Connecticut teacher escorted out of school over classroom crucifix heads to federal appeals court

Connecticut teacher Marisol Arroyo-Castro is taking her First Amendment case to the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals after her school district barred a crucifix she had kept in her classroom. The appeal concerns whether her personal religious display was protected private expression or government speech, as a federal judge ruled when denying her request for a preliminary injunction.

Arroyo-Castro had taught for more than 30 years and says the crucifix had been near her desk for about a decade. After administrators ordered its removal in December 2024, she received a reprimand, was suspended for two days without pay, placed on paid leave and later reassigned to a non-teaching role. Oral arguments are scheduled for 7 December; her lawyers cite the US Supreme Court’s Kennedy decision on a teacher’s private religious expression.