About a month and a half after a Satellite High teacher’s contract wasn’t renewed following her use of a student’s chosen name without parental permission, she attended a Brevard school board meeting for the first time.
Melissa Calhoun, an AP English Literature teacher, was reprimanded for using the chosen name of a 17-year-old student without parental permission on April 1 and told the same day her contract would not be renewed for the 2025-2026 school year the same day, according to district records. Her action went against a 2023 Florida Board of Education rule, which requires educators to obtain parental consent via a signed form before they use any alternative to a student’s legal name, whether that be a shortened version of their given name or a name related to the student’s gender identity. In this case, the student’s name was related to their gender identity, according to district records.
The action prompted multiple protests in support of Calhoun in the following week, including a rally at Satellite High, a gathering within walking distance of the school and protests ahead of the April 22 and May 6 school board meetings. Community members gathered again prior to the May 20 board meeting, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. in Viera.
Public comment concluded with Satellite High students again asking the board to reinstate Melissa Calhoun.
Ryan Matrigali, a junior at Satellite High, spoke for the second time to beg the board to reinstate Calhoun.
“Ms. Calhoun is a dedicated teacher who excels far beyond her peers,” he said. “She stands for the representation and care and students deserve, and you rip that away from us.”
He added that Calhoun will become “a gravestone next to the dignity of this board.”
Ava Numan, another Satellite High student who spoke earlier in the meeting, talked about students often feeling safer at school than at home.
“Out of all the things that Ms. Calhoun can get fired for, or not have her contract renewed, it’s because she wanted to make her student feel comfortable in her classroom, to make her student want to learn and want to be there,” Ava said. “Out of everything teachers in America, Florida and in Brevard County have to carry, the one thing a teacher gets fired for is not the fact that she’s a bad teacher, but a name.”
Sebastian Martinez, a member of SEE Alliance, brought up that he believed some of the board had not read the full investigative report before Superintendent Mark Rendell opted not to renew Melissa Calhoun’s contract.
“Each and every one of you should have read the investigative report,” he said. “Instead, you deflect what is supposed to be your responsibility and say it was the superintendent’s decision. But when presented with an opportunity to reconsider, you shot it down and once again said, ‘Well, we’ll wait for the state.’ That’s not good governance.”
Jennifer Hopkins brought up concerns that the school board “made an example” of Calhoun.
“She was punished because her compassion made your cruelty look even worse by comparison,” she said. “You crossed the line. We will not stand for it. You’re not the moral compass of this community. You’re a symptom of everything that’s broken in public education.”
Paul Roub, Amy Roub’s husband, spoke about his wife being removed from the premise when she arrived prior to the meeting due to a trespass that was issued about a year ago. He described the comment she made at the spring 2024 meeting that board member Megan Wright perceived as a threat, which resulted in her being trespassed.
“There was no threat,” he said. “The only one talking about a threat was you.”
He detailed his wife leaving the meeting peacefully but being issued a trespass several days later and being told that she must give 24 hours notice prior to attending a meeting.
Her notice ahead of the May 20 meeting was given 22 hours ahead of the meeting, and she was told to leave the premise.
“That’s the price of not threatening anyone in this room,” Roub said. “Never overestimate this board.”
Kelly Colomberti, a former BPS student, chastised the board, saying they were harming the student at the center of the naming controversy.
“You cannot continue to dig your head to the sand and lie to us that you are protecting that poor student who you’ve made the center of a shameful spectacle that is not at all their fault,” she said, raising her voice. “What you’ve done instead is protected one parent’s ego, who cannot tolerate that their child is maturing into their own being, and who have punished the entire community in doing so.”
Another community member addressed their comment to the student.
“I’m sorry you had to go through this,” she said. “It’s unfair that you’ve been used as a pawn in this situation, instead of just enjoying your senior year. Please know that many people support you, love you and accept you as you are. You are loved, you are worthy. Please don’t forget that.”
Multiple Satellite High graduates spoke in favor of Melissa Calhoun.
Ava Wolfenkoehler, a former student of Calhoun, requested that the board renew the teacher’s contract and brought up concerns about the board’s handling of a situation involving a student going by another name related to their gender identity.
“Trans and queer kids exist and deserve every right to feel comfortable in their bodies,” she said. “It’s really strange to see you sit up here smiling and giving out awards to teachers and students like you haven’t been consistently voting against their wellbeing.”
Braedon Reilly told the board that their actions sent a clear message.
“I just want everyone to hear the message you all emphasize with firing Miss Calvin,” he said. “The message that compassion is punishable, the message that respect is seen as rebellion, the message that a child’s existence is subject for debate, the message that you are fascists.”
He also brought up the removal of Amy Roub, a member of the public who was removed from the premise because she was previously trespassed. The district requires notification that a previously trespassed individual will be on the premise 24 hours in advance. Roub said she gave notice 22 hours before the meeting and was told to leave upon her arrival.
“It seems that you guys are scared,” Reilly said. “Scared that an ordinary mom has done more for me, my friends, her children, gay and trans youth, than you have done for a single student in your lifetime.”
Non-agenda public comment began just after 8 p.m., again starting with a warning from Board Chair Gene Trent that anyone who caused a disruption would be removed or trespassed.
The first speaker, a veteran, thanked the board for their commitment to parental rights.
“It is crucial for us to have leaders who actively listen to the concerns and insights of parents and guardians, thus ensuring that we play a significant role in shaping the upbringing and education of our children,” he said.
He thanked the board for making a “hard decision” and supporting parents.
Bernard Bryan, education chair of the South Brevard NAACP, said he recently visited multiple elementary schools in the southern region of the county to see their VPK programs. The lack of attendance of marginalized communities at the programs concerns him.
“Every child ought to have that opportunity,” he said, praising the programs. “And I’m begging the school board, this community, this leadership team … to make sure every child in Brevard County has the opportunity to attend a VPK program.”
Despite board member John Thomas’ plea for the school board to consider reinstating Melissa Calhoun for the 2025-2026 school year, Board Chair Gene Trent and Board Vice Chair Matt Susin did not comment on Calhoun during the discussion portion of the meeting.
Superintendent Mark Rendell did not address the issue, either.
Katye Campbell said she supports Superintendent Mark Rendell’s decision not to renew Melissa Calhoun’s contract. However, she added that once the state makes a decision regarding Calhoun’s teaching certification, she hopes Calhoun will have the opportunity to return to Brevard.
“We as a government never need to come between a parent and their child,” she said. “We need to always check ourselves and those kinds of decisions that are going to put the government between a family.”
Board member Megan Wright said John Thomas has a “heart of gold” for continuing to bring up the issue and that no one on the board has animosity toward the district’s educators, but she agrees with Campbell.
Just after 7:30 p.m., during board discussions, board member John Thomas said he felt that Melissa Calhoun had been caught in an “ideological battle.”
“She had never used a pronoun,” he said. “Never tried to direct her beliefs on anyone. … She is what a teacher should be. What every teacher should be.”
He added that the board should consider a more reasonable reprimand and renewing her for the following year. He did not make a motion, as he had previously been shot down at an April 22 school board meeting.
Other board members did not immediately reply to his remarks.
Calhoun walked out shortly after, to applause from the audience. Board member Katye Campbell, who was speaking, said, “Well, applause for Nirvaan,” a studnet she was discussing who had organized a fundraiser for Candlelighters of Brevard.
The agenda-related public comment section ended just before 7:30 p.m. Every commenter but Karen Fulton, chair of Brevard’s chapter of Moms for Liberty, spoke in support of Melissa Calhoun.
Next, the board was set to hold a public hearing for several policies.
A couple of speakers brought up concerns regarding a policy related to the discipline or dismissal of staff, saying the terms used within the policy were too vague.
“These words don’t have any meaning without clear definitions,” one speaker said of terms like “gross insubordination” and “immorality.”
Throughout public comment, Calhoun sat quietly in the front row. She looked forward at the board as she listened to commenters speak.
Commenters continued to address concerns about the handling of Calhoun’s contract.
One parent called the mission of Brevard Public Schools — “to serve every student with excellence as the standard” — a “joke” because of the district’s decision to not renew Calhoun’s contract.
“It is reprehensible that a caring teacher was essentially fired for respecting a student’s dignity,” she said, comparing Calhoun’s case to the handling of an incident earlier this year involving Roosevelt educators who were charged in connection to an alcohol-fueled teen party. Neither’s contracts were terminated.
“Why would (Calhoun) or any other teacher in this country want to work for a district that doesn’t support them, that silences opposition and is a national laughingstock?” she asked.
Paul Roub, parent of Satellite High graduates, spoke to the “real, specific, human cost” of the district’s decision.
“You didn’t have to do it,” he said.
He also spoke to how this may be a “sign of things to come,” saying it could have a chilling effect on other teachers.
“If the people you’re leading are afraid to speak to you, you’re doing a terrible, terrible, terrible job,” he said. “(Teachers are) afraid to use their own judgment. They’re afraid to use their own voices. They’re afraid of consequences, because we have a teacher being fired for being respectful to a student.”
Comments continued to focus on Calhoun.
Ryan Matrigali, a junior at Satellite High, questioned why Superintendent Mark Rendell opted not to renew Calhoun for the 2025-2026 school year when Human Resources did not recommend terminating her.
“The non-renewal of Ms. Calhoun for the 2025-2026 year was unjust and unfair,” he said. “Give Ms. Calhoun the due process she deserves, and then come to a decision that is both beneficial and impactful for you and all the people you represent.”
Ava Numan, another Satellite High student discussed Calhoun’s pass rates, saying she “performs above the standard.”
“Your teachers are having to choose between their own students and a piece of paper,” she said, referencing the nickname form. “This is the first case in the state (of a teacher being let go) for an incident of a name. Why not give them a second chance?”
Karen Fulton, chair of Brevard’s chapter of Moms for Liberty, said she was concerned for the student and read a section of Florida statute out loud regarding biological sex and teaching within public schools.
“I, once again, would just like to remember the student and the family,” she said. “As sad as I am for the teacher … the whole thing is, the whole thing is sad.”
The first fifteen minutes of public comment focused on the public’s displeasure with the district’s decision not to reinstate Melissa Calhoun at Satellite High.
A Brevard teacher of 36 years, who is preparing to retire from Satellite High, spoke through tears of Calhoun’s merit as a teacher.
“I just hope that the future of education is safe with you,” she said, choking up. “We’re losing someone that’s really dear to my heart, and those students also deserve her as well. Melissa Calhoun, we love you.”
Bill Pearlman, a retired teacher, brought up concerns regarding 220 instructional vacancies listed on BPS’ website as of May 19 and the handling of Calhoun’s investigation. “You showed no kindness, no compassion, no due process, and no recognition of the excellence that (Calhoun) has shared with the estimated 3,000 students in her career at BPS,” he said. “Many of us are really disappointed in our superintendent and our board.”
Another speaker, a teacher, spoke of her passion for teaching, saying she has the “honor of working alongside some of the most brilliant minds” she’s ever encountered. She called the decision not to renew Calhoun “devastating.”
“Melissa Calhoun is one of the most principled, compassionate and dedicated educators I know. She’s a Satellite High School alum, an active church member, a beloved educator and (an) … example of what we strive to instill in our students,” she said. “Your decision does not only affect her, it wounds the heart of the entire community.”
Former school board member Jennifer Jenkins criticized the investigation, saying Calhoun was retaliated against with undue process.
“She’s not being judged for misconduct,” Jenkins said. “She’s being judged because the rules are changing around her, as you please.”
Public comments related to the agenda began at 6:45 p.m. Seventeen people were expected to speak.
Board Chair Gene Trent gave a warning ahead of public comment, saying that anyone who caused a disruption would be asked to leave or trespassed.
Melissa Calhoun, the AP English teacher whose contract was not renewed, entered the board room quietly to no reaction from the audience. She sat in the front row facing the five members of the board.
This is the first board meeting she has attended since her contract was not renewed.
Athletes who participated in spring sports were recognized about an hour into the meeting. The district brought home 47 medals and participated in six championships.
Brevard’s school board meeting started with a performance by Cocoa High’s concert choir. The board was also set to honor multiple people and groups, including:
Volunteer of the YearMuseum Passport Program participantsThe Academic Team for taking second place at the 2025 Florida Commissioner’s Academic ChallengeRobotics teams from Melbourne High, Merritt Island High and Rockledge High
About 25 protesters gathered outside the Brevard school board meeting in Viera for about an hour, holding signs in support of Calhoun.
Paul Roub, a graduate from Satellite High and father of several children who have graduated from the school, said he felt the district overreacted to the situation by not renewing Calhoun’s contract.
“Melissa Cohen herself deserves her job back. That student deserves more respect. All the students deserve that great teacher,” he said, adding that he feared the district’s decision could have a chilling effect on others. “There was nothing that said, ‘This happened, therefore she must be gone.’ That’s a choice they made. That’s a choice they could make or not in the future.”
Finch Walker is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at fwalker@floridatoday.com. X: @_finchwalker. Instagram: @finchwalker_.
