the place for glbt

This story is related to Jason Johnson's story... the student who was expelled from University of the Cumberlands and then negotiated finishing the semester so that he could transfer grades.

Part of the politics of this incident is the state money being given to the university for it's pharmacy school. As this article shows, it is highly unlikely that the school will lose any state funding. There have been many similar incidents such as this and the religious schools
typically continue to receive their money.

Even the US Dept of Education makes exceptions in it's accreditation policies for religious schools. Every president in my lifetime has made special efforts to reward private/religious schools with government money and services.

Marc Adams

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Gov. Ernie Fletcher said Monday he would not veto $11 million in funding for a private Baptist college that expelled an openly gay student.

The University of the Cumberlands wants the money for a proposed pharmacy school, but became the center of debate in Frankfort earlier this month for asking a student to leave after he posted on his Web page that he was gay.

The governor said he based his decision on the fact that the $10 million for construction and $1 million for scholarships for the proposed project came from coal severance taxes paid by coal companies, not by individual taxpayers.

But before the money is released, Fletcher said he will ask the courts to determine the constitutionality of providing state funding for construction projects at private institutions.

"This is a difficult issue and one where there is no definitive case law establishing the legality,'' the Republican governor said.

The Kentucky Fairness Alliance, angered by the school's actions, had vowed to file a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the appropriations if Fletcher didn't veto it.

Christina Gilgor, the group's executive director, said public funding should not go to a religious school that does not allow openly gay students to attend.

James H. Taylor, president of the college, said he expects plans for the pharmacy school "to move forward with considerable dispatch.''

The governor's announcement came as he cut $370 million from the $18.1 billion state budget.

As always, HeartStrong is collecting letters to send to this school. We will be forwarding them to the school in one mailing. You can also mail us your own personal letter to include if you choose.

The point of sending the letters to the school is to let the school know that they cannot persecute GLBT students without a public response. So, we need EVERYONE to sign and forward a letter to us. You can do that right here.