Newly hired Baylor teacher forced to switch lessons in person to online after refusing to wear a mask

By Ana Ruiz Brictson | Editor-in-chief

On the first Friday of Baylor’s fall semester, a political science professor refused to wear a mask in at least one of his in-person classes, forcing the university to move the course online.

Newly hired professor and full-time temporary lecturer Stephen Goniprow used his first in-person course on “The US Constitution, Its Interpretation, and the US Political Experience” to reflect on his personal views on Baylor’s COVID-19 protocols and the rights he has. as a human.

His class, taken at Draper 130, can accommodate over 250 students and currently has 241 students enrolled.

On September 8, after Goniprow had taught 10 face-to-face classes since the start of the semester, her class was moved to online education.

“Dear all, we will not be meeting at the Bennett Auditorium today. The course will take place online. I’ll send you a link to join the virtual classroom shortly and explain why this change happened at that time. Goniprow wrote an ad on Canvas for his class.

Even though Goniprow declined The Lariat’s request for an interview, there are videos of his lessons in which he mentions the situation and his point of view.

“I refused to wear a mask, and therefore because I am unwilling to wear a mask, the administration has determined, in light of this, that it is not safe for us to be together. and for me to teach and for you to learn at the Bennett Auditorium, so that’s their call, ”Goniprow said during his first class after being moved online. “They don’t think it’s safe for us to be together, so I’m just reporting what they told me about their concern for your safety.” “

The university announced on April 27 that it plans to return to a normal fall semester for students, faculty and staff, based on declining COVID-19 cases and guidance from authorities federal, state and local and public health officials.

On August 13, President Linda Livingstone announced the new COVID-19 protocols for the fall semester in an eNews alert. The announcement said students, faculty and staff will be required to wear face coverings in specific locations on campus, such as classrooms and laboratories.

The head of the political science department, Dr David Clinton, and the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr Lee Nordt, referred the Lariat’s requests for comment to Lori Fogleman as the university spokesperson On the question.

On September 9, Fogleman said the Baylor administration was reviewing the alleged incident and investigating under appropriate university protocols. There were no further comments.

Students in Goniprow’s class have mixed opinions about their teacher’s actions.

“A large part of its class is made up of the inalienable natural rights that we have as part of nature by being created”, Mansfield freshman Austin Brenneman, a student in Goniprow’s class, said. “He thinks that the government or an institution forcing you to wear something is, in a way, a violation of your own right.”

Brenneman said he thought Goniprow didn’t like “the idea of ​​someone forcing you to wear something because they feel like it is against their rights, and I would be wrong. ‘deal with him there “.

Another student in Goniprow’s class – who asked to remain anonymous for fear of academic retaliation – said Goniprow walked into the class and said, “OK, let me be very clear, I don’t wear any. mask because I can’t breathe. The student said that after this announcement, many of their classmates began to remove their masks at subsequent lectures.

Another anonymous student in Goniprow’s class said some of the classmates sided with the professor, saying, “You are a Constitution professor, did they really think you would wear a mask? “

Goniprow emailed his students an hour before his second Zoom class on September 10, which read the following:

“The Vice-Rector and Associate Dean told me to convey the following message to all of you: ‘Because there has been some confusion over the masking policy, I want to clarify that all students are required to adhere to college policy and wear masks covering both mouth and nose while in the classroom, both this Friday and every other school day.

The same anonymous student said that during this Zoom course, Goniprow assigned a quiz for his students to take in person, where his teaching assistant would be in charge of supervision.

Tobias Smyers, sophomore from Waco, a student in Goniprow’s class, said: “I thought it was a little boring because I think the lecturer should be allowed not to wear a mask if he is. does not want it. “

Smyers said he knew of other teachers who also gave classes without a mask and didn’t think it was a big deal if the teachers were the only ones without a mask.

“No one will get sick if the speaker is 10 feet from each person in the class and each person is wearing a mask and most people have the vaccine,” Smyers said.

Three of four students interviewed by The Lariat claimed that during his first in-person class, Goniprow said he refused to wear a mask and that because he wasn’t going to do it, he didn’t expect that his students wear them.

Smyers, however, said that was not what he heard.

“I don’t think his statement ever revolved around us wearing masks,” Smyers said. “If an educational institution requires [students] wearing a mask for school is good because it will not inhibit your ability to learn. It is not meant to separate us, and it is not meant to be an indictment of our freedoms. It’s just to keep us safe.

As of September 16, it’s unclear how Goniprow’s situation will be handled and whether the class will stay online or come back in person.