The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville settled a lawsuit from one of its former students for $80,000.

Maggie DeJong was studying towards her master's degree in art therapy counseling when she received three no-contact orders against her from the school after three of her fellow students complained about her political opinions. DeJong's Christian faith has informed her conservative views, which she spoke of openly and posted to her social media. Following the no-contact order, DeJong filed a lawsuit against the university for violating her first amendment right.

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“Public universities can’t punish students for expressing their political and religious viewpoints. Maggie, like every other student, is protected under the First Amendment to respectfully share her personal beliefs, and university officials were wrong to issue gag orders and silence her speech,” Alliance Defending Freedom Legal Counsel Mathew Hoffmann said in a statement. “As a result of Maggie’s courage in filing suit, SIUE has agreed to take critical steps to comply with the law and the U.S. Constitution and move closer to accepting and embracing true diversity of thought and speech.”

As a result, former Chancellor of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Randall G. Pembrook, Director for Equal Opportunity, Access, and Title IX Coordination Jamie Ball, and Program Director of the Art Therapy Counseling Graduate Program Megan A. Robb will undergo a First Amendment training session from the ADF. They also promised to change the university's policies "to ensure students with varying political, religious, and ideological views are welcome in the art therapy program," per the ADF.

“DeJong clearly has the right, as enshrined in the First Amendment, to express her religious, political, and social views on her personal social media account and to engage in mutual conversations with fellow students regarding those opinions without fear of retaliation from school officials,” U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois wrote in its decision in March when the university attempted to dismiss the lawsuit.

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SIUE had an undergraduate population of less than 10,000 students in 2021. It is one of two campuses in the Southern Illinois University system.

DeJong graduated with her degree last year, around the same time the lawsuit was filed.