A US school teacher has lost her job after an investigation found that students were asked to take part in classroom skits involving kissing, with some saying they felt uncomfortable but participated because the assignments were linked to their grades.

Jennifer Honka, a French language and culture teacher at Northeast Early College in Denver, was dismissed by the Denver Public Schools Board in a unanimous vote on May 20. The district cited incompetence and neglect of duty as the reasons for her termination.

An independent investigation found that the students chosen for the kissing scenes were consistently the same sex. The skits were conducted on a regular basis and were included in students’ performance grades.

One student told investigators she was uncomfortable with being asked to kiss another student but took part anyway. Another student refused to participate and reportedly received a zero for the assignment.

Students also described a classroom rule that the “answer is always ‘yes,’” which they said was applied when students were asked to participate in the performances. According to the investigation, one student walked out of the classroom after being asked to take part, while another told a staff member she had been asked to kiss three different girls during a skit.

Some of the performances reportedly had titles including “The Neighbors Saw Everything” and “The Boring Kiss.” The scenes involved characters presented as being in romantic relationships.

Honka denied forcing students to kiss. During the investigation, she said students who did not want to participate in an actual kiss had alternatives, such as pretending to kiss, blowing a kiss or giving a fist bump. One student also confirmed that pretending to kiss was an option.

However, the independent reviewer concluded that the assignment itself was inappropriate because it put students in a position where they had to make decisions about a personal and sexualized act in front of their classmates while under the authority of their teacher.

The reviewer described the way the skits were conducted as irresponsible and inappropriate.

The issue came to the school’s attention during the 2023-24 academic year. After a third student reported the alleged kissing incidents, the school principal referred the matter to Denver police.

The police report did not result in criminal charges. The independent investigation also found that no staff member directly witnessed any of the alleged kisses.