first name. The next day, the lawsuit states, Ricard used the student’s last name instead of the new name or pronouns. That’s when the classmate got frustrated, stormed out of the room without permission after leaving a note on the teacher’s desk accusing her of being “transphobic,” adding their pronouns and asking to be called by an alternate name. “My pronouns are he/they btw,” the note read. Two days later, Ricard was suspended for three days while school officials investigated her for 11 possible violations of board policies, court records say. On April 15, when Ricard had returned to school, school officials gave her a written reprimand for allegedly violating three of the board’s policies. They also ordered Ricard to use the same names and pronouns her students used for themselves, the complaint states. Ricard signed the written reprimand but wrote “I do not agree with this!” The teacher appealed the disciplinary action at least three times, the complaint states, but school officials denied all of her appeals. In October the district instituted a policy that requires all teachers to use the same names and pronouns their students do while in class, the complaint says. When speaking with parents, teachers were asked to use the students’ legal name, Langhofer said. Those actions “violated her conscience,” the news release said. In May, a judge ruled that Rickard could continue to use the names the students chose, but didn’t have to use the pronouns the students shared if they didn’t match their biological sex. After the court’s decision, the school voted to revoke the policy that required teachers to refer to students by their legal names when speaking with their parents. As part of Wednesday’s settlement, school officials also agreed to release a statement saying Ricard was in “good standing with no disciplinary action against her at the time of her retirement in May.” “Thankfully, because of the court’s decision that respects the rights of parents and teachers, my record has been cleared and I am able to communicate honestly with parents while teaching according to my beliefs,” Ricard said in her statement to The Post. Ricard now teaches at a school in another state because of family matters unrelated to the lawsuit against the Kansas school, Langhofer told The Post.
