Speech, gender identity and backlash: From national controversies to a local fallout

From the University of Oklahoma to Texas A&M University, conflicts involving free speech and gender identity have made national news in recent months. One such dispute, however, has landed much closer to home.

At the University of Oklahoma, graduate teaching assistant Mel Curth was placed on leave last month after giving student Samantha Fulnecky a zero on a psychology essay about gender roles in society. Fulnecky’s essay cited the Bible and described belief in nonbinary gender identities as “demonic.” Curth, who is transgender, said the assignment did not meet academic standards and relied too heavily on religious ideology, but the university later determined the grading was arbitrary and removed the zero from Fulnecky’s final grade. The incident became a flashpoint after Turning Point USA promoted the case and alleged religious discrimination.

In Texas, English professor Melissa McCoul was fired in September after a video circulated of a student confronting her about teaching issues related to gender identity in a children’s literature course. The controversy drew political scrutiny, and a faculty committee later voted unanimously that the university had no justification for dismissing her. 

Both disputes unfolded against a broader national backdrop, including the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was known for outspoken opposition to transgender rights. Kirk’s killing sparked widespread debate online and became a political touchstone for some of his supporters.

Now, in Stark County, longtime Walsh University professor Thomas Freeland says the same currents that shaped those national disputes contributed to his own forced departure.

Freeland, who taught biology at Walsh University for 30 years and also served on the Minerva Board of Education, said pressure intensified after the retirement of Walsh President Richard Jusseaume in 2018 and the arrival of President Timothy Collins in 2019. Freeland said the climate shifted further after the 2020 departure of the Brothers of Christian Instruction, who founded Walsh College in 1960, followed by increased alignment with the Cardinal Newman Society, a conservative Catholic organization that monitors higher education for fidelity to church teaching. 

Freeland said his focus on scientific instruction — particularly relating to sex and gender — became a point of conflict in the years that followed. He recalled directly challenging Collins in a board meeting after Collins reportedly said “trans is not true,” and said he objected to framing gender identity through religious explanations, such as claims of “demons influencing this culture.”

Freeland said tensions escalated after he reposted a statement from transgender actor and singer Alexandra Billings following Kirk’s death, expressing pity rather than celebration. He said that post — and backlash from those who embraced Kirk’s anti-trans views — proved to be the final breaking point.

Freeland said he planned to retire in two years but was abruptly suspended from teaching, barred from campus activity and removed from university affiliation. Walsh University declined to comment on the circumstances of his departure.

“Walsh does not comment on personnel matters,” said Kimberly Graves, director of university relations, in response to a request for comment.