An Atlanta teacher will get paid nearly $300,000 to settle a lawsuit with a school district that disciplined her after posts she made on social media following the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk.
Michelle Mickens, an English teacher at Oglethorpe County School District in Georgia, will get paid $270,420 by her former employer for alleged emotional distress and another $17,000 to cover her attorney’s fees after a months-long legal battle was settled last week.
Mickens, who was also a former Georgia Teacher of the Year finalist, says her school district forced her to resign from her role after social media posts she made in 2025, following Kirk’s death. She and her lawyers argued that in doing so, the district was violating her First Amendment right to free speech…