An investigation by a Florida school into charges that a teacher “groomed” a student “to transition and to be gay” resulted in the school district ending her contract, despite a recommendation to only reprimand her.

AP English teacher Melissa Calhoun is the first known Florida educator to lose her job as a result of a 2023 Florida Board of Education rule stating parents must provide written permission before an educator can use any alternative to a student’s legal name.

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The rule is part of a wave of “Don’t Say Gay” legislation and policy enacted in Florida over the last several years.

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The report was made public through a Freedom of Information Act request by the news outlet Florida Today.

In March, Brevard County school board member Matt Viser was contacted by a parent who accused faculty at Satellite High School of “influencing and grooming” her daughter to “transition and be gay,” according to the report.

An investigation was launched by school officials, who questioned multiple teachers and other staff. Calhoun was the only teacher who admitted to using the teen’s chosen name. She had taught the student since 2022, before the rule was enacted.

Calhoun immediately expressed willingness to abide by the nickname prohibition and told the student, a 17-year-old senior dual-enrolled at Eastern Florida State College, that she could no longer use it.

In subsequent meetings with the lead investigator for Brevard Public Schools, Calhoun said the student did well in class and didn’t suffer any behavioral issues, so she didn’t have occasion to speak with the parents. She hadn’t checked to see if the student had a completed parent permission form, calling it a “complete oversight,” according to the report.

Calhoun said she wasn’t using the student’s chosen name with any “political intent” and said she was “shocked” when she learned she was in violation of school policy.

The final report recommended that Calhoun receive a letter of reprimand stating that she had violated four separate Florida statutes and policies.

There was no recommendation that Calhoun be fired for the offense.

Despite that, Superintendent Mark Rendell made the decision not to renew Calhoun’s contract. The district reported Calhoun’s violation to the state.

Explaining why Rendell ignored the investigator’s recommendation, a district spokesperson said, “The decision was made by Dr. Rendell based on uncertainty surrounding the state’s response to the incident. We do not have any historical data to guide us on a FLDOE [Florida Department of Education] response to this violation. We do not want to start the 2025-2026 school year with a teacher whose license may be revoked by the state.”

Supporters of Calhoun have been out in force at school board meetings since she was severed in April. She showed up at a meeting herself this week and was given a standing ovation.

Retired teacher Bill Pearlman’s testimony was typical of the outpouring of support.

He told board members: “You showed no kindness, no compassion, no due process, and no recognition of the excellence that she has shared with the estimated 3,000 students in her career at BPS,” he said of Calhoun. “Many of us are really disappointed in our superintendent and our board.”

Every public speaker at the meeting expressed support for Calhoun, save a veteran and the chair of the local Moms for Liberty chapter.

The board took no further action on Calhoun’s case.

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