The veteran educator is represented by the same legal defense fund that vindicated a praying high school football coach in a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court case.
The lunch period was a sacred time for Marisol Arroyo-Castro. Rather than joining other faculty members in the lounge, she remained alone in her empty classroom, holding her crucifix, reading a passage from the Bible, and praying for clarity and direction.
Arroyo-Castro, a devout Catholic, credits that routine for her longevity and success as a teacher. During her 32 years in Connecticut public schools, administrators counted on her to control the rowdiest classrooms, work with English learners who were falling behind, and accelerate reading instruction for entire grade levels in buildings with high teacher turnover and low-income students.
“It was my time to unwind,” Arroyo-Castro, 62, told The Epoch Times. “It definitely helped me to be a better person. I always had a guidance, a compass.”
Those sacred lunch periods ended last month after Arroyo-Castro refused to remove a crucifix from the wall near her work area in a seventh grade classroom at DiLoreto Elementary and Middle School in the Consolidated School District of New Britain, Connecticut.
She has taught in that particular district since 2003. The crucifix had been displayed in the same place for a decade without issue. The veteran teacher remains on paid suspension while school leaders decide whether to fire her for insubordination.
Arroyo-Castro has pushed back, enlisting the help of the
First Liberty Institute (FLI). In a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court case, FLI successfully represented a Washington state high school football coach who led his team in prayer at the 50-yard line.
The court voted 6–3 that the Bremerton School District violated Joe Kennedy’s First Amendment religious freedom protections when it fired him because of the post-game prayers.
If the district does not reinstate Arroyo-Castro’s employment with no conditions for the crucifix, she’ll pursue litigation in federal court, Keisha Russell, FLI senior counsel, told The Epoch Times.
A
Jan. 21 letter to the district superintendent and school board members details the chain of events leading to Arroyo-Castro’s suspension. It notes that following a complaint and meeting with the school administrators and a teachers’ union representative, Arroyo-Castro initially agreed to conceal the crucifix under her desk, but the following day, she put it back in its usual place on the wall.
“She did so, out of personal conscience, because hiding the crucifix under her desk would hide her light under a bushel,” the letter reads, paraphrasing a statement by Jesus in the New Testament.
Another meeting with the same group took place, and the teacher was suspended for two days without pay. On Dec. 16, 2024, she informed district officials that, in good conscience, she could not conceal the crucifix under her desk and was subsequently suspended indefinitely.
Her attorneys say the district has violated her constitutionally protected rights of freedom of speech and freedom of religious expression.
The Consolidated School District of New Britain did not respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
FLI’s letter to district officials and photos provided to The Epoch Times indicate that the crucifix, placed on a lower part of the wall in a corner of the classroom, was not displayed as a focal point of the classroom.
The organization also noted that another teacher in the building had a coffee cup displaying Biblical verses, and another had an image of the Virgin Mary. Arroyo-Castro said she is unaware of any other employees in the school being reprimanded for having religious or controversial items in their personal workspaces.
Other Displays Cited
Arroyo-Castro said a Bible was also kept in plain sight in her workspace, but district officials apparently never noticed it. Other teachers had rainbow flag images celebrating LGBT rights or political memorabilia and there were no complaints, she said.A review of
board policies and the handbook for students, parents, and employees on the district website provides limited guidance regarding religious expression.
A policy on ceremonies and observances that was approved in November 2024 before this incident notes that students can learn about literature, music, history, and arts in activities that have religious content “so long as they do not take on the character of religious devotions.”
Arroyo-Castro said she never discussed religion with any children inside a school building, even though many of them attended her Roman Catholic Church. But during a teacher training day a few years ago, when no students were inside the building, she wore a T-shirt containing an image of Jesus and a Catholic prayer.
Another teacher advised her that administrators would find that item of clothing unacceptable. She also recalled a former principal who told students to conceal cross necklaces under their shirts.
Arroyo-Castro grew up in New York City’s Spanish Harlem and attended public schools there in the 1960s and ‘70s. She recalled that many of her classmates wore crosses around their necks and that other kids identified as atheists. She said she never felt her education was based on the assumption that all students were Christians.
As she awaits the district’s decision and a potential legal battle, Arroyo-Castro said she is still shocked “that they don’t want Jesus in the building.”
Connecticut Teacher Faces Firing for Crucifix in Her Classroom Desk Area
The lunch period was a sacred time for Marisol Arroyo-Castro. Rather than joining other faculty members in the lounge, she remained alone in her empty classroom, holding her crucifix, reading a passage from the Bible, and praying for clarity and direction.
Arroyo-Castro, a devout Catholic, credits that routine for her longevity and success as a teacher. During her 32 years in Connecticut public schools, administrators counted on her to control the rowdiest classrooms, work with English learners who were falling behind, and accelerate reading instruction for entire grade levels in buildings with high teacher turnover and low-income students.
“It was my time to unwind,” Arroyo-Castro, 62, told The Epoch Times. “It definitely helped me to be a better person. I always had a guidance, a compass.”
Those sacred lunch periods ended last month after Arroyo-Castro refused to remove a crucifix from the wall near her work area in a seventh grade classroom at DiLoreto Elementary and Middle School in the Consolidated School District of New Britain, Connecticut.
She has taught in that particular district since 2003. The crucifix had been displayed in the same place for a decade without issue. The veteran teacher remains on paid suspension while school leaders decide whether to fire her for insubordination.
The court voted 6–3 that the Bremerton School District violated Joe Kennedy’s First Amendment religious freedom protections when it fired him because of the post-game prayers.
If the district does not reinstate Arroyo-Castro’s employment with no conditions for the crucifix, she’ll pursue litigation in federal court, Keisha Russell, FLI senior counsel, told The Epoch Times.
“She did so, out of personal conscience, because hiding the crucifix under her desk would hide her light under a bushel,” the letter reads, paraphrasing a statement by Jesus in the New Testament.
Another meeting with the same group took place, and the teacher was suspended for two days without pay. On Dec. 16, 2024, she informed district officials that, in good conscience, she could not conceal the crucifix under her desk and was subsequently suspended indefinitely.
Her attorneys say the district has violated her constitutionally protected rights of freedom of speech and freedom of religious expression.
The Consolidated School District of New Britain did not respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
FLI’s letter to district officials and photos provided to The Epoch Times indicate that the crucifix, placed on a lower part of the wall in a corner of the classroom, was not displayed as a focal point of the classroom.
Other Displays Cited
Arroyo-Castro said a Bible was also kept in plain sight in her workspace, but district officials apparently never noticed it. Other teachers had rainbow flag images celebrating LGBT rights or political memorabilia and there were no complaints, she said.A policy on ceremonies and observances that was approved in November 2024 before this incident notes that students can learn about literature, music, history, and arts in activities that have religious content “so long as they do not take on the character of religious devotions.”
Arroyo-Castro said she never discussed religion with any children inside a school building, even though many of them attended her Roman Catholic Church. But during a teacher training day a few years ago, when no students were inside the building, she wore a T-shirt containing an image of Jesus and a Catholic prayer.
Another teacher advised her that administrators would find that item of clothing unacceptable. She also recalled a former principal who told students to conceal cross necklaces under their shirts.
Arroyo-Castro grew up in New York City’s Spanish Harlem and attended public schools there in the 1960s and ‘70s. She recalled that many of her classmates wore crosses around their necks and that other kids identified as atheists. She said she never felt her education was based on the assumption that all students were Christians.
As she awaits the district’s decision and a potential legal battle, Arroyo-Castro said she is still shocked “that they don’t want Jesus in the building.”
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