Teacher loses job for calling student by preferred name without parental permission

A Florida high school teacher who lost her job is receiving an outpouring of support — and some criticism — for calling a student by their preferred name, rather than their legal name. 

Melissa Calhoun, a teacher at Satellite High School, received a letter of reprimand for calling a student by their preferred name after a “detailed investigation,” Janet Murnaghan, chief communications officer of the Brevard Public School (BPS) district, told TODAY in an email. She said Calhoun's contract for next school year was not renewed. 

Since Calhoun was notified in April of her contract status, more teachers have been questioned for using students' preferred names, according to the Brevard Federation of Teachers, the local teachers' union. The union is representing Calhoun and one other teacher.

"We are not commenting on these situations as they involve active cases," Anthony S. Colucci, president of the Brevard County Federation of Teachers, told TODAY in an email when asked about the case of Calhoun and the other teacher.

Cyndi Reiter’s son is a student of Calhoun’s. She told TODAY.com her son has had a positive experience in Calhoun’s AP literature class. “She is a wonderful teacher who supports her students,” she said. “Her students are important to her.”  

A Change.org petition has been signed by more than 55,000 so far, calling on Calhoun to be reinstated to her position at Satellite High School. The student who created the petition, a junior at Satellite who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals by school officials, told TODAY that Calhoun was both an English teacher and an after-school club leader. 

“She’s an amazing teacher,” the student said. “She has a unique way of teaching that made it so everyone could understand. There were a lot of hands-on projects you could choose from that made it interesting. I had never been taught English that way.” The student also said Calhoun took on the responsibility of leading the after-school club after no one else stepped forward to lead it. 

“She really fought for us,” the student told TODAY. “Now we want to fight for her.” 

At a Brevard County School Board meeting last month, Kristine Staniec, who identified herself as “both a parent of a child in (Brevard County) district and a colleague of a teacher whose contract was recently not renewed,” spoke in support of Calhoun. 

Staniec expressed concern about not only the decision made, but the “quiet, final” decision that “effectively ended her career in our district without ever calling it what it was.” 

Steniec went on to describe Calhoun’s violation of the name policy as unintentional. “There was no harm, no threat to safety, no malicious intent. Just a teacher trying to connect with a student. And for that her contract was not renewed, despite her strong dedication and years of service.” 

TODAY.com reached out to Calhoun, and did not get a response. She has not publicly commented on the situation.

In the statement Murnaghan sent TODAY, however, the school district says Calhoun “knowingly” did not comply with the state statute that a teacher may not refer to a student by a name other than their legal name without parental consent. 

It reads in full:

“Brevard Public Schools (BPS) was made aware that a teacher at Satellite High School had been referring to a student by a name other than their legal name, without parental permission, when the parent reached out to us. This directly violates state law and the district’s standardized process for written parental consent. 

“BPS supports parents’ rights to be the primary decision-makers in their children’s lives, and Florida law affirms their right to be informed.

“After the accusation was made, the district conducted a detailed investigation. Based on the teacher’s own admission that she knowingly did not comply with state statute she received a letter of reprimand. Teachers, like all employees, are expected to follow the law. 

“The teacher is working under a ten-month contract that expires in May 2025. Since the state will be reviewing her teaching certificate based on these actions, the district decided not to renew the annual contract until the issue is resolved with the state. 

“At BPS our focus is on education — teachers are here to teach and support students academically. Our job is to work in partnership with parents and guardians to ensure student success.”  

But student success, some experts say, partially depends on the student-teacher relationship. 

“In situations like this, school districts are putting bureaucracy in the middle of the student-teacher relationship,”  said Brian Dittmeier, director of public policy at the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN), which advocates on behalf of LGBTQ students in schools. “When a teacher is prohibited from recognizing a student’s identity, children are less likely to show up as their authentic selves and engage in the classroom, and teachers are discouraged from treating their students with basic dignity."

Dittmeier was addressing the Brevard County case as well as similar challenges across the country. He said an unwelcoming learning environment can lead to a student to feel they don’t belong in the community. 

“We have seen consistently that hostile learning environments, including learning environments that don’t affirm students in their chosen name and pronouns, can contribute to diminished academic success, a lack of feeling of belonging in the school community, and adverse mental health outcomes, including higher rates of depression and anxiety and higher rates of attempted and considered suicide,” Dittmeier said. 

Soon after Calhoun's contract was not renewed, dozens of students walked out of school in support of the teacher. “We’re here to really show support for Ms. Calhoun and to show that we are not OK with what is going on,” sophomore Brianna Knight . “We truly are upset that we are losing such a positive teacher.”

A parent of a student at Satellite High School who asked not to be identified, also because of fear of reprisals, told TODAY the student at the center of the controversy has been going by the chosen name for several years.

By law in Florida, the decision to change a student’s name belongs to the parents. 

“According to State Board Rule 6A-1.0955, school districts must adopt a policy for provisions for parents to specify the use of any deviation from their child’s legal name in school,” a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education told TODAY. 

“Florida is the Parental Rights state, and those rights are enshrined in law. Student name change decisions lay with parents, not educators or administrators.”

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