WEST POINT, Va. — A Virginia school board has agreed to pay $575,000 in a settlement to a former high school teacher who was fired after he refused to use a transgender student’s pronouns, according to the advocacy group that filed the suit.
Conservative Christian legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom announced the settlement Monday, saying the school board also cleared Peter Vlaming’s firing from his record. The former French teacher at West Point High School sued the school board and administrators at the school after he was fired in 2018. A judge dismissed the lawsuit before any evidence was reviewed, but the state Supreme Court reinstated it in December.
The Daily Press reported that West Point Public Schools Superintendent Larry Frazier confirmed the settlement and said in an email Monday that “we are pleased to be able to reach a resolution that will not have a negative impact on the students, staff or school community of West Point.”
Vlaming claimed in his lawsuit that he tried to accommodate a transgender student in his class by using his name but avoided the use of pronouns. The student, his parents and the school told him he was required to use the student’s male pronouns. Vlaming said he could not use the student’s pronouns because of his “sincerely held religious and philosophical” beliefs “that each person’s sex is biologically fixed and cannot be changed.” Vlaming also said he would be lying if he used the student’s pronouns.
Vlaming alleged that the school violated his constitutional right to speak freely and exercise his religion. The school board argued that Vlaming violated the school’s anti-discrimination policy.
The state Supreme Court’s seven justices agreed that two claims should move forward: Vlaming’s claim that his right to freely exercise his religion was violated under the Virginia Constitution and his breach of contract claim against the school board.
But a dissenting opinion from three justices said the majority’s opinion on his free-exercise-of-religion claim was overly broad and “establishes a sweeping super scrutiny standard with the potential to shield any person’s objection to practically any policy or law by claiming a religious justification for their failure to follow either.”
“I was wrongfully fired from my teaching job because my religious beliefs put me on a collision course with school administrators who mandated that teachers ascribe to only one perspective on gender identity — their preferred view,” Vlaming said in an ADF news release. “I loved teaching French and gracefully tried to accommodate every student in my class, but I couldn’t say something that directly violated my conscience.”
Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s policies on the treatment of transgender students, finalized last year, rolled back many accommodations for transgender students urged by the previous Democratic administration, including allowing teachers and students to refer to a transgender student by the name and pronouns associated with their sex assigned at birth.
Attorney General Jason Miyares, also a Republican, said in a nonbinding legal analysis that the policies were in line with federal and state nondiscrimination laws and school boards must follow their guidance. Lawsuits filed earlier this year have asked the courts to throw out the policies and rule that school districts are not required to follow them.
The Virginia School Board has recently settled a lawsuit with a teacher who was fired for refusing to use a transgender student’s preferred pronouns. The teacher, Peter Vlaming, was let go from his position at West Point High School in 2018 after he repeatedly refused to refer to a transgender male student as a male. Vlaming argued that using male pronouns for the student went against his religious beliefs.
The school board initially defended their decision to terminate Vlaming, stating that his refusal to use the student’s preferred pronouns created a hostile environment for the student. However, Vlaming filed a lawsuit against the school board, claiming that his First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and religion were violated.
After two years of legal battles, the Virginia School Board has agreed to settle the lawsuit with Vlaming for $575,000. The settlement includes $302,000 in back pay and benefits for Vlaming, as well as $273,000 for his legal fees.
This case has sparked a heated debate about the rights of transgender individuals and the limits of religious freedom in public schools. Supporters of Vlaming argue that he should have the right to express his religious beliefs without fear of losing his job, while advocates for transgender rights argue that all students deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.
In a statement following the settlement, Vlaming expressed relief that the legal battle was finally over. He stated, “I am pleased that we were able to reach a resolution that allows me to move on with my life and career. I hope that this case will serve as a reminder to school boards across the country to respect the rights of all individuals, regardless of their beliefs.”
The Virginia School Board has not commented on the settlement, but it is clear that this case has raised important questions about how schools should handle conflicts between religious beliefs and LGBTQ rights. As the debate continues, it is crucial for educators and school administrators to find a balance between respecting individual beliefs and creating a safe and inclusive environment for all students.
