Book Policy Hearing Draws Prominent County Players

School Board Seeks Public Suggestions To Revise Policies

Clay County citizens gather to discuss changes to the school district’s book policies. (Photo by Josh Allen, not the NFL player)

Key players in Clay County’s book policy debate and ordinary citizens alike filled a hearing room recently as the School Board prepares to recraft guidelines that determine whether a specific work leaves bookshelves or not.

Clay has gained notoriety for having more book challenges than any other county in the state, though it has thus far avoided the kinds of lawsuits filed against other big book-banning places.

School Board members Michele Hanson and Erin Skipper hosted an event on January 16 to create a policy more representative of the public's wants while complying with state statutes.

Skipper and Hanson were elected to the Clay County School Board in 2022. The two newest Clay County School Board members made a clear commitment during their campaigns to be receptive to public input. Skipper and Hanson, along with Beth Clark, have ushered in a new era for the school board wherein the duty of oversight of the county’s schools is taken seriously.

One of the most divisive issues facing the schools is book policy. Recently passed state laws and the discovery of inappropriate books in several county schools have caused classroom turmoil. The school district has a policy for reviewing and removing inappropriate books, which removes books from library shelves when challenged. The district has also placed a moratorium on new book purchases. The policy also instituted a provision wherein parents must opt their students into library access at specific grade levels.

The policy was widely reviled by the public, both by those who want books removed and those who oppose the removal. The school board will soon be revising its’ policies, and Hanson views public input as vital to creating a better, more functional policy.

Board Member Hanson addresses the meeting attendees.

Michele Hanson did most of the speaking in the early stages of the meeting and advised the attendees early on that debating the status of specific challenged books was not on the agenda. Instead, the goal was for conversations about crafting guidelines for handling books that did not violate state law but might still contain questionable content for a school setting.

Hanson labeled these books as ‘spicy’ and said five of the more than 400 books being reviewed by the school district would fit into this category. The remainder of the books currently being reviewed by the school district will soon be returned to school library shelves.

Despite the meeting getting little advertising from the school district administration and social media, the room was nearly filled. The attendees mainly included ordinary citizens, but all prominent figures in the book debate were there:

• Bruce Friedman, who has filed nearly all the hundreds of book challenges, appeared, though he did not embark on his customary stump speeches regarding objectionable content.

• Vicki Kidwell, President of the Clay County Education Association

• School Board member Mary Bolla, who arrived late and didn’t participate in the conversation between board members and meeting attendees.

• Wayne Bolla, husband of Mary and former County Commissioner. You may remember Bolla for his infamous comments regarding the housing crisis in Clay County, wherein he remarked, “The sort of people we want in Clay County can afford to live here.”

• Tanya Kacsan, President of the Clay County chapter of Moms4Liberty. Kacsan has been one of the few thoughtful voices in the book debate, forging a middle ground between the Teacher’s Union (remove no books) and Bruce Friedman (remove anything he doesn’t like).

• Tara Richardson, former teacher and administrator in Clay County turned activist via a group of retired teacher’s union members.

Vicki Kidwell made a concerted effort to stack the deck in this meeting via the teacher” union's Facebook page. A post to the page also made a plea to discuss topics not on the agenda, the moratorium on new book purchases.

CCEA Facebook post about the book policy meeting.

Despite efforts by one teacher’s union to rally large numbers of union members to dominate the meeting, attendees were from varied backgrounds. The room was arranged with circular tables, and markers and large pieces of paper were on the tables. Most of the meeting was spent conversing at the tables, brainstorming for ideas on handling books that don’t violate the law but might not be appropriate for a school setting.

After a conversation and exchanging ideas, each table shared their best ideas for handling ‘spicy’ books. The efforts of the people in attendance yielded varied results. Some said to let the laws make the decision, suggesting any book not violating the law be returned to school libraries. Others suggested that any book mentioning race, sex, violence, or drugs be removed from shelves. One participant went on a rant about the Department of Defense and some alleged attempts to ban pornography on military bases.

But in the middle of the extremes, there were some nuanced ideas on handling books that may be objectionable. The best and most common idea was implementing a book rating system. The ratings would mirror those used for movies and television shows.

All ideas presented will be considered in future board meetings and workshops in the district’s revised book policy. The next Clay County School Board meeting is set for February 1, 2024.

Clay citizens present their thoughts on the Clay County School's book policies.