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“Will somebody with clout please tell the autocrats who run our state and public schools that children are human beings with civil rights? I doubt if there is a teacher anywhere who doesn’t intuitively call the student the name they request, the name they write on their assignments, the name that their friends call them. It simply establishes rapport with the student. Punishing Ms. Melissa Calhoun for her delayed response to a repressive rule threatens all students and teachers, undermines their dignity and self-worth and defies the spirit of our liberal democracy.” (Florida Today, 8/31/2025)

“Less than a month following a Florida Department of Education committee’s decision to uphold a Brevard teacher’s education credentials after she used a student’s chosen name without parental permission, the Florida Commissioner of Education emphasized that he believed she deserved a suspension.” (Florida Today, 8/21/25)

Former Satellite High AP English teacher Melissa Calhoun talks about the events from complaint to reprimand regarding her use of a student’s chosen name based on gender identity rather than the student’s legal name.

Former Brevard County teacher Melissa Calhoun speaks exclusively with FLORIDA TODAY regarding events following the use of a student’s chosen name

Photos: Crowd shows support for ousted Brevard teacher at board meeting

The Brevard County community showed strong support for former teacher Melissa Calhoun at a school board meeting on Tuesday after her dismissal for using a student’s preferred name without parental consent, a requirement under new Florida law.

Tuesday also marked the first meeting since Superintendent Mark Rendell announced that he would not consider rehiring Melissa Calhoun, a teacher whose contract was not renewed after a spring investigation by the district revealed she had used a then-senior’s chosen name without parental permission, an action in violation of a 2023 Florida Board of Education rule. A Florida Department of Education committee approved a settlement with Calhoun at the end of July, the stipulations of which placed her on a 12-month probation. Her probation does not begin until she obtains a teaching position.

The former Brevard County teacher who lost her job over calling a student by their preferred name and was at the center of a statewide debate over parental rights is telling her side of the story for the first time.

A teacher from Brevard County who made headlines last school year is speaking out for the first time.