Tarrant County College Professor Suspended After Behavior Scares Students Out of Classroom

A Tarrant County College professor's behavior so startled his astronomy students that they left the classroom and called police. Students in an astronomy class at Tarrant County College left the room and called police after their professor's behavior frightened them.Adjunct professor Daniel Mashburn, who worked at the school's northeast campus, walked into the class with his face fully covered and turned off the lights, according to a report from The Collegian, the campus news organization. Mashburn then drew connections between Islam and astronomy, The Collegian reported.Campus police came to the classroom, questioned and searched Mashburn for weapons, but found none, according to KDFW-TV (Channel 4). He told the campus paper that he wanted the classroom dark so he could see the stars outside."They pay a measly fee, $56 to, at most, $129 -- a miserable sum for the knowledge and wisdom that I can pass onto them," he told The Collegian. "Why would they walk out on me? Why would they protest me?"The campus paper reported that Mashburn previously worked for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee as a teaching assistant, where he tried to work connections between Islam and astronomy into his classes as well.The professor was suspended pending the outcome of an investigation at the college, according to The Collegian.  Continue reading...