Academic freedom and classroom grading disputes surfaced this week as instructors faced administrative action after contested assignments. At the University of Oklahoma, an instructor placed on leave gave a student a zero for an essay invoking Biblical passages to oppose multiple genders; the instructor said the submission failed to meet assignment criteria and relied on personal ideology over empirical evidence. The incident echoes other campus disputes where conservative students and professors have clashed over grading, curriculum and classroom speech. Such cases occur amid broader state and system policy changes restricting instruction on race and gender, and they frequently prompt public complaints, legal scrutiny and political attention. University officials say personnel matters are being treated as internal processes while administrators review academic standards and course objectives. Why it matters: grading disputes tied to ideological content illuminate tensions between academic standards, free‑expression protections and evolving state mandates on curriculum. Presidents and faculty governance bodies must clarify syllabi expectations, rubrics and grievance procedures to reduce ad hoc disciplinary action and preserve due‑process for instructors and students.