Superintendent faces state board over Hillsborough book removals amid backlash at home

Hillsborough superintendent grilled on book removals

Aaron Mesmer reports.

MIAMI, Fla. - Hillsborough County Superintendent Van Ayres spoke before the Florida Board of Education on Wednesday in Miami about his district’s decision to remove hundreds of books from school libraries.

Big picture view:

State board members grilled Ayres about why dozens of books they believe are "pornographic" were in some school libraries before their removal last week. Ayres offered few excuses and took responsibility for removing them as soon as he received a pair of letters from state leaders ordering the district to do so.

The superintendent also promised to make sure an additional 57 books were off the shelves.

"Ultimately, I'm responsible, and I will be making all those final decisions on those books," Ayres said. "Those materials that are inappropriate will not be, and you hold me personally accountable for that, those materials will not be in our libraries."

Florida School Board Chair Ben Gibson told Ayres the district has two weeks to make sure the materials are permanently removed. State Education Commissioner Manny Diaz said, if that doesn't happen, district officials and employees could face legal action or criminal charges.

"I want to provide caution to those individuals that are either on a board and trying to put a pressure on a superintendent or those individuals that are placing these items directly in the library is that they could face penalty under law and prosecution by the attorney general's office for violating [state] statute," Diaz said.

What they're saying:

Despite assurances from Ayres, several state school board members questioned why the materials were even available.

Dr. Grazie Pozo Christie was among those who wondered whether the district's media specialists, who help determine whether a book is appropriate, are qualified for their positions.

"These people that you trust to review these materials are abusing the children of your county. They're child abusers," she said. "I, as a 56-year-old woman, mother of five and a physician, can't look at these pages."

"These are nasty, disgusting books that have no place in a school in Florida," added Ryan Petty, the board's Vice Chair.

The backstory:

The meeting comes after Education Commissioner Manny Diaz and Attorney General James Uthmeier raised concerns about "pornographic materials" in Hillsborough schools.

In response, Ayres said that not only were the titles mentioned in their letters removed, but nearly 600 other books flagged in other counties over the last two years were also pulled "out of an abundance of caution."

Pictured: Van Ayres, Hillsborough County superintendent.

That move has sparked backlash not only from parents, but from school board members and educators who say the decision sidestepped normal procedures and lacked transparency.

Monday's school board meeting

Tensions flared during a packed school board meeting earlier this week, with more than a dozen speakers weighing in on the issue.

Some parents criticized the district for not acting sooner to remove explicit content. Others pushed back against the decision to pull critically acclaimed works, including Toni Morrison’s "The Bluest Eye," Shakespeare’s "Romeo and Juliet," and a graphic novel version of Anne Frank’s diary without first reviewing them locally.

Trisha Long, a parent of two current students in the district, criticized the move as being outside the normal process for book removal.

"In this case, we are in the dark," Long said. "There is no transparency about which titles are being reviewed, nor has the community been offered any opportunity to participate in the review process. As a parent, I find this concerning. Public school parents ought to be able to see what is being removed and to have a say in whether or not these books are inappropriate for our own children."

Pictured: Trisha Long speaks during Monday's school board meeting in Hillsborough County.

Ayres said he acted quickly to ensure no inappropriate material would remain when students return in the fall. "That’s my ultimate responsibility," he told the board. "But I’ll learn from this and do better moving forward."

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Pressure from the board

Dig deeper:

Several board members said they were left in the dark, learning after the fact that the district had pulled hundreds of titles and responded to the state without first consulting them.

"I'm trying to process your lack of communication," board member Nadia Combs told Ayres, "the transparency, and also lack of knowledge and input from me with the attorney general letter coming out. When that attorney general came out, I had absolutely no knowledge of the response that came [on behalf of the board]."

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Board Chair Jessica Vaughn said the district’s move undermined trained media specialists on staff who already follow a legal review process and risk penalties if they fail to do their jobs properly.

"It’s offensive to say you’re protecting the community by removing books without proper review," Vaughn told the superintendent.

What's next:

The district is now paying certified media specialists $1,500 stipends to review the titles outside of normal work hours. The cost? As much as half a million dollars.

Ayres acknowledged that the current process isn’t working. "Come August, I want to make sure all the books have been reviewed," he said.

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The Source: This story is based on public statements made during the Hillsborough County School Board meeting on June 2, and letters from the Florida Department of Education and Office of the Attorney General.

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