An Ohio school district paid a teacher $450,000 after she was forced to resign because she refused to use “preferred pronouns” in class.
Key Facts:
• The Jackson Local School District agreed to pay $450,000 to teacher Vivian Geraghty.
• Geraghty was forced to resign after the district required her to use students’ chosen pronouns.
• A federal judge ruled the district violated Geraghty’s First Amendment rights.
• The teacher cited her Apostolic Pentecostal beliefs for refusing to comply.
The Rest of The Story:
The Jackson Local School District policy required teachers to address students by their chosen names and pronouns, even if those names and pronouns conflicted with a student’s biological sex.
Geraghty, who is Apostolic Pentecostal, felt this forced her to say things at odds with her religious beliefs.
After Geraghty refused to comply, the school charged her with insubordination, prompting her resignation.
When her union attempted to negotiate a middle ground, Geraghty turned it down, saying it still violated her conscience.
She then sued with the help of Alliance Defending Freedom, eventually winning the settlement.
A federal court has ruled that an Ohio school forcing teacher Vivian Geraghty to use transgender students’ preferred pronouns was “compelled speech.”
Vivian sued the district and alleges she was forced to resign after she refused to use preferred pronouns and names for students… pic.twitter.com/Zmr2p6GB61
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 6, 2024
Commentary:
This payout is the least the district can do. The gender insanity has got to stop in our public schools.
It is wrong for schools to force teachers to violate deeply held beliefs and even worse keep parents in the dark about what they are doing.
We suspect that settlements like this, combined with enforcement action by the incoming Trump administration against districts pushing such policies, will make many schools think twice.
Protecting teachers’ rights and ensuring parents remain fully informed about school policies could slow or halt these practices in classrooms.
BREAKING: An OH school district that forced a teacher to resign over compelled pronouns will now pay $450K to settle our free speech lawsuit.
Vivian Geraghty was an English teacher forced to resign in 2022 because she could not participate in the social transition of students,… pic.twitter.com/aRdc0jgYPS
— Alliance Defending Freedom (@ADFLegal) December 18, 2024
The Bottom Line:
Public schools continue to face legal challenges over gender policies, and this settlement signals that teachers’ personal beliefs remain a powerful factor in the debate.
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It also suggests that similar legal battles may unfold in other districts across the country.