Fired Over Kissing Skits—Back With Little Kids

A Colorado teacher fired for pressuring teen girls to kiss in graded “same‑gender” skits is now back in a classroom teaching young children at an elementary school.

Story Snapshot

A Denver French teacher fired for same-sex kissing skits has been rehired at a Colorado elementary school
Investigators found students felt pressured to kiss classmates because the skits were graded and tied to a “say yes” rule
A judge said the teacher’s conduct was “irresponsible and inappropriate” and amounted to incompetence and neglect of duty
Parents now face a system that quietly shuffles problem teachers instead of putting children’s safety and innocence first

Fired Over Kissing Skits, Now Back Teaching Young Kids

A Denver Public Schools French teacher, Jennifer Honka, was unanimously fired in May after an investigation found she encouraged students, usually girls, to kiss each other during graded classroom skits with titles like “The Neighbors Saw Everything” and “The Boring Kiss.”^[1] Students said they felt pressured because their performance grades depended on taking part, and one class rule, “the answer is always yes,” made it harder for them to refuse.^[1] A state administrative law judge later called her approach “irresponsible and inappropriate.”^[3]

Despite those findings, Honka has now landed a new position in Colorado as an elementary school teacher, listed in English language arts at Malley Drive Elementary School.^[3]^[4] That means a teacher removed for exposing teens to sexualized skits is now working with much younger, more vulnerable children. For many parents, this feels like the same old pattern: instead of drawing a hard line, the education system quietly moves a controversial adult to a new setting and hopes nobody notices.^[4]

What Investigators Found Inside Her Classroom

According to reports, Honka ran biweekly skits in her French class where students had to act out scenes that included kissing, usually between students of the same sex, and those performances counted toward their grade.^[1]^[3] One student later shared a meme with the caption “she makes girls kiss,” and another said she refused to participate and received a zero on the assignment.^[1] The independent review said the real problem was not just the act of kissing, but forcing teens to signal consent or refusal to a “very personal and sexualized activity” in front of peers while under pressure from a teacher who controlled their grades.^[3]

The same review also flagged disturbing oversharing from the teacher herself. Documents say Honka talked in class about her sexuality, using a sperm donor, her history of childhood abuse, and even suicidal thoughts.^[1]^[7]^[11] The judge concluded that her choice of skits, how she ran them, and her repeated disclosure of “sensitive and potentially traumatizing information” harmed students and showed “incompetence and neglect of duty,” with little or no real educational value.^[3] District leaders praised the students and staff who came forward, saying schools must protect the “safety, emotional well-being, and dignity” of children.^[1]

Honka’s Defense and the Gap Between Intent and Impact

Honka has denied that she forced students to kiss, saying she allowed alternatives like blowing a kiss or giving a fist bump if someone was uncomfortable.^[1]^[3] One student did tell the reviewer that pretending to kiss was sometimes allowed.^[1] But the judge drew a clear line: whether or not lips actually touched, students still had to respond to a sexualized script on the spot, in front of classmates, while a rule that “the answer is always yes” hung over the room.^[3] From a common-sense, conservative view, that is not real consent; that is adult pressure in a power setting where kids cannot walk away.

This case fits a wider national trend where classroom fights often center on a gap between what a teacher claims they meant to do and how students actually experience it.^[18] Teacher unions and activist groups talk about “sensitive topics” and “controversial lessons,” but even they admit lessons must be age-appropriate, tied to the subject, and not push a personal agenda.^[18] Here, a foreign language class turned into same-sex kissing skits and intimate stories about the teacher’s private life, which clearly stretched far beyond ordinary language instruction.^[1]^[3] For many families, it confirms fears that woke culture treats their children as props in adult identity drama.

Parents See a System That Protects Institutions, Not Children

After the investigation, Denver Public Schools leaders said they were proud of students who reported the conduct and claimed the system worked.^[1]^[3] Yet, within months, another Colorado district was willing to bring the same teacher into an elementary school classroom, even after a unanimous school board vote and a judge’s written finding of incompetence.^[3]^[4] One conservative outlet summed it up bluntly: “not all schools in Colorado have equal standards,” because Honka is back in front of kids “without even taking a school year off” to rethink her methods.^[4]

Jennifer Honka, a French teacher at Northeast Early College (Denver Public Schools), was fired May 20, 2026 after a unanimous board vote.

An independent administrative law judge found she assigned graded skits requiring students (mostly girls) to kiss each other and shared…

— Grok (@grok) June 22, 2026

For parents who value family authority and childhood innocence, that is the real story. A teacher who mixed sexual themes, personal trauma, and LGBTQ identity into a public school classroom now has another chance to shape young minds. The message from the system is clear: bureaucratic process matters more than parental trust. Until school boards feel real pressure from organized, vocal parents, cases like this will keep ending the same way—quiet transfers, vague promises about “safety,” and our kids left as the ones who pay the price.