The University of Oklahoma removed and later fired a graduate teaching assistant after finding her grading of a student’s psychology paper was “arbitrary,” the university said. The contested assignment involved a student who cited the Bible and argued against multiple genders, which the instructor gave a zero. University investigators concluded the instructor’s evaluation was not consistent with academic standards; the assignment was ultimately excluded from the student’s grade. The instructor has denied wrongdoing and is contemplating legal action. Oklahoma’s governor and conservative commentators amplified the case as part of a broader debate about academic freedom, evaluative standards and campus speech. The incident highlights the friction between classroom assessment, student expression on gender and institutional policy; legal and political interventions raise the prospect of state-level oversight of campus instructional practices.