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September 2, 2007
by Mike S. Adams, Ph.D.
Before attending Purdue University Calumet, our friend Mr. West received a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University. After graduating from Purdue, he received a doctorate from Kansas State. Neither of these schools made their students view explicit materials as part of the program. At the end of the fall 1999 semester, Mr. West completed his thesis, thus completing the master's program at Purdue. Then, in May of 2002, Mr. Jeffrey Ford graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. He wanted to pursue a Master Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, so he researched the most prominent programs in the country. He decided the two most prominent programs were at Brigham Young University and Purdue University Calumet. On March 11, 2003, Mr. Ford visited Purdue to interview for a position in the same master's program from which Mr. West had graduated. This interview process consisted of four one-on-one interviews, three with faculty members and one with a student. First, Mr. Ford met with Ms. Sarah Smock, a master's student at the time. Shortly before the interview, the faculty met with Ms. Smock to explain how to conduct the interview. After this meeting with the faculty, she quizzed Mr. Ford on how he, as a Mormon, would treat homosexual clients. Mr. Ford replied: "I would treat them with dignity and respect, much like I would treat any other client." Professor Wetchler later interviewed Mr. Ford. During this interview, Wetchler mentioned that he needed to ask him about some ethical matters that affect students who are members of the LDS Church. Wetchler asked: "How will you treat gay clients?" Mr. Ford replied: "I would treat them with dignity and respect, much like I would treat any other client." He also stated that homosexual individuals tend to have more mood disorders, and so he would help with these issues just as he would any other client. Professor Wetchler commented that many of his LDS students receive significant callings from the church. That is, they are asked to take on significant responsibilities within the LDS Church. But Wetchler advised Mr. Ford: "I strongly recommend that you not accept any callings." In fact, Wetchler devoted much of his interview time to Mr. Ford's background as a member of the LDS Church. He commented that it is very hard to be an LDS student in Indiana and in the Marriage and Family Therapy Program in particular &endash; almost as if he were trying to discourage him from coming. He even boasted that every married LDS student in the program had divorced before or soon after graduation. Professor Trepper interviewed him, too. After discussing Mr. Ford's educational background, he asked: "How will you treat homosexual clients?" Mr. Ford replied once again: "I would treat them with dignity and respect, much like I would treat any other client." Finally, Professor Hecker interviewed Mr. Ford. She requested that he ask her questions about the program. But she also mentioned ethical issues that affect Mormon students. Like all the other interviewers, she asked: "How will you treat gay clients?" Mr. Ford replied: "I would treat them with dignity and respect, much like I would treat any other client." In March of 2003, Mr. Ford was invited into the master's program at Purdue. In the fall of 2003, he matriculated into the program and enrolled in Professor Wetchler's Advanced Child Development class. He was the only Mormon student in the class. In December of 2003, Professor Wetchler opened an Advanced Child Development class by discussing the supposed difficulties faced by parents who engage in homosexual conduct. Normally, he covered several topics in one class, but on this day, he dedicated the entire three hours to the issue of "gay parenting." Ultimately, Professor Wetchler steered the class discussion so that it focused on each student's personal beliefs regarding homosexual conduct - asking each student to give a personal opinion. As the discussion proceeded, every student condoned this type of behavior and displayed tremendous hostility towards traditional morality. During the break, Mr. Ford approached Professor Wetchler and asked whether he was "safe" to express his religiously-based beliefs without retaliation - admitting he was fearful because of the climate the learned professor had created. Professor Wetchler encouraged him to participate in the discussion. When Mr. Ford's turn came, he explained that he thought homosexual conduct was morally wrong, but he emphasized that he would not treat any individual differently as a result. He condemned all forms of discrimination, explaining that he, personally, had been a victim of discrimination. He cited his experience during the interview process, where all four interviewers asked about his religious beliefs and used his response to determine whether he would be accepted into the program. When he asked his classmates to indicate by a show of hands whether they had been asked the question "How will you treat gay clients?" none of the 20 students responded. Professor Wetchler became visibly upset with Mr. Ford, and he said: "Jeff, you have been taught not to express what you believe to protect yourself." Mr. Ford noted the hostile environment in the classroom toward anyone who did not condone homosexual behavior. Next, Professor Wetchler began discussing the merits of Mr. Ford's LDS faith. When Mr. Ford noted how his mission work had helped solidify that faith, Wetchler dismissed his idea saying Mr. Ford had been raised in an "insulated society." He then concluded by saying: "Jeff, I have a private agenda for you." We'll learn more about the good professor's agenda in the next installment of this series.
©2007 by Mike S. Adams and reprinted with permission of the author.
Mike S. Adams was born in Columbus, Mississippi on October 30, 1964. While a student at Clear Lake High School in Houston, TX, his team won the state 5A soccer championship. He graduated from C.L.H.S. in 1983 with a 1.8 GPA. He was ranked 734 among a class of 740, largely as a result of flunking English all four years of high school. After obtaining an Associate's degree in psychology from San Jacinto College, he moved on to Mississippi State University where he joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity. While living in the fraternity house, his GPA rose to 3.4, allowing him to finish his B.A., and then to pursue a Master's in Psychology. In 1990, he turned down a chance to pursue a PhD in psychology from the University of Georgia, opting instead to remain at Mississippi State to study Sociology/Criminology. This decision was made entirely on the basis of his reluctance to quit his night job as member of a musical duo. Playing music in bars and at fraternity parties and weddings financed his education. He also played for free beer. Upon getting his doctorate in 1993, Adams, then an atheist and a Democrat, was hired by UNC-Wilmington to teach in the criminal justice program. A few years later, Adams abandoned his atheism and also became a Republican. He also nearly abandoned teaching when he took a one-year leave of absence to study law at UNC-Chapel Hill in 1998. After returning to teach at UNC-Wilmington, Adams won the Faculty Member of the Year award (issued by the Office of the Dean of Students) for the second time in 2000. After his involvement in a well publicized free speech controversy in the wake of the 911 terror attacks, Adams became a vocal critic of the diversity movement in academia. After making appearances on shows like Hannity and Colmes, the O'Reilly Factor, and Scarborough Country, Adams was asked to write a column for the Heritage Foundation's Townhall.com. Today he enjoys the privilege of expressing himself both as a teacher and a writer. In his spare time, he loves spending time with his wife, Krysten. He is also an avid hunter and reader of classic literature. E-mail: adams_mike@hotmail.com
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In
the master's program referred to in part one of
this series, all students are required to take a
class in "sex therapy." A significant portion of
this class focuses on "visual desensitization."
That means the professors show a lot of videos and
pictures of people having sex. Of course, students
are "free" to excuse themselves from class if the
sex scenes make them uncomfortable. However,
students know that if they were to do so, they
would face repercussions later.
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