Brevard Schools discusses punishment for students using chosen names without permission
Florida Today | By Finch Walker | May 27, 2025
A Brevard student writes a name on top of an assignment that is not the one their parents gave them at birth — a nickname, or a name chosen based on a transgender identity.
Their parents haven’t signed a permission form saying educators may call them that, and their teachers use the student’s legal name. What, if anything, happens next to the student?
During an investigation into whether or not Satellite High teachers were using a 17-year-old student’s chosen name without parental permission, a question was raised among district staff: If a student writes any alternative to their legal name on school assignments without parental permission, can they be disciplined?
The conversation — held over email at the end of March between a human resources official, the director of psychological and mental health services and the director for systems of support in student services — wrapped up with officials saying they would need to consult legal services for additional guidance, though there appeared to be existing codes in the Student Code of Conduct they could use in these scenarios.
Justin Armstrong, director for systems of support in student services, said false reporting and willful disobedience/insubordination may be codes “that schools may potentially use regarding this.”
The conversation was triggered after one teacher of the 17-year-old at Satellite High said she did not use their chosen name, but that the teen often turned in assignments with their name written at the top. The teacher was one of four interviewed. None were reprimanded but Melissa Calhoun, who admitted to using the teen’s chosen name, saying she had met them before a 2023 Florida Board of Education rule requiring parental permission for educators to use any alternative to a student’s legal name went into effect.
It was an “oversight,” she said — one she immediately attempted to remedy by telling the teen she could no longer use their chosen name, according to records, with an HR official recommending that she be reprimanded. They did not say anything about terminating her.
Ultimately, on April 1, Superintendent Mark Rendell issued her a letter of reprimand alongside a letter saying her contract would not be renewed for the 2025-2026 school year.
Does Brevard Public Schools punish students who use a chosen name without permission?
Schools may have the option to punish students who go by a chosen name without parental permission, according to emails released to FLORIDA TODAY. Schools may be able to punish them for false reporting, or “intentionally providing false of misleading information to or withholding valid information,” according to an email from Armstrong. They may also be able to discipline them using the willful disobedience/insubordination code. The code addresses failure to follow directions from those in authority and could encompass “failure to identify one’s self,” Armstrong said.
“Examples include: Student refuses to provide name or identification when prompted; student entering a bathroom or changing room not correlating with their biological sex at birth; student refuses to comply when being redirected; multiple incidents of refusal to comply to staff direction,” he said.
Does Florida law say students can’t use a chosen name without permission?
Florida statute and the 2023 Board of Education rule mostly address school districts, teachers and parental rights rather than what students themselves can or cannot do.
House Bill 1069, which laid the groundwork for the Board of Education rule, says that “it shall be the policy” of public schools that “a person’s sex is an immutable biological trait and that it is false to ascribe to a person a pronoun that does not correspond to such a person’s sex.” It also says that students can’t be required to refer to a person using a preferred personal title or pronoun that doesn’t match that individual’s assigned sex at birth. Additionally, students can’t be asked to provide a preferred personal title or pronoun, and they can’t face punishment for not providing a preferred personal title or pronoun.
The law doesn’t say students cannot voluntarily provide their preferred personal titles, names or pronouns, and it does not say they cannot use their preferred names, titles or pronouns to refer to themselves.
The Florida Board of Education rule, passed in 2023 to provide districts with a way of enforcing the part of HB 1069 that refers to names, lays out the process school districts must follow to obtain parental consent if a student wishes to go by any alternative to their legal name. It does not say anything about consequences for students should a student use a chosen name on school assignments.
Will there be a rule addressing student use of chosen name in new Code of Conduct?
Murnaghan did not clarify if the 2025-2026 Code of Conduct would address students’ use of chosen names. The code was set to be approved at the May 20 meeting, though its approval was postponed because of the Florida legislature’s approval of House Bill 949, which bans the use of cell phones and other wireless devices during the school day. The code needs to be reworked to include the new law, said Superintendent Mark Rendell during the meeting.
Much of the discussion online has remained focused on Calhoun’s actions and the district’s response rather than the potential impact on students. Brevard Moms for America called into question whether or not board member John Thomas, who has repeatedly called on the board to reinstate Calhoun with the stipulation that she be retrained on the 2023 rule, prioritizes parental rights.
“We have contacted John Thomas … to clarify his statement,” the group said in a post on Facebook. “Parents deserve to know whether Parental Rights rules are merely suggestions or must be followed.”
Jen Cousins, chair of GLSEN Central Florida, criticized the district for considering disciplining students after removing Calhoun. A national organization, GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network) provides resources to teachers and students about how to create safe environments for the LGBT community in the classroom.
“Punishing a student for using their nickname on an assignment by bending the rules of the Student Code of Conduct is just another way that Brevard Public Schools continue to be LGBTQ+ intolerant,” Cousins said in a statement to FLORIDA TODAY.
“Brevard students deserve better than this, and they deserve an inclusive learning environment where they feel safe and accepted, not fearful of punishment simply for being themselves.”
