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Jarretta Hamilton is angry and unemployed. The 39-year-old teacher was fired last April because she had sex before marriage and wound up pregnant. Now she has broken her silence and has gone public.
Hamilton has an 8-month-old baby girl with Samuel Treftz. The former fourth grade teacher was a widow with five children when she was hired in 2008 to teach at Southland Christian School in St. Cloud, Fla.
In April 2009, when Hamilton and her husband met with the principal of the school, Jon Ennis, to request a six-week maternity leave, she was met with an attitude that she could not even have fathomed.
Instead of sticking to the topic at hand, the maternity leave, Ennis began barraging Hamilton with questions about when she might have conceived her unborn child. He appeared to be more interested in delving into whether she had fornicated before marriage:
"He actually tried to do the math to figure out when I had conceived. I was absolutely shocked, it came out of nowhere. He actually fell back in his chair when I told him that I had conceived before marriage," she says.
About a week after Hamilton was interrogated by Ennis, she was terminated from her teaching position. The school called her actions "immoral." In a letter sent to Hamilton's attorney, Edward Gay, last July, Ennis wrote the following:
"Jarretta was asked not to return because of a moral issue that was disregarded, namely fornication, sex outside of marriage. The employment application, which she filled out, clearly states, that as a leader before our students we require all teachers to maintain and communicate the values and purpose of our school."
Now Hamilton has put on her boxing gloves and is ready to duke it out publicly with her former employer.
School officials, however, say there is a formal clause regarding morality that every teacher must abide by.
Hamilton doesn't buy it.
Treftz insists, "If there was a contract in place that had a morality clause, I think that would make a difference, he told NBC's Ann Curry on Monday. "At least people would know what they're getting into; I didn't know they were going to judge so harshly. I wasn't clear on what their stance was on certain issues," Hamilton adds.
To add insult to injury, when she was let go, Hamilton claims, that school administrators called a meeting to inform staff members and also told the parents of her students -- everyone was informed of her private information.
According to Gay, the termination violated federal anti-discrimination laws. In addition, they allege in a pending lawsuit that Hamilton's privacy was invaded when the school publicly released the personal details of her termination.
Now that Hamilton and her husband have gone public with their lawsuit, what does the school have to say about the matter?
According to MSNBC, Ennis sent Gay a letter requesting that his client give up the lawsuit:
"We request that Jarretta withdraw her complaint and consider the testimony of the Lord," the letter concludes.
Comments: (99)
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By: jason on 6/15/2010 11:11AM
Now it doesn't take a brain scientest to figure out, with the way they are tight with public schools, that they are going to be even tighter with policies on christian schools. People by the book don't play with pre-marital sex. There may be a loop hole in the policy though.
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By: Harriet on 6/15/2010 2:16PM
Remember God forgave us, so who are we to think that there would not be any thing wrong in our lives, that we would not have to ask for forgiveness? I believe clean around your own front door first. And everyone without sin let them cast the first stone!
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By: Andrew Thompson on 6/16/2010 9:18AM
To Harriet i agree with most of what you said but in this case we are talking about a horse of another color. The board knew nothing about the teacher's discretions until they asked her as to when she conceived and by her being honest you know the rest. To me they are foul, wrong and underhanded i hope that she wins her case
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By: lvalentine on 6/16/2010 7:07PM
If they didn't ask the right question before hiring her and didn't make it clear in their policies then she could have a wrongful termination law suite. I really hope she gets a good lawyer. I really hope someone see's this and give her some probono legal assistance and whipes the floor with these people. I also hope some school see's this injustice and helps this woman get a job. I think this school should be ashamed of themselfs and it is disqusting that they call themselfs "Christian"
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By: Silvester on 6/15/2010 11:20AM
The School has violated the teacher's human rights. It may have been an Ungodly act, but unless the teacher had signed and broken a conttract with the school regarding specifics related to such issues, then this uterly non-senscical,and ridiculous. What has the teacher's union have to say about this.?????????
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By: Harriet on 6/15/2010 2:09PM
Remember because someone says they are a christian does not mean it is true. People do not realize that their actions shows all of who they really are. It is so sad.
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By: Barry on 6/16/2010 11:07AM
They may not have a teachers union in Florida. Very few states do.
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By: rightorwrong on 6/15/2010 11:29AM
There is going to be two types of replies here one from strong christians and one from those with a worldly view. Simple if this teacher was a true christian she wouldn't be having sex outside of marriage, second she should know that the school was christian when she applied and if she respected the school and kept God's values she wouldn't be in a situation of being unemployed, on the other hand when she was interviewed for the job the principal would have grilled her on her christian beliefs? he obviously wanted to prove a point that she was not a christian hence telling her business in front of the the whole school and parents, could he have a racial motive perhaps? did he want to cause major embarrassment to her perhaps? is he a gossip perhaps? their are several things to ponder here but lets hope christian schools renew their policy and make it clear in their contracts for grounds of dismissal, maybe he does not want this teacher to get another job in a christian school perhaps? but the teacher was equally wrong because if she was a true christian she wouldn't sleep with her husband before they were married and two the bible says christians shoudl settle their differences out of court all of which is written in the bible before anyone says where does it say that? finally maybe the principal had his eye on her but the other white guy got their first? some christians also don't like mixed relationships, it doesn't say but is her husband a christian? she could already be un-equally yoked?
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By: Sharon Tucker on 6/16/2010 2:53PM
I do believe, that anyone applying for hire at a Christian is well aware of its Biblical and ethical codes. Premarital sex is always forbidden, and when you present yourself before children as a fornicator, that should and will always be a problem. She should have taken a LEAVE prior to informing anyone of her personal situation. God loves us all, He loves all His children. It is the act of fornication that He does not like. Marriage is a holy communion between man and woman and she should have married prior to conceiving or PROTECT YOURSELF FROM BECOMING PREGNANT IF YOU CAN'T CONTROL YOURSELF. BIBLICALLY, IT IS BETTER TO MARRY THAN TO BURN (IN YOUR FLESH FOR SEX).
Children have enough to deal with in THE WORLD as it is. As a parent, I have taught my children that they should abstain from sex before marriage. My children went to Christain schools and this was enforced. I would not want her teaching in my schools, but I would love her in spite of her personal situation. We all fall short. Fall short in public schools not in Christian schools. This should have been a known fact to her when working in a Christian school. Don't cry about it now. Think before you act.
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By: suki on 6/16/2010 10:30AM
Being a true Christian does not make one perfect, however, we are Christians because our eyes were opened to our very own imperfections, thus giving our lives to Christ that He might guide us into all righteousness. Your statement that she wouldn't have had sex before marriage means she isn't a Christian is so inmature. Hopefully you are not self righteous. I am assuming that you are perfect. Christians are called to perfection, however, when we fall we are showing that we are true Christians through true repentance. We will be perfect after the return of Christ and receiving the fruit from the tree of life. Study and rightly divide the word of truth.
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