 Church Educational System Honor Code Brigham Young University, Brigham Young University-Hawaii, Brigham Young University-Idaho, and LDS Business College exist to provide an education in an atmosphere consistent with the ideals and principles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Further, a student is not in good Honor Code standing if his or her ecclesiastical endorsement has either lapsed or has been withdrawn, or if the Honor Code Office has placed a "hold" on the student's records. Students must have their endorsements completed, turned in, and processed by the Honor Code Office before they can register for fall semester or any semester thereafter. Non-LDS students are to be endorsed by (1) the local ecclesiastical leader if the student is an active member of the congregation, (2) the bishop of the LDS ward in which they currently reside, or (3) the nondenominational BYU chaplain. SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) She is a life-long member of the LDS church with the needed ecclesiastical endorsement to hold a current temple recommend -- her faith's standard of being a believer in good standing. Robertson said she was born and raised in Virginia as a member of the LDS church - officially known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
– When Ruthie Robertson declared on Facebook that "homosexuality and transgenderism are not sins," the 22-year-old political science instructor at Brigham Young University-Idaho expected the feedback would be harsh. "But it never crossed my mind that I would lose my job," she tells the Idaho State Journal. Now, that's exactly what happened. Though her lengthy statement was in response to the bullying of gay students at BYU, which is operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Robertson says school administrators weren't pleased. Indeed, after she refused their demands to remove the post—which also called out the church's treatment of LGBT people—Robertson says she was told her summer classes would be her last. "I kind of felt like the rug was pulled out from under me," says Robertson, a lifelong member of the LDS church who'd previously been scheduled to teach a course in the fall term, per KUTV and the Washington Post. She maintains there was nothing in her contract banning her from expressing her opinions online, but she admits her views were in opposition to church policies. A BYU rep refused to comment. However, the same BYU honor code noting "homosexual behavior is inappropriate" also states adherence to "the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ … is a specific condition of employment and admission." Despite losing her job, Robertson says she has no regrets about what she wrote. "It was something that needed to be said," she tells the Post.