The Brownsburg teacher who said he was forced to resign last year because he refused to use transgender students’ chosen names is suing the school district.

John Kluge, the former orchestra teacher at Brownsburg High School, is accusing Brownsburg Community Schools of discrimination, harassment and retaliation based on his religious beliefs. He filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court this week, alleging that his First Amendment rights were violated by the district.

Kluge submitted a letter of resignation to district administrators last April but told IndyStar at the time that he only did so to avoid being fired before the end of the school year. Kluge had been with Brownsburg schools for four years and wanted to continue teaching there.

He ran into issues with district administrators, though, after the district allowed transgender students to change their name and gender in its online record system with the approval of a parent and medical professional. Once that change was made, teachers were directed to call students by that name.

Teacher claims First Amendment concerns

Kluge refused to do so. He said that calling transgender students by their chosen names to reflect a gender identity that doesn’t match their born sex equates to support of something he views as “dangerous” and violates his First Amendment rights. As a compromise, he called all students exclusively by their last names.

Advocates for the LGBTQ community say that using a person's chosen name is an issue of respect, not religion or politics.

At an emotionally charged school board meeting last year, transgender students said they felt disrespected and even harassed by Kluge when he refused to use their chosen names. At that meeting, the school board voted to officially accept Kluge’s resignation, even as he was waiting to ask to rescind the letter.

Brownsburg Schools::Teacher says transgender name policy goes against his religious beliefs

Kluge, 29, said he submitted only a tentative letter of resignation because the district threatened to fire him with three weeks remaining in the school year. Instead, Kluge handed in a letter of resignation with instructions to not submit the letter until May 29, after the school year ended. On May 25, the last student day at Brownsburg Schools, Kluge said he asked to withdraw the letter.

Instead, Kluge said, he was locked out of the district's email system later that day. Other teachers then told him the district sent out a job posting for a high school orchestra teacher.

The board voted to accept his resignation two weeks later.

The Indiana Family Institute, a conservative nonprofit that promotes religious liberty and opposes same-sex marriage and abortion, had started a letter-writing campaign to support Kluge during his fight to keep his job. Now, they’re backing his lawsuit.

“As a faith-based policy advocacy organization, we take vigilance for religious freedoms as seriously as any element of our mission to improve Hoosier families,” said Curt Smith, institute president, in a news release. “We were pleased to assist Mr. Kluge immediately to obtain legal counsel and understand his rights and the remedies available to correct this injustice.”

Two weeks after the Brownsburg school board accepted his resignation, Kluge submitted a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In March, the U.S. Department of Justice responded with a Notice of Right to Sue, allowing Kluge to move forward with the lawsuit.

In addition to the school district, the lawsuit names several individuals: Jim Snapp, superintendent of Brownsburg schools; Phil Utterback, president of the Brownsburg school board; Jodi Gordon, human resources director for the district; and Bret Daghe, principal of Brownsburg High School.

'Last name only' policy created tension

According to the lawsuit, Daghe said that Kluge’s “last name only” accommodation was creating tension in the school and that’s why Kluge was not going be allowed to continue with the practice after the 2017-18 school year. But using the names students chose — with approval of their parents and a medical professional — would go against Kluge’s “sincerely held” Christian beliefs, which include a belief that it is sinful to promote transgender behavior.

The lawsuit says that Kluge has suffered mentally and emotionally and continues to suffer “irreparable harm” as a result of the district’s actions.

The school district declined to comment on pending litigation.

Call IndyStar education reporter Arika Herron at (317) 201-5620 or email her at Arika.Herron@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter: @ArikaHerron.