Brevard County teacher challenges district’s medical marijuana use policy

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Brevard County teacher is facing termination over medical marijuana use, even though the district has updated its policy to allow student use of the drug.

Allison Enright is described as a highly-effective teacher at Space Coast Junior/Senior High School, but Brevard Public Schools says she’s currently off her job as an intensive reading instructor and could be fired over her use of medical marijuana.

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“This is a major issue, not just for Brevard County, but also statewide,” Enright’s attorney Mark Levine says.

Levine addressed the Brevard County School Board about Enright’s case during their regular monthly meeting Tuesday evening.

He described how Enright recently fell and was injured when she was shoved on a flight of stairs by a student.

Enright was told to file a workman’s compensation claim, which is how her use of medical marijuana was discovered.

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The district has a 2002 policy in place that addresses student use of medications, which was updated in 2019 to include medical marijuana.

However, the Brevard Federation of Teachers says the district’s drug-free workplace technical guide for faculty and staff hasn’t been updated since Florida voters approved the use of medical marijuana.

As Russ Bruhn of Brevard Public Schools explains, they’re still bound by federal guidelines when it comes to drugs.

“As far as the federal government is concerned, marijuana is still a ‘Schedule I’ drug and is not used for medical purposes,” Bruhn says. “Since we get federal funding, we have to be aware of that.”

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The Brevard Federation of Teachers says the district’s position should be clarified for educators like Enright, who is now fighting to keep her job.

“Hopefully we can work with the district and supply information that may put them in a posture to change their position,” Levine says.

The school board will hear Enright’s case on March 23.

Cox Media Group