CARBONDALE - A religious freedom advocacy group is seeking a promise from Southern Illinois University Carbondale it won't violate a student's right to use Christian principles in her studies - this coming after the student claimed a professor threatened to penalize her grade for mentioning faith-based initiatives in a final paper.

The Alliance Defense Fund, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based attorney group funded by 35 ministries, has asked university officials for a written statement promising they won't infringe upon student Christine Mize's First Amendment right to incorporate faith into her class assignments.

Mize, a 45-year-old graduate student in social work from Murphysboro, said SIUC associate professor Laura Dreuth-Zeman informed her in December she wouldn't be able to write a term paper about faith-based therapy for women experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder from abortions.

Mize acquiesced but turned in a legal opinion with her paper stating Dreuth-Zeman technically couldn't penalize her grade for mentioning religion.

The paper wasn't graded until Friday, two days after Amy Smith, an ADF attorney representing Mize, sent a letter to the SIUC School of Social Work director and the chancellor's office, demanding her client's paper be graded and the incomplete status of her coursework be changed. Mize wouldn't say what she was given on the assignment.

Mize, who is also a 15-year member of Jackson County Right to Life, said the experience has soured her opinion of the campus. She holds two previous degrees from SIUC.

"This is really just leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth for SIU and the School of Social Work," she said.

Mize said she discussed incorporating faith-based aspects into her paper with both Dreuth-Zeman and the class' graduate assistant earlier in the fall semester, but later the professor informed her she shouldn't use religion, she added.

"She (Dreuth-Zeman) said no, you can't do that, and I asked why. She said if I went ahead and did it I would be graded down," Mize said. "Later she came back and said she wanted ideas to come from what was discussed in class or in the textbook."

But Mize said the class had discussed faith-based initiatives in social work throughout the semester.

"Other students in the class were as surprised as I was she had a problem with faith-based therapy," Mize said.

Mize sought a legal opinion from the American Center for Law and Justice. She received a letter and turned the document in with her final paper, which didn't incorporate any religious principles. It was meant to be informational, not a legal challenge, she said.

Dreuth-Zeman said she received the letter but because it was a legal document she said she didn't feel comfortable grading the accompanying paper before consulting with SIU's legal counsel.

"It's my practice if someone turns in a legal letter to me, I forward it to legal counsel; I think it's the most common thing to do," Dreuth-Zeman said.

Dreuth-Zeman declined to discuss student work, citing concerns it would be unfair to go into detail about the assignment in the newspaper but said assertions by both Mize and ADF her actions were anti-religious are "bizarre."

SIUC spokesman Rod Sievers said no one in the campus' upper administration knew about the issue until they'd received the ADF letter. Since it initially had been passed on to legal counsel, the matter may have just been held up, he said.

"The letter could have been the spark; it might have been a reminder. One way or another, it kind of all came together," Sievers said.

Smith disagrees that everything is OK.

"We are pleased they graded (Mize's) paper, but (she) was never notified from the school they graded her paper. She checked the Web site on Friday and it was there," Smith said.

Smith said SIUC actions were unacceptable and ADF is expecting a written statement of promise it won't violate Mize's First Amendment rights further. She said Mize still has Dreuth-Zeman for courses this semester.

If the university doesn't respond, Smith indicated there may be ramifications.

"We'll see. We'll look over our options at this point," she said.

caleb.hale@thesouthern.com

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