Teri James, 29, a former financial aid specialist at San Diego Christian College for two years, is taking legal action against the college after she was fired last fall for engaging in premarital sex and becoming pregnant out of wedlock.
James, along with her high-profile civil rights lawyer, Gloria Allred, has filed a civil lawsuit at County superior court for wrongful termination and gender discrimination by the college and violation of state law and the California Constitution.
"I was an unmarried pregnant woman, and they took away my livelihood," James said in a statement. "They stripped me of my dignity and humiliated me. I not only lost my source of income and my health insurance to care for myself and my baby through my pregnancy, but I also lost my career and my community."
An excerpt from her termination letter:
"Teri engaged in activity outside the scope of the Handbook and Community Covenant that does not build up the college's mission."
James signed a two-page 'community covenant' in August, which was apparently weeks before she became pregnant.
The covenant tells employees and students to refrain from sexually immoral behavior including premarital sex, adultery, pornography and homosexuality among others.
The employment contract said that severe action will be taken against those who fail to abide by the rules.
James was called to her supervisor's office and asked to confirm the rumors about her pregnancy. After she confirmed it, she was asked to leave immediately.
James in her defense, told Huffington Post that she badly needed a job in this economy and so never thought that anything like this would happen.
The college's human resource department reportedly terminated her because she indulged in premarital sex and not for becoming pregnant.
After the college fired her, they offered James' then-fiancé, Brandon, her job even though he was involved in premarital sex too. However, he did not accept the job.
Allred told Policy Mic that the college's rules seemed to be only applicable to women, not men, as how would they know a man's having premarital sex?
James and her now-husband Brandon James are expecting a baby boy in June.