College cancels class on biblical principles in business
Censorship
Officials at Iowa State University decided the business management class would include too much religion for a public university

Shortly before the start of the spring semester, Iowa State University cancelled an independent study course designed to teach students about how biblical principles can be applied to business management.
School officials, who initially approved the course, cancelled it after several professors from the education and religious studies departments, along with the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, complained that the subject matter violated the Constitution's Establishment Clause, which sets out what is generally referred to as the separation of church and state.
Rick Dark, chair of the university's accounting and finance departments, told the Iowa State Daily, the student newspaper, that he eventually decided Professor Roger Stover's course had too much religious content for a public university.
"In reality, the course was too much on the religious side and not enough on the management side," Dark said.
But David Cortman, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, said Supreme Court rulings have upheld the right to study the Bible objectively in public schools and universities.
"It is a shame that certain academics and groups on the left, such as the ACLU, would rather engage in educational censorship than allow true academic freedom," Cortman said in a prepared statement. "Any objections to the method of teaching the course could have been addressed without canceling the entire course."
Dark did not respond to repeated requests for comment for this story.
In letters sent to Dark and Labh Hira, dean of the College of Business, the two professors who led the effort to cancel the course said their main objection was to what they described as its apparent lack of objectivity.
Warren Blumenfeld, a professor in the department of curriculum and instruction, said the course sounded like it was intended to promote the Bible and compared the class to attending Sunday School.
Blumenfeld and Hector Avalos, a professor of philosophy and religious studies, took particular issue with the book Stover planned to use - "How to Run Your Business by The Book: A Biblical Blueprint to Bless Your Business" by Dave Anderson.
In a prepared statement issued late Wednesday, Stover insisted the book dealt with business management principles, not theology. And he noted that he didn't agree with all of the book's prescription's, which was the whole point of the planned course.
"My intention was to have the students study academic management literature on the topics of the book and use that background to evaluate whether the author's suggestions have any merit," said Stover, who has taught at the university since 1979. "This form of inquiry is what business school faculty do all the time. Given the growth of interest in the role of spirituality in business management, our students may well be exposed to this in their career. I feel it is incumbent on us to prepare them for such exposure."
In his written response to Dark addressing the criticism of the course, Stover pointed to similar classes covering spirituality and business at other universities, including at Princeton and Yale. He also noted that Hobby Lobby and Chick-fil-A, both successful businesses, were known for applying biblical principles in the workplace.
Cortman also argued that the Bible's ability to offer insight into effective business management was a well-accepted concept.
"The excuse that the Establishment Clause prohibits any objective teaching about the Bible grows tiresome," he said.