AURORA, Colo. -- A 28-year-old high school teacher who was placed on leave after comparing President George W. Bush's State of the Union address to speeches by Adolf Hitler has been reinstated, school officials said Friday.

The reinstatement is effective immediately and teacher Jay Bennish will return to the classroom on Monday.

"I'm very excited to be back in the classroom on Monday. I'm very excited to continue encouraging students to think critically, to encourage democratic values in our society, and to promote social justice, just as I've always attempted to do," Bennish said. "I will continue to try to improve myself and my teaching ability and continue to push my students to think critically."

Bennish was disciplined, but officials refused to say what action was taken. His attorney, David Lane, said Bennish would be back in the classroom Monday "with full pay."

Bennish was placed on leave earlier this month after his class lecture was recorded by one of his Overland High School students and aired on talk radio. The Cherry Creek School District said that was not a disciplinary move but it was simply to give officials time to look into whether he violated district policy requiring presentation of balanced viewpoints in the classroom.

"Some think Mr. Bennish should be fired. Others think he should be praised. In my judgment, the answer is neither," Superintendent Monte Moses said in a release. "Jay Bennish has promise as a teacher, but his practice and deportment need growth and refinement."

The district did not elaborate at what kind of punishment was issued but did say that they will be keeping an eye on Bennish's classes in the future.

"The district values the principles of free speech and academic freedom, but expects them to be applied within the context of district policy, professional ethics, and common sense. As our policy states, 'Like any freedom, academic freedom carries responsibilities. It is not a license for abuses. It may not serve as a cloak for indoctrination,'" the district said in its official release. (Click here to read the full statement)

Bennish's lawyer, David Lane, said that Bennish said that in the future he would present both sides of a controversial issue immediately after putting it out.

"I think Jay has learned from this experience that when you're dealing with high school students, you have to be more sensitive to those concerns," Lane said.

Lane applauded the school district's for understanding the first amendment implications of the case and understanding academic freedom. Lane had threatened a federal lawsuit if the school district fired Bennish or if it suspended him or took pay away from him.

Bennish has said he was trying to get his students to think critically when he made the comments on during a Feb. 1 lecture in a geography class. In a 20-minute recording taped by student Sean Allen, Bennish said some of Bush's State of the Union address the night before "sounds a lot like the things that Adolf Hitler used to say."

Bennish said he always presents balancing viewpoints in class, but not always at the same time. Lane acknowledged that was a mistake.

"Jay's teaching style will perhaps be, as some would say, a little more fair and balanced on a minute-to-minute basis," Lane said. "When you put out one side, put out the other then and there."

Allen said he never wanted Bennish to be fired but hoped the school board would prevent a repeat of lectures like the one Bennish gave that day, and he had hoped Bennish would be punished for what he did.

Allen said he would not return to Overland because has received threats, which he said have been reported to police. But he said he did not regret publicizing Bennish's lecture.

"I would do it a million times over because I feel like it was the right thing to do, and my conscience wouldn't let me go on and listen to the things Mr. Bennish was saying and indoctrinating students."

"My first thought is to thank Sean Allen for standing up and voicing his concern over a teacher who was using his classroom as a political soapbox. Second, I hope that Mr. Bennish will learn something from this and actually work to balance and improve his classroom presentation," said Gov. Bill Owens.

The state Senate on Friday rejected a proposal authorizing schools to fire teachers who routinely present one-sided views in the classroom and instead agreed to a measure saying teachers who violate school policies can be dismssed.

"I think we are just trying to score political points based on what's happening on talk radio, and I don't think we ought to legislate like that," said Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver.

Meanwhile, a partisan dispute over a resolution condemning Bennish ended in a deadlock Thursday at the state Board of Education.

Four Democrats refused to consider the resolution, which declared that Bennish had "perpetrated upon his students an extreme form of economic, cultural, political and religious bias."

When neither side budged, board chairwoman Pamela Jo Suckla adjourned the meeting.