RUNNINGHEAD: EDUCATIONAL ISSUE 1

Educational Issue

Jacqueline Lamm

Minnesota State University, Mankato

RUNNINGHEAD: EDUCATIONAL ISSUE 2

Educational Issue

It was the first day without students at my first faculty/staff, end of year meeting. I was

excited because after 6 months of being on the job we all got to unwind and I got to see how the

faculty and staff interacted. The president started his opening speech about how the year went

and pulled some numbers that didn’t really concern me. I remember listening to the end of his

speech and feeling the dark cloud come over me. I didn’t want to be there anymore, I almost

stood up and walked out. The president ended his speech by thanking those members who had

attended a conference and had the “courage” to ​not ​stand up and clap/congratulate the gay

faculty member that just won an award at a conference the previous month. My ears must not

have been working. Before this position, I worked two years for a Methodist church that openly

accepted the LGBT community and I was proud to see how the times were turning for people

who believed in the church but were also part of the LGBT community. The president went on to

spew a bunch of nonsense about how the college does not nor will they tolerate the LGBT

community and would openly not accept those students/faculty/staff. I almost broke right there.

In our era where a college student needs to fear they cannot get the education they deserve

because of who they love, it was a hard pill for me to swallow. A student shouldn’t need to

worry about whether they got into an educational institution or not because of their sexually.

While this may not be a “whiteness” educational issue, the new age “whiteness” means it is and

how it falls under tenet 5, the unique voice of color.

Our book wrote about how there is more than one group of “whiteness” now and the

LGBT community is one of those. Students aren't the only ones who are affected by this type of

“whiteness” or by tenet 5. Teachers also need to fear their jobs might be at risk if they “out”
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themselves to the world or their jobs. Just last year a Miami Catholic school teacher was fired

from her job because she posted on social media that she “married the love of her life” 1

(Associated Press, 2018). This was because she was in violation of the church rules. Parents were

outraged by this and went to the school to find answers but were met with a wall. "We were

extremely livid. They treated her like a criminal and they didn't even let her get her things out of

her classroom," (Associated Press, 2018). After speaking with the administration several

“parents didn't know Morffi was gay, but they didn't care about her sexual orientation.” The

parents didn’t care as long as the teacher was giving their children the best educational

experience they could. Several Christian colleges around our country are stating“Unlike their

elders, many students want to use their love for Jesus not to uphold traditional values, but to

engage with and change the world, pushing Christian campuses to a careful openness” 2

(Pappano, 2018).

I remember reading about this story while sitting at my desk and thinking back about

what the president said during that last faculty/staff, end of year meeting. I didn’t want to work

for a place that opening didn’t accept everyone for who they are and discriminated against one

particular group of people. Getting up every day and going to work was a struggle for me, but I

needed the experience and promised myself that after two years I would look for a new job.

Some students need to meet in secret while at college because of their sexual orientation or their

1
​(2018, February 12). Miami Catholic school teacher says she was fired for being gay. Retrieved
January 22, 2019, from
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/miami-catholic-school-teacher-says-she-was-fired-bei
ng-gay-n847116
2
(2018, June 5). At Christian Colleges, a Collision of Gay Rights and Traditional Values ....
Retrieved January 22, 2019, from
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/05/education/learning/christian-colleges-lgbtq-social-justice.h
tml
RUNNINGHEAD: EDUCATIONAL ISSUE 4

“whiteness” (Pappano, 2018). One student in Texas graduated with “no framework for the future

I am going to have.” (Pappano, 2018) because they were shunned from openly expressing

themselves at their christian college. Some students don’t have a choice what college they go to

and a christian college is their only option for several different reasons.

While I almost made it two years on the job before I left, I got pregnant and ended up

needed to leave early because of the issues that came along with it. I can’t say that I was very

upset because this meant I could apply for a new job after our baby is born. I am now three

weeks away from meeting our little one and have started the search for a new position where I

can grow. I didn’t know that Bethany didn’t support the LGBT community when I accepted the

position. I thought that by being in a progressive community, they also accepted this group of

individuals. As an educational institution we should be striving to make each students experience

painless and rewarding at the same time. By hindering a student because they are openly gay is

unacceptable in my eyes, and the educational issue, “whiteness” that I have wrote about today.
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Reference

(2018, February 12). Miami Catholic school teacher says she was fired for being gay.

Retrieved January 22, 2019, from

https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/miami-catholic-school-teacher-says-she-was-fired-bei

ng-gay-n847116

(2018, June 5). At Christian Colleges, a Collision of Gay Rights and Traditional Values

.... Retrieved January 22, 2019, from

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/05/education/learning/christian-colleges-lgbtq-social-justice.h

tml