Teacher's 'branding' case opens a religious divide
John Freshwater, who teaches middle school science, is said to have burned a student's arm during class; the parents are suing. His supporters say his creationist beliefs are on trial.
MT. VERNON, OHIO — It's the kind of story that turns heads and stomachs alike, especially in a small town. A well-known and popular middle school science teacher known for strong religious beliefs is charged with branding the shape of a cross onto the forearm of an eighth-grader.
The teacher is in big and possibly career-ending trouble, a quiet college town is bitterly divided and the Bible is at the center of it.
The case of John Freshwater, a 21-year veteran of the Mt. Vernon City School District, has split this politically conservative town of 14,000 into camps -- those who see Freshwater as a heroic figure, persecuted for his Christian beliefs and his insistence on having his personal Bible on his desk, and those who condemn him as a religious predator promoting creationism and intelligent design and undermining the teaching of evolution in violation of school policy.
Around town, some suggest that the unidentified child made up the branding story or that the photo of the child's forearm was doctored. Others say Freshwater, who teaches creationism and intelligent design at Trinity Worship Center, has been pushing his personal religious agenda in the public school for years. In 2003, Freshwater proposed a policy to "critically analyze evolution," which the school board rejected.
Freshwater, 52, has vehemently denied branding anyone and insists he teaches evolution. In a brief interview, Freshwater said the investigation into his activities was biased. All this is prelude to an Aug. 26 hearing at which a referee will consider the school board's unanimous recommendation that Freshwater, who has been suspended without pay, be fired.
The alleged branding occurred in December during a classroom science experiment. Freshwater was using an electrostatic device common in science classroom demonstrations. Science teachers at the school say they have used the device for many years to identify the color of gases.
Freshwater told investigators, according to an independent probe, that students often ask if they can touch the device, which carries high voltage but low current. On that day, several students volunteered, including one unidentified child whose parents complained of a crosslike "burn that remained on their child's arm for three or four weeks," the report said. The parents are suing Freshwater and the school system.
