Student teacher removed after admitting he's gay

Seth Stambaugh, 23, a graduate teaching student at Lewis and Clark college, was placed in Beaverton Student District as a student teacher in a 4th and 5th grade class at Sexton Mountain, a public Beaverton elementary school.  On September 15, he was informed that he was no longer allowed to teach in his school district.  Why?  Apparently, when asked by a student if he was married, he replied that he was not because he would choose to marry another man, and that's illegal.  This comment got back to a parent, who complained and thus Stambaugh was removed.

This follows a previous complaint about Stambaugh concerning his appearance.  The offending attire consisted of "pressed slacks, a button-up oxford shirt, and a cardigan."  The source of this complaint just happened to be the same parent who later caused Stambaugh to lose his job.

The question here is, was Seth Stambaugh in the wrong by revealing his sexuality to 4th and 5th graders?  That is certainly debatable, and parents obviously have the right to teach their children whatever beliefs they want.  However, if he were straight and told his students that he was married to, or interested in marrying, a woman, no one would bat an eye.  There isn't a single gay parent out there that would complain that their child's teacher was promoting a heterosexual lifestyle.  It's also safe to argue that by revealing his sexuality to his students, he could be helping young people who might be struggling with feelings of their own.  Regardless, it's ludicrous that a school district would fire someone based on a single homophobic parent who apparently has a vendetta against this teacher.

Read the original article at The Portland Mercury.