Florida Atlantic University officials have reversed their decision to suspend a student who objected to a highly offensive classroom assignment, WPTV reports.
Florida Governor Rick Scott has demanded a detailed investigation into the activities of professor Deandre Poole, right, who instructed his class to write the name “Jesus” on a piece of paper, place it on the floor and stomp on it.
One student, Ryan Rotelas, verbalized his objection and refused to complete the assignment. Rotelas was told he was suspended from Poole’s class and he would not be allowed to attend classes at the school.
It comes as no surprise that Professor Poole, the leader of the Palm Beach County Democratic Party, is a virulent Obama supporter who often discussed Obama’s policies in his classroom. More than 40% of Americans polled believe President Obama is a Muslim.
After the story went national via Facebook and a local news report, FAU officials released a statement defending Poole’s class assignment, saying Poole took the assignment from an approved textbook. According to WPTV, “The exercise was from a chapter dealing with the power of certain words.”
FAU officials have since apologized and allowed Rotelas back on campus. But the public outcry to the story remains loud and sustained. A church plans to march on the school; and Gov. Scott was incensed that a school receiving government funding would deign to trample on the religious rights of its students.
“Whether the student was reprimanded or whether an apology was given is in many ways (inconsequential) to the larger issue of a professor’s poor judgment,” Gov. Scott stated in a letter to state university system Chancellor Frank Brogan. “The professor’s lesson was offensive, and even intolerant, to Christians and those of all faiths who deserve to be respected as Americans entitled to religious freedom.”
