Florida library book battles continue in latest court motions

The big story: Florida’s battle over library books continues in the courts into the summer.

In one of the cases, which finds the Escambia County school district accused of violating First Amendment rights by removing books, district officials are asking to be shielded from testifying about their actions.

Lawyers for board members have argued that because the board acts as a unit, members’ individual motivations are irrelevant. They’ve suggested the board members have “legislative privilege.” Attorneys for the plaintiffs said such a move was an effort to keep significant evidence from entering the record. Read more from News Service of Florida.

In a second case, where three parents have sued the state over its rules relating to book challenge appeals, the state’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss on Thursday. They contended that the parents have no standing to bring their complaint.

“Plaintiffs contend that this state-level review for decisions to retain material impermissibly restricts Plaintiffs’ speech based on their viewpoint, because there is no inverse option for parents like Plaintiffs who may want to appeal a local district’s decision to approve an objection and remove the material from the library,” the lawyers wrote.

“Plaintiffs’ challenge should be dismissed because their generalized grievance about statutory appellate procedures is neither a concrete nor particularized harm sufficient to bestow standing. Their challenge also could not redress any harm caused by the statute or by the Defendants at issue.”

The lawyers also claimed that no First Amendment rights had been violated with the rules: “(T)he First Amendment does not require the government to provide Plaintiffs with an official channel to level grievances about book removals. In other words, Plaintiffs do not have a First Amendment right to compel the government to create a process, much less one of Plaintiffs’ own design.”

Here’s some background on that suit from Politico.

Hot topics

District leadership: Lee County superintendent Ken Savage restructured the district into four regions and appointed regional superintendents to oversee them, WINK reports.

School closures: Madison County school district officials are reviewing plans that would close and consolidate schools amid shrinking enrollment and finances, the Madison County Carrier reports.

Student code of conduct: The Volusia County school district is advancing rules that would allow for random searches of students, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports.

Student safety: Duval County’s interim superintendent unveiled a plan to take additional steps to protect students from teachers who are predators, Jacksonville Today reports. The Duval district settled a lawsuit with a student who alleged the district did not do enough to protect students from sexual harassment, WJXT reports.

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Teacher discipline: A former Flagler County teacher of the year who was fired two years ago over a TikTok video of her dancing with students to a Lizzo song is fighting to revive her career, Flagler Live reports.

Teacher pay: An arbitrator is set to review the Lee County teachers union complaint that the district ran out of money to pay teachers to cover classes for absent colleagues and doing extra work, WINK reports. • Teachers in Osceola and Seminole counties reached tentative contract agreements this week that would provide raises, but some worry the pay hikes won’t keep up with their rising expenses, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

Transportation: The Osceola County school district will equip school buses with a radar system to alert bus drivers to pedestrians when the bus is stopped, WKMG reports.

In higher ed

‘Great books’: As the University of Florida seeks to bolster its western civilizations programs and degrees, some faculty members are raising questions.

Funding: Florida Gulf Coast University stands to lose millions of dollars in funding after failing to meet state performance standards, Politico Florida reports.

Enrollment: The University of West Florida’s student population is surging, forcing the school to create several new teaching positions, WEAR reports.

Accountability: A member of the State University System Board of Governors says the state should consider ending the law and pharmacy programs at Florida A&M University, and the nursing program at Florida Atlantic, if the schools don’t get better passing rates on their professional exams, Florida Phoenix reports.

Don’t miss a story. Here’s a link to yesterday’s roundup.

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