TLDR: Mrs. Trish Johnson, a teacher in the Festus R-VI School District in Festus, Missouri, is losing her job because she refused to discriminate against LGBTQ+ students in her classroom. This is just the most recent of many actions district leaders have taken to silence LGBTQ+ students and allies. Please sign this petition to show your support for LGBTQ+ students and allies in the Festus R-VI School District as well as to support our demand that Mrs. Johnson is able to retain her job. The Festus School District should also formally state a plan for equality and a commitment to ensuring the rights of LGBTQ+ and all students. Additionally, the names of Festus R-VI school board members and those in district administration are included below in bold in the event you feel compelled to personally reach out to them and show your support for the cause! 

The Full Story: Mrs. Trish Johnson has been a teacher at Festus Middle School for 5 years. She loves her job and the opportunity to make a positive impact with students. Prior to taking a permanent position with the district she was a highly sought after substitute teacher for 12 years and she devoted a great deal of her time to volunteering in the Festus school system. She has always helped wherever needed from being a room parent, a field trip chaperone, a PTO member/officer, to organizing fundraisers and events, and serving on numerous committees. In her first year at Festus Middle School, she even created a scholarship for graduating Festus R-VI seniors where each year’s winner is chosen by her students. 

After a parent complaint to central office administration containing false information was passed along to the Festus Middle School Principal, Mr. Jacob Munoz, he took action against her. Although the initial accusation was a false claim that Mrs. Johnson had a project hanging in her classroom depicting two females in bed kissing, she was ultimately disciplined by Mr. Munoz for hanging student work that contained a small pride flag in her room, for not silencing a student who stated they were “not straight” in class, and for allowing 7th grade students to take the 5 Love Languages Quiz for children and teens. She was given a disciplinary letter and was forced to turn in her lesson plans to Mr. Munoz prior to each week so he could review them (though he rarely did). In subsequent meetings, Mr. Munoz himself admitted that he was imposing his own religious views on certain students’ right to expression because he stated that as a Conservative Christian he could not allow support for LGBTQ+ students in his school. He also stated he would have a talk with them about expressing their sexual identity (which heterosexual students are allowed to do without issue). At one point, he went so far as to compare a pride flag to a swastika and a rebel flag. That comparison is both baffling and appalling and brings into question whether Mr. Munoz is fit to be acting in the role of principal at a public school, or any school for that matter. 

Once it became obvious that Mr. Munoz was going to continue his crusade against LGBTQ+ expression, Mrs. Johnson notified the district’s central office about the discrimination taking place against her students and fully believed they would step in. However, she was mistaken as Dr. Link Luttrell, Dr. Nicki Ruess, and Mr. Jonathan Earnhart disregarded district policy by ignoring the report and neglecting to conduct an investigation. Mr. Munoz, however, decided to respond to Mrs. Johnson’s report with a scathing letter that not only scolded her for false gossip he had heard, but attacked Mrs. Johnson’s character and professionalism. Dr. Ruess went so far as to drive to the middle school, sit in the parking lot, and watch Mrs. Johnson and her union representatives as they signed grievances to file with the school district. 

Having been an advocate for the district for so long and having faith they would not only do what is right, but follow their own policies, Mrs. Johnson followed protocol and appealed to the Board of Education (Todd Oetting, Doug Wendel, Mike Wolk, Brent Abrams, Doreen Berezowski, and Richard Fadler). During her testimony before them she cited instances of discrimination, numerous broken Festus R-VI Board of Education policies, and broken federal laws. All the while, Dr. Link Luttrell sat shaking his head in disagreement and scowling. Sadly, the Board of Education was more interested in asking questions about the 5 Love Languages quiz that is routinely given to younger students elsewhere in the district rather than focusing on any real issues brought to their attention. The letter that the Board of Education wrote in response to Mrs. Johnson denying her appeal to them rivaled Mr. Munoz’s in it’s attacks on her character, misrepresentation of events, and failure to address the actual issues (specifically discrimination against students) that Mrs. Johnson had reported to them. 

As the situation continued on it became clear that Mr. Munoz, central office administrators, and the Board of Education were doing everything they could to intimidate Mrs. Johnson into silence and to discredit her. Mr. Munoz and the Board of Education even threatened Mrs. Johnson by accusing her of violating the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment in allowing students to take the 5 Love Languages Quiz. The same quiz all Festus students had taken as fourth graders. All communications Mrs. Johnson has received from Mr. Munoz, district administration, and the Board of Education have contained sexist and attackful language trying to call into question her character, her professionalism, and her judgment as a teacher. Additionally, each letter, in an attempt to change the narrative, has strayed further and further from the truth and from addressing the disrimination that took place. Each twisting of the facts was a method used to help Mr. Munoz feel justified in not rehiring Mrs. Johnson for the 2022-23 school year. Mrs. Johnson is a beloved teacher who is wonderful at her job and does not deserve this deplorable treatment in retaliation for advocating for her students, their rights, their safety, and their mental well being. 

What This Means and What You Can Do: Through this experience, Mrs. Johnson has learned that she is not the only teacher who has been reprimanded in the Festus R-VI School District for supporting LGBTQ+ students. It’s time for the public to see what’s happening in this district as they have been given many opportunities to recognize their mistakes and make changes, but instead have chosen to double down on their homophobic views. Suppressing a student’s identity or telling them their identity is wrong can lead to serious mental health issues such as depression and even suicide. School should be a safe place for students to express and explore their identities and it is teachers’ responsibility to create an environment for students to do so. Unfortunately, many teachers at Festus R-VI are now scared that if they do what any great teacher would do and support their LGBTQ+ students, they will face the same type of treatment and retaliation as Mrs. Johnson has. Therefore, help make our voices heard in support of LGBTQ+ students and allies at Festus! We want Mrs. Johnson to be rehired for the 2022-2023 academic year. We also want the district to create a plan to ensure LGBTQ+ students and their rights are protected at Festus R-VI. We want the district to require diversity and inclusion training for all. You can help us hold those responsible accountable. An election for new Festus R-VI Board of Education members is coming up. Make sure to ask candidates about their views on this and vote for candidates who support ALL students and LGBTQ+ rights! Consider attending local Board of Education meetings to make your voices heard or simply reach out to those involved to express your opinions. We would love for teachers who have gone through similar experiences to share in the comments below if they feel comfortable. If any students or alumni have experiences of discrimination they would like to share we welcome those as well. Lastly, please comment any great experiences you’ve had with Mrs. Johnson that could help her case with the district. Sign our petition to show your support in the hopes the court of public opinion can help bring about change. Thanks for your support and thanks for making it to the end of this petition!