Featured image for “St. Johns parents challenge state book-objection law”
June 6, 2024

St. Johns parents challenge state book-objection law

Two St. Johns County parents are among three who filed a federal lawsuit challenging a Florida law that increased scrutiny…

Featured image for “St. Johns restricts schoolbooks, including ‘Slaughterhouse Five’”
Jean Moore, seated at left, petitions the St. Johns County School Board to remove four books on Tuesday, May 28, 2024. | Noah Hertz, Jacksonville Today.
May 28, 2024

St. Johns restricts schoolbooks, including ‘Slaughterhouse Five’

Only the oldest students in St. Johns County Schools will have access to “Slaughterhouse Five” and three other books.…

Featured image for “Duval school district rebuffs pressure to end relationship with Jacksonville Public Library”
The Dallas Graham Branch of the Jacksonville Public Library is often filled with children from nearby Durkeeville, Grand Park and Moncrief Springs in the afternoon following the end of the school day. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
April 30, 2024

Duval school district rebuffs pressure to end relationship with Jacksonville Public Library

Amid the national “book ban” conversation, Duval school officials defended a longstanding connection with the Jacksonville Public Library.…

Featured image for “Duval Schools doesn’t know what to do with unapproved books”
Media specialists pulled dozens of boxes of old, outdated or objectionable library materials from Duval County school libraries this year.
June 4, 2023

Duval Schools doesn’t know what to do with unapproved books

Duval County Public Schools sent almost twice as many library books to its recycling plant this school year than it…

Featured image for “Duval Schools face 20% vacancy in media specialists, the only staff who can approve books ”
Mandarin Middle School is one of 67 schools without a certified media specialist.
April 5, 2023

Duval Schools face 20% vacancy in media specialists, the only staff who can approve books 

School librarians are a rarity in Duval, and 1-in-5 of the few remaining positions are vacant as the district faces…

Featured image for “ARTS PICKS | March 10-12”
Or those of us who live at the shoreline (ghost forest), 2021 Digital video, silent 00:03:18, Courtesy of the artist
March 9, 2023

ARTS PICKS | March 10-12

Two Downtown Jacksonville events and an immersive art exhibit in St. Augustine are this weekend’s Arts Picks.…

Featured image for “Duval Schools book-review supervisor, who called gay characters ‘contrary to the design of humanity,’ is resigning”
Parents rallied ahead of a December school board meeting over the district's months long review of books from the Essential Voices classroom library collection.
March 8, 2023

Duval Schools book-review supervisor, who called gay characters ‘contrary to the design of humanity,’ is resigning

The supervisor’s departure comes as Duval Schools has received national scrutiny for its book review process.…

Featured image for “OPINION | The lie of invisibility”
Ami Polonsky, author of "Gracefully Grayson," spoke during a rally ahead of the Dec. 6th Duval School Board meeting. The district ordered her book for fifth grade classrooms in 2021 but decided to send it back after a review process.
January 4, 2023

OPINION | The lie of invisibility

Banning books eliminates an opportunity for students to expand beyond their own surroundings and worldview.…