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Public speaker urges OPS to remove a book from school libraries over explicit passages
Summary
At the April 20 meeting, Michelle Rogers read passages from a book she said is in OPS school libraries and urged the board to review and remove the title because of explicit sexual content; she asked the district to 'please get it removed if at all possible.'
Michelle Rogers addressed the Omaha Public Schools Board of Education during the public-comment period on April 20 and urged trustees to review and remove a book she said is available in district school libraries.
Rogers provided her name and address and said the title appears on lists of frequently challenged books. She read multiple passages she described as sexually explicit and said the content should not be available to anyone under 18. "So please look into this book if you could, and just please get it removed if at all possible," Rogers said.
Board procedure limits commenters to five minutes and instructs speakers not to identify students or staff; the board does not respond during the public-comment period. Staff timekeeper Dr. McFarland notified Rogers when 30 seconds remained and when her time was nearly up.
No board action on library materials was taken at the meeting. Board policy cited by the chair (policy 83.46) governs public-comment timing; the record indicates trustees asked that concerns involving a specific student or staff member be shared with Dr. McFarland for follow-up.
Next steps: The speaker requested that the district investigate the book and consider removal; the board has not recorded any vote or directive on library materials at this meeting.
