Texas A&M Professor Fired Over Gender Identity Lesson Sues To Get Her Job Back

A Texas A&M professor who was fired over a lesson on gender identity is suing to get her job back, arguing that her termination violated her First Amendment rights. The professor, Melissa McCoul, was fired in September after a viral video showed a student in her children’s literature course confronting her for stating that there are more than two genders. The video, in which the student said the professor was violating an executive order from President Trump, drew the ire of Republicans and led to the resignation of the university’s president as well as changes to course policy. Ms. McCoul’s lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, says that the outrage over her class began on July 11, 2025, when a student posted a picture of one of her PowerPoint slides about sexual orientation on social media. The post, which labeled the slide “woke propaganda,” garnered the attention of a Republican state representative, Brian Harrison, who said it was an example of “liberal indoctrination.” The lawsuit says the university initially assured Ms. McCoul it would defend her, but that as the post went viral, the school decided to place an observer in her class. “An associate dean observed [Ms. McCoul’s] class on July 28,” the filing says. “That day, the class was exploring a book that addressed the themes of gender identity and sexual orientation. The associate dean concluded that [Ms. McCoul] was ‘doing a great job.’” The next day, a student took issue with the discussion of the book “Judas Saves The World,” which is about a middle school student who identifies as nonbinary, and Ms. McCoul’s statement that there are more than two genders. The student interrupted the class to say that the discussion violated her religious beliefs as well as Mr. Trump’s January 25, 2025, executive order saying America recognizes only two sexes. Ms. McCoul told the student that she could leave the class because she was being disruptive. The student met with the president of Texas A&M, General Mark Welsh, who defended Ms. McCoul. That conversation was secretly recorded by the student. Ahead of the fall semester, school administrators received complaints from the student that Ms. McCoul planned to teach a class including some of the “same themes that the student found objectionable.” The university gave Ms. McCoul the option of changing her course to “meet the student’s demands” or continuing with her original plan, and she chose the latter, the lawsuit says. But Mr. Harrison’s post on X continued to garner attention and prompt conservative criticism of the university. On September 8, General Welsh posted on X that he had “learned” that “leaders in the College of Arts and Sciences approved plans to continue teaching course content that was not consistent with the course’s published description.” He then removed the dean and the department chair from their positions. Texas Governor Greg Abbott shared General Welsh’s post and wrote, “Good. Now fire the professor who acted contrary to Texas law.” Texas has banned diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and training at public universities. However, the law has a carve-out for academic instruction. After the governor’s post, Ms. McCoul was fired. The university alleged that she had been told “on multiple occasions to change the course content to align with the catalog description and the course description that was originally submitted and approved,” but she “chose not to follow the directive.”Ms. McCoul’s attorneys say that she was “never” instructed to make changes to her course content. While General Welsh directed the provost to fire Ms. McCoul, he wound up receiving criticism from state Republicans for allegedly dismissing the student’s complaint about the professor’s course content. The Texas lieutenant governor, Dan Patrick, alleged that General Welsh showed an “ambivalence on the issue,” and that his defense of Ms. McCoul was “unacceptable.” The university president resigned on September 19. In November, a Texas A&M committee found that Ms. McCoul’s termination was “not justified” and that the school did not prove that there was good cause to fire her. Despite that finding, Texas A&M’s interim president, Tommy Williams, and the chancellor, Glenn Hegar, rejected her appeal. In November, Texas A&M changed its policy to require professors to receive approval before they teach about certain race or gender topics. The university also announced that it is ending its women’s and gender studies program. Ms. McCoul’s lawsuit alleges that her due process rights and First Amendment rights were violated. She is also arguing that her termination constituted a breach of contract. She is seeking lost wages, ‘reasonable’ attorney’s fees, compensatory and punitive damages, ‘mental anguish damages in the past, present, and future,’ and reinstatement to her former position.Texas A&M did not respond to The New York Sun’s request for comment by the time of publication.

Texas A&M Professor Fired Over Gender Identity Lesson Sues To Get Her Job Back

More from the New York Sun

Will Friday Diplomacy With the Islamic Republic Lead to a Military Strike?

Angry Liberals Rage Over Washington Post Layoffs, Lash Out at ‘Complicit’ Jeff Bezos

Latest Take on Dracula Legend Offers Sumptuous Spectacle but Scant Horror

More from the New York Sun

Will Friday Diplomacy With the Islamic Republic Lead to a Military Strike?

Angry Liberals Rage Over Washington Post Layoffs, Lash Out at ‘Complicit’ Jeff Bezos

Latest Take on Dracula Legend Offers Sumptuous Spectacle but Scant Horror

Possible Las Vegas Bio Lab Is Linked to a Chinese Man Jailed in California

Harris Bets Big on Social Media With ‘Headquarters’ Launch — But Can It Win Young Voters?

Virginia Democrats To Try To Eliminate Four GOP Congressional Seats Ahead of November Elections

Israel’s President Calls Arab-Sector Violence a ‘National Emergency’ After Triple Killing

James Whale’s Revived 1935 Horror Classic Defies Attempts at Categorization