WILLIAMSBURG, Ky. (ABP) — For the fourth time in three years, a Baptist college's treatment of a gay student is causing an uproar.
The University of the Cumberlands, in Williamsburg, Ky., expelled sophomore Jason Johnson, reportedly April 6. Kentucky media outlets said April 8 Johnson was expelled for announcing on a personal website that he is gay.
The controversy at Cumberlands echoes similar disputes in the past three years at other Baptist schools. Debates over discipline of students for homosexuality or support of gay-rights groups have erupted at Baylor University in Texas, Mars Hill College in North Carolina and Mercer University in Georgia.
Johnson's page on MySpace.com, a networking website popular among college students, classifies him as “gay” under a section labeled “orientation” and makes references to his boyfriend. The 20-year-old theater major is from Lexington, Ky.
A spokesman for the school told an Associated Baptist Press reporter he could not discuss the specifics of Johnson's case due to student-privacy concerns. However, Larry Cockrum confirmed Johnson had been expelled.
According to WLEX-TV, the NBC affiliate in Lexington, Johnson said he was expelled for engaging in a homosexual lifestyle.
Cockrum released a statement from Cumberlands President Jim Taylor saying the school had “followed our policies and procedures in keeping with our traditional denominational beliefs.” It continued, “University of the Cumberlands isn't for everyone. We tell prospective students about our high standards before they come. We are different by design and are non-apologetic about our Christian beliefs.”
An earlier version of the statement released to WLEX, however, was worded slightly differently and included the following sentence: “There are places students with predispositions can go such as San Francisco and the left coast or to many of the state schools.”
The student policy in question regards sexual behavior. “Any student who engages in or promotes sexual behavior not consistent with Christian principles (including sex outside marriage and homosexuality) may be suspended or asked to withdraw from the University of the Cumberlands,” it says.
Cumberlands officials released another press statement April 10, saying simply, “In light of threatened litigation over University of the Cumberlands' standards, our legal counsel has advised us to make no further comment.”
WLEX and the Lexington Herald-Leader newspaper both reported that Johnson had retained an attorney. The media outlets quoted several Cumberlands students decrying Johnson's expulsion. “He's openly gay but doesn't flaunt it,” senior Jennifer Roberts told the newspaper. “I think you would be floored by the amount of gay people at our school.”
She continued: “I would consider Jason a Christian because so many of his values are Christian…. He embodies everything a friend should be. A lot of people are suffering because he is not here.”
The 1,700-student school, which recently changed its name from Cumberland College, is affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention. Its website also notes the state convention's affiliation with the national Southern Baptist Convention. It is located in the eastern part of the state and has historically served students from the Appalachian region.
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