A former orchestra teacher in central Indiana has claimed that he was pressured to quit because he refused to comply with a policy that required teachers to call transgender students by their preferred name instead of the name given to them at birth.
John Kluge, who taught at Brownsburg High School, said he could not abide by the policy because it conflicted with his religious beliefs.
"I'm being compelled to encourage students in what I believe is something that's a dangerous lifestyle," Kluge said, according to IndyStar.
"I'm fine to teach students with other beliefs, but the fact that teachers are being compelled to speak a certain way is the scary thing," he added.
Brownsburg Community Schools allows students to request a name change after submitting written consent from a parent and a doctor, district documents revealed.
Once the district approves the name change, teachers will be required to refer to the student by the new name.
LGBT advocates maintain that addressing a transgender by their preferred name was an issue of respect and not about politics or religion.
"This is not a request for advocacy. This is a request for respect," said Sam Brinton, who serves as the head of advocacy and government affairs for The Trevor Project, a group aimed at preventing suicides among LGBT youth.
The teacher disagreed, saying that using the preferred name of transgender students suggested support for their decision. He insisted that he respects all students even though he disagrees with them.
"I really do care for all of my students, which is why I don't want to be compelled to speak in such a way that I believe I'll be encouraging them in something that's dangerous," the teacher said, as reported by IndyStar.
Kluge said that the school had initially allowed him to refer to all students by their last name as a compromise. However, school officials informed him a few months ago that he would no longer be allowed to do so starting next school year.
The 28-year-old teacher has handed in a tentative resignation letter. He claims this was because the school district threatened to fire him three weeks before the end of the school year.
He said that he requested to withdraw the letter, but he was told by colleagues that the district had already posted a job opening for an orchestra teacher.
Kluge, who has worked at Brownsburg High School for four years, said that he is planning to meet the school board on June 11 about his teaching position
The Indiana Family Institute, an nonprofit organization that promotes religious liberty, has launched a letter-writing campaign to help Kluge get his job back.
