Classroom cross dispute leaves longtime Connecticut teacher fearing job loss

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Connecticut teacher placed on leave after displaying wooden crucifix in classroom

Connecticut teacher Marisol Arroyo-Castro and Keisha Russell, Esq., senior counsel at First Liberty Institute, join 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss the religious liberty case involving a wooden cross displayed in Arroyo-Castro's classroom.

While students in New Britain, Connecticut return to class, one teacher remains sidelined, worried she could lose her job as a dispute over her classroom cross keeps her away from the job she loves.

"I dream about my teaching experience almost every day," Marisol Arroyo-Castro told Fox News on Monday.

"I didn’t realize how much I really love teaching now that I cannot go back, and the reason that I cannot go back is just so sad."

Arroyo-Castro, a devout Catholic, was suspended and allegedly "threatened with termination" last December after refusing to remove a crucifix beside her desk, according to her legal representatives.

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Marisol Arroyo-Castro (right) says she "dreams" about her teaching experience "almost every day" after being placed on leave for refusing to hide a crucifix she displayed inside her classroom. (First Liberty Institute/Fox & Friends First)

First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit religious liberty law firm, along with legal firm WilmerHale, fired off a warning letter to the Consolidated School District of New Britain the following month, accusing the district of violating Arroyo-Castro's constitutional rights with the move.

The group claimed that the school "pressured [Arroyo-Castro] to resign or retire early and sign an agreement not to sue the district," adding that she has been "threatened" with termination unless she agrees to hide the crucifix. 

First Liberty senior counsel Keisha Russell said Arroyo-Castro was asked to hide the crucifix inside or under her desk.

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First portion of a statement from the Consolidated School District of New Britain in Connecticut (Fox & Friends First)

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