A Texas professor who also works as a Pastor has been fired after teaching students that sex in humans is determined by X and Y chromosomes.
Dr. Johnson Varkey was fired from his role at St. Philip’s College in San Antonio in January of this year after teaching at the facility for 20 years.
He was sacked after four students walked out of his class last November in protest over his teaching that X and Y chromosomes determine sex in humans.
In an interview with First Liberty Live, Varkey denied claims he injected religious teachings into his lessons – which students complained about.
Varkey said: ‘I don’t bring my preaching into my classroom when I teach about human anatomy and physiology. I just teach basic biology. That’s all I teach.’
Dr. Johnson Varkey, pictured here, taught Biology at the St. Philip’s College until January of this year when he was fired after students complained about him
Varkey had worked at the college for twenty years at the time he was dismissed from his role
The former professor continued: ‘X and X, those two chromosomes, make a person female and X and Y, male. That’s all I mentioned in the classroom.
‘That’s just a mere biological fact.’
Varkey had been notified of a complaint being made against him by Vice President for Academic Success at the college Randall Dawson.
Dawson said in an email: ‘I am sending you notification that Alamo Colleges District Human Resources department is in receipt of an ethics violation complaint.’
Varkey responded, saying: ‘What was the complaint? I am not aware of any violations that I committed.’
He was then informed that any further communication would come via the HR department at the college.
DailyMail.com has contacted Varkey and his team for comment but he did not immediately respond.
Varkey was notified via email that the HR department of the college had received a complaint concerning his ethics
After two weeks of being notified of the complaint, Varkey was issued with the above memo letting him know of his firing
Two weeks later he was issued a memorandum from Dawson who notified him he was losing his job.
It reads: ‘St. Philip’s College has received numerous complaints regarding your classroom behavior while facilitating in an official teaching capacity, which is found to be unacceptable.
‘The complaint contained several reports of ‘religious preaching, discriminatory comments about homosexuals and transgender individuals, anti-abortion rhetoric, and misogynistic banter.’
‘While some of the subject matter may be connected to class content, it was very clear, from the complaints, that you pushed beyond the bounds of academic freedom with your personal opinions that were offensive to many individuals in the classroom.’
Legal firm First Liberty Institute, who are representing Varkey, have demanded his reinstatement.
In a letter, the group also said that Varkey’s firing was an unconstitutional act of religious discrimination.
Randall Dawson, pictured here, is the Vice President for Academic Success at the college in Texas
His legal team have now asked the college to reinstate him to his prior position so that he can return in the fall to teach
Their statement said: ‘In January 2023, St. Philip’s College fired Dr. Varkey for teaching human biology just as he did in his previous twenty-year career as a professor.
‘His statements are not only supported by his extensive education and experience, but they also reflect his sincerely held religious beliefs.
‘We write to request that St. Philip’s College reinstate Dr. Varkey to his position as Adjunct Professor and acknowledge that his termination was not for cause, but that it violated federal and state law.’
Varkey is a devout Christian and is a volunteer associate pastor at International Bible Church in San Antonio.
Outside of this, he also hosts a Bible teaching radio ministry called Rehoboth Voice.
DailyMail.com has contacted St. Philip’s College for comment but they did not immediately respond.
