Parents press board to remove explicit titles; district moves library‑challenge policies into revision

Multiple community members addressed the board during public comment to urge removal or review of books in the Sheridan High School library that they described as explicit or obscene. The board later voted to place two library‑challenge policies into the revision process.

Anna Bailey told trustees she has tracked a prior list of about 35 titles brought to the board’s attention in April 2023 and said a search of the district library catalog on Alexandria showed 30 of those titles remain available. “It appears not much has changed on this front,” Bailey said, and she asked the board to adopt clearer review procedures, increased transparency, and an opt‑in mechanism for sensitive materials.

Robin Hoffman, who said she had formally challenged four books, cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s Miller obscenity test and told trustees the four challenged titles “fail all three prongs of the Miller test,” arguing that the books appeal to prurient interest, describe sexual content offensively, and lack serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

Sam Hoffman, another public commenter who distributed excerpts to trustees, described some library materials as “sewage” and urged the board to examine the challenged passages directly. Eric Jorgensen and other speakers framed their concerns as protecting age‑appropriate material and community standards.

Trustees acknowledged the public comments and discussed moving two policies into the revision process. Staff explained there are inconsistencies between IJL (the challenge procedure) and IJLP (the library policy) — for example, timing language differs (45 school days versus a different review timeframe) and IJL does not explicitly address additions of new titles requested by parents. Trustees voted to bring IJL and IJLP into revision so staff and the policy committee can make clarifying edits; the motion carried.

Trustee Tomlinson suggested the district standardize whether timeframes in policy use “school days” or calendar days so the rules are consistent for everyone. Trustee Moore thanked earlier boards and staff for the work already done on the policy and supported focused clarification rather than wholesale changes. Trustee White said the policy already had significant public input in previous years and recommended limited tweaks to clarify procedures.

The board did not remove any titles at the meeting; it approved moving the two policies into the formal revision process so the board can consider clarified language and return for further public review.