Somebody had apparently called the private Christian school and leveled allegations against her. Lisciandro said the assistant principal told her the school received word that Lisciandro was in a relationship with a woman, she had attended a pride festival, and she hosted an LGBTQ group in her studio. Her response? “Well, it’s true.” Lisciandro, who is gay, says she was forced out of her part-time teaching job because of her sexual orientation.
On Oct. 2, a half-hour before her musical theater class began, Covenant Christian School [affiliated with Covenant Presbyterian Church(PCA) in Palm Bay, Fla.] teacher Monica Toro Lisciandro said administrators unexpectedly called her into a meeting.
Somebody had apparently called the private Christian school and leveled allegations against her.
Lisciandro said the assistant principal told her the school received word that Lisciandro was in a relationship with a woman, she had attended a pride festival, and she hosted an LGBTQ group in her studio.
Her response? “Well, it’s true.”
Lisciandro, who is gay, says she was forced out of her part-time teaching job because of her sexual orientation. Last week, Head of School Lorne Wenzel wrote an email to musical theater parents:
“I am sorry to say that for personal reasons, Mrs. Lisciandro is not able to continue teaching our musical theater class. We are aggressively pursuing another teacher to finish the class and (direct) our play, and I will keep you posted,” Wenzel wrote.
Wenzel did not return phone messages seeking comment left by FLORIDA TODAY at the school office. Covenant Christian School is located on Emerson Drive in Palm Bay.
“Covenant Christian School, in partnership with supportive parents, exists to glorify God by cultivating wise servant leaders through nurturing Christ-like character, promoting individual academic excellence, and developing a Biblical worldview in its students,” reads a statement on the school website homepage.
According to a non-discrimination policy on the homepage, the school “does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.” The school participates in Florida’s school voucher program.
“It’s been a very difficult situation, because my life has been dedicated to children and making them feel seen and heard and loved, no matter who they are,” Lisciandro said.
“And so to think that something like this could happen to them makes me feel really upset and angry, because they deserve better. So I can’t be quiet about it. I can’t be silent about it,” she said.
“Because I want kids to see me and know that you can be a Christian and you can be gay. You can be gay, you can teach at a Christian school. You don’t have to feel shame about who you love, or who you are, or how you were born to be,” she said.
