Texas professor reinstated after being fired for teaching biological differences between men and women

Dr. Johnson Varkey, who has been educating students for 20 years, is set to be back in the classroom teaching biology at St. Philip's College's Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland campus in the fall.

"St. Philip’s College in San Antonio, Texas has reinstated Dr. Johnson Varkey, a former adjunct professor, a year after he was fired for teaching standard principles about human biology and reproduction," the non-profit legal organization said in a statement.

"First Liberty Institute filed a charge of discrimination at the EEOC against St. Philip's and the Alamo Community College District earlier this year. Several Members of Congress also weighed in and called for Dr. Varkey's reinstatement."

"The parties reached a favorable settlement," they continued, "which, among other provisions, guarantees that Dr. Varkey will be back in the classroom by fall 2024."

Associate Counsel Kayla Toney said she and the team at First Liberty Institute were "happy that the Alamo Community College District voluntarily reinstated Dr. Varkey," adding that the professor was "excited by this outcome."

Varkey, who is also a pastor, was originally accused in January 2023 of "religious preaching, discriminatory comments about homosexuals and transgender individuals, anti-abortion rhetoric, and misogynistic banter," in his BIOL2402 class, however the school provided no specific examples.

Varkey recalled one incident wherein four students walked out of the classroom when he stated that "sex was determined by chromosomes X and Y," and figured the complaints had come from them.

In the lawsuit, First Liberty Institute argued that "based on nothing but unsubstantiated complaints," administrators "accused Dr. Varkey of an ethics violation and acted with animus toward Dr. Varkey's religious beliefs."

They claimed that the actions taken "demonstrate[d] the hostility of St. Philip’s College toward Dr. Varkey because of his religious beliefs."