Virginia school district respects teachers' religious freedom

ADF attorneys favorably settle case with Harrisonburg school board, officials agree they will not require teachers to use pronouns that are inconsistent with a student’s sex

HARRISONBURG, Va. – To settle a lawsuit brought by Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing three Virginia teachers, the Harrisonburg City School Board agreed to respect the teachers’ constitutionally protected right to do their job in accordance with their religious beliefs.

In the order resolving the case, the school board agreed that Deborah Figliola, Kristine Marsh, and Laura Nelson do not have to ask students to share their pronouns and the teachers need not necessarily use pronouns inconsistent with students’ biological sex. The school district also acknowledged that it “does not support hiding or withholding information from parents” and it will continue to inform staff that similar religious accommodations are available to employees.

“Deb, Kris, and Laura—like all teachers—are protected under the Constitution to do their job in alignment with their religious beliefs, including how they refer to their students and the vital information they share with parents,” said ADF Senior Counsel Kate Anderson, director of the ADF Center for Parental Rights, who argued before the Rockingham County Circuit Court Tuesday. “We are pleased to favorably resolve this case on behalf of our clients and ensure that the Harrisonburg City School Board will respect every teacher’s right to speak consistent with her faith.”

“As teachers, we care deeply about the children entrusted to our care,” Figliola said. “We could not idly stand by while the schools’ administration enforced a policy with a radical, one-size-fits-all approach to students struggling with their gender, and that allowed parents to be pushed out of the picture. We’re thrilled for this legal victory that allows religious educators in the Harrisonburg school district to do the job we love, in a manner true to our faith.”

Previously, in a series of on-the-job trainings related to the school board’s nondiscrimination policy, the board directed teachers to “immediately implement” these practices: (1) to ask students’ “preferred” names and pronouns; (2) to always use them, even when contrary to a student’s sex; and, (3) to do so without notifying parents or seeking their consent. And the nondiscrimination policy threatened discipline—including termination—for noncompliance.

The teachers filed the lawsuit in June 2022 challenging the board’s actions as violations of the Virginia Constitution’s Free Speech Clause, the Virginia Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and other legal provisions by compelling them to speak a message to which they object.

ADF attorneys filed a dismissal of the case Figliola v. The School Board of the City of Harrisonburg, Tuesday.

In a similar case litigated by ADF attorneys, the West Point School Board in Virginia agreed to pay $575,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees to settle a lawsuit brought by a former high school teacher who was fired for avoiding the use of pronouns to refer to one of his students. The favorable settlement followed the Virginia Supreme Court’s landmark decision affirming that the Virginia Constitution contains robust free speech and free exercise protections for public employees.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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