Current:Home > BackVirginia teacher who was fired over refusing to use student's preferred pronouns awarded $575,000-InfoLens
Virginia teacher who was fired over refusing to use student's preferred pronouns awarded $575,000
View Date:2024-12-23 11:11:30
A Virginia teacher who refused to use a student's preferred pronouns has been awarded $575,000 after filing a lawsuit against the former school district he worked for more than five years ago, according to court fillings and attorneys in the case.
High school teacher Peter Vlaming, who taught high school French in West Point for about seven years, filed a $1 million lawsuit against the West Point School Board in 2019 after his former employer fired him, court documents show.
Vlaming, according to the suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, avoided using he/him pronouns when referring to a student who had transitioned and, instead, used the student’s preferred name.
School leaders ordered him to stop avoiding the use of pronouns to refer to the student, who had transitioned, and to start using the student's preferred pronouns of he/him, according to previous local media reports and the Alliance Defending Freedom, a non-profit legal group.
A timeline of allegations:Sean 'Diddy' Combs faces 120 sexual abuse claims:
Caleb Dalton, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, said the West Point School Board agreed to pay $575,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees. The settlement was signed by a judge on Monday.
West Point Public Schools Superintendent Larry L. Frazier Jr. said in a statement issued to the Washington Post that the school system was pleased to come to an agreement “that will not have a negative impact on the students, staff or school community of West Point.”
The school has since adopted transgender policies issued by Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, the Post reported. The Republican governor's guidelines, handed down in 2022, reversed some transgender protections and gave parents authority over whether a student can change their preferred identity and name in school records, USA TODAY previously reported.
Dalton, who framed the settlement as "a win for freedom of speech in Virginia," told USA TODAY that public educators "shouldn’t force teachers to endorse beliefs they disagree with."
"No government should force its employees − or anyone else − to voice their allegiance to an ideology that violates their deepest beliefs," Dalton said.
USA TODAY has reached out to Frazier and the school board's attorneys in the case.
Dalton said West Point also cleared Vlaming’s firing from his record.
Vlaming is working for a French book publisher, his attorney said Thursday.
Contributing: Cady Stanton and Alia Wong, USA TODAY
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.
veryGood! (73)
Related
- Only 8 monkeys remain free after more than a week outside a South Carolina compound
- From cold towels to early dismissal, people are finding ways to cope with a 2nd day of heat wave
- 21-year-old celebrating baptism drowns saving girl in distress in Texas lake: Police
- Trailer for Christopher Reeve 'Super/Man' documentary offers glimpse into late actor's life
- Opinion: NFL began season with no Black offensive coordinators, first time since the 1980s
- Newest internet villain? Man files trademark for Jools Lebron's 'very mindful, very demure'
- Gun control initiatives to be left off Memphis ballot after GOP threat to withhold funds
- Miles Teller’s Wife Keleigh Surprises Him With Proposal and “Dream Boat” for 5th Wedding Anniversary
- Trump is likely to name a loyalist as Pentagon chief after tumultuous first term
- Selena Gomez Reacts to Taylor Swift Potentially Doing Only Murders in the Building Cameo
Ranking
- Horoscopes Today, November 13, 2024
- Pennsylvania county broke law by refusing to tell voters if it rejected their ballot, judge says
- Georgia Senate Republicans push to further restrict trans women in sports
- 1000-Lb. Sisters' Tammy Slaton Claps Back on Reason She Shares So Many Selfies Amid Weight Loss
- The charming Russian scene-stealers of 'Anora' are also real-life best friends
- A ban on outdoor burning is set in 7 Mississippi counties during dry conditions
- Children's Author Kouri Richins to Stand Trial Over Husband Eric Richins' Murder Case
- Maine workers make progress in cleanup of spilled firefighting foam at former Navy base
Recommendation
-
UConn, Kansas State among five women's college basketball games to watch this weekend
-
Judge extends temporary order for transgender New Hampshire girl to play soccer, hears arguments
-
Police in a suburban New York county have made their first arrest under a new law banning face masks
-
Ex-gang leader accused of killing Tupac Shakur won’t be released on bond, judge rules
-
Dozens indicted over NYC gang warfare that led to the deaths of four bystanders
-
Alabama man shot by police during domestic violence call
-
RealPage lawyer denies collusion with landlords to raise rents, 'open to solutions' to resolve DOJ lawsuit
-
Disbarred celebrity lawyer Tom Girardi found guilty of stealing millions from his clients