Bay District Schools adjusting to new state law, required to review all books in schools

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated to revise the context in the first paragraph.

When Alexis Underwood, a seventh grade reading and language arts teacher at Mowat Middle School, learned that she had to inventory her classroom library after the passing of a recent law, it sparked a wave of concern and confusion for her and her colleagues across Bay District Schools.

It’s been a common reaction for educators across the state after HB 1467 was signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis last year. According to the law, all Florida school districts are required to catalog every book on their shelves and put a formal process in place for reviewing complaints.

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“I was deeply concerned and quite puzzled,” Underwood said about her initial reaction to the law. “The law was so poorly written and vague, and educators struggled to understand the intent and the specifics of what the state wants from us.”

Rhonda Sumpter, BDS supervisor for instructional technology and media services, said the district immediately adhered to the new policy and started by reviewing books in media centers and classroom libraries.

“The process for evaluating materials for inclusion in library collections is continuous and systematic,” Sumpter said. “Each year, media specialists complete inventory of the library collections based on the state statute.”

Starting Jan. 1, all school librarians and media specialists were expected to complete training per the Florida Department of Education to start the process of removing books deemed inappropriate in schools.

Under the new law, all materials in a school library or included on a reading list must be free of pornographic material, suited to student needs and their ability to comprehend the material presented, and appropriate for the grade level and age group.

Sumpter confirmed that the district had completed all necessary training in order to move forward. As of Monday, only two titles had been submitted for reconsideration in Bay District Schools, and the process still needs to be completed. A list of the instructional materials adopted and used in classrooms can be viewed at www.bdstechandmedia.com/instructional-materials.

Underwood, who is also a board member for the Association of Bay County Educators, said there’s no more important skill that reflects on student success than reading. She said the new changes have imposed a huge time burden on teachers and media center specialists in the Bay County school district.

“Every reading and language arts teacher I know has a small classroom library. However, we have always been encouraged to have a wide variety of books of every kind, level and interest,” she said. “Now, all of us look at our classroom libraries with concern. I know teachers who had over 1,000 books just in their classrooms, and now those books must be inventoried.”

Sumpter said that BDS officials are taking the best measures moving forward to address any questions or concerns from parents, teachers and students about the ongoing changes in school libraries under this new law.

“We (Bay District Schools) continue to welcome transparency and parental involvement,” Sumpter said. “Also, district leadership, principals and media specialists will continue to have conversations with parents, teachers, students and community members as they have questions or concerns.”

For more information, visit BDSTechandMedia.com.

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: How Bay District Schools are adjusting to new state law: HB 1467