An art teacher has filed a federal lawsuit claiming sex discrimination after she was suspended for showing students a photo of her girlfriend.

Stacy Bailey, a two-time awarded teacher of the year, was removed from the classroom after a parent complained about the incident. Bailey has since married her girlfriend.

According to the lawsuit, parents complained she was promoting a “homosexual agenda.”

Bailey, 31, has been with the Mansfield Independent School District (MISD), employed as an art teacher at Charlotte Anderson elementary school in Arlington, Texas, for ten years.

The district at first placed Bailey on paid administrative leave. Officials later asked her to resign. Bailey's contract was renewed with the stipulation she would be transferred to a middle or high school.

Bailey's attorney told reporters that transferring her client to another school sends the wrong message.

“Transferring Stacy out of Charlotte elementary when she did nothing wrong sends the wrong message that lesbians and gays can't teach elementary students,” he said.

Bailey's wife, Julie Vasquez, also said that the district had treated Bailey differently than other teachers.

“Teaching art to these children has been her life's love and passion. It is shocking and disappointing that Mansfield district officials treated my wife differently when she spoke about her family, just as every teacher does,” Julie Vasquez told reporters last month.

In a statement released in March, the district claimed that Bailey was having “ongoing discussions with elementary aged students about her own sexual orientation.” Bailey denies the claim.