On Thursday, Hoover City Schools announced the online library system, SORA, students use to access books online has been made unavailable while the system conducts an internal audit.
Parents had voiced concern with some of the books containing mature content, and despite being told the books were removed from the catalog, one couple said their child still had access to it on her Chromebook.
"The District remains committed to being proactive in our efforts to safeguard the well-being of our students and uphold our district's mission and values. We appreciate the cooperation and support of our community as we continue to prioritize our students' educational experiences," the school system stated in an email sent out to parents.
During a Tuesday meeting of the Hoover City Schools Board of Education, superintendent Dr. Kevin Maddox revealed that two books had recently been reviewed and removed from circulation for being too "sexually explicit." He did not say the titles of either.
"[A]fter reviewing these two books, I had both books pulled from the catalog because I do not believe explicit and graphic sexual content is age-appropriate for high school students," Maddox stated. "Those books have been pulled."
In the same meeting, a pastor read from the book that was still available to children to bring to light that the book, called "Queer: The Ultimate LGBTQ Guide for Teens," was teaching children about anal sex and encouraging children to try different types of sexual activity.
The email from Hoover City Schools reads as follows:
Dear Hoover City Schools Families,
The Hoover City Schools District addressed a recent discovery of two e-books containing mature sexual content in the district’s high school e-book library. Upon receiving this information, immediate action was taken to locate, review, and remove both books from the SORA library collection.
Additionally, we have initiated an internal audit of our SORA online library to ensure that similar books with mature sexual content are removed. During this review period, access to SORA e-books will be unavailable.
The District remains committed to being proactive in our efforts to safeguard the well-being of our students and uphold our district's mission and values. We appreciate the cooperation and support of our community as we continue to prioritize our students' educational experiences.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email trent.baker@1819news.com.
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