Sarasota superintendent rejects blanket book bans

Florida Education Commissioner tells districts to stop ‘inappropriate’ books before they reach shelves. District does that already, says Terry Connor.

By Rhatia Murphy

Original Air Date: October 8, 2026

Host: As Florida presses school districts to scrutinize library books, Sarasota’s superintendent says complying with the law does not mean clearing shelves out of fear. And outgoing School Board Chair Bridget Ziegler is happy with the district’s approach, which—she says—“has come a long way.” WSLR’s Rhatia Murphy reports.

Rhatia Murphy: Florida’s Education Commissioner wants school districts to act before parents complain about books. But Sarasota Superintendent Terry Connor says the district already has a process for reviewing its collections, and he made clear what the process should avoid.

Terry Connor

Terry Connor: We’re not doing blanket bans. We’re not removing things out of fear. We’re not doing that type of stuff. We want to make sure that we’re responsive to the community but that we’re also compliant with the law.

RM: Connor spoke during the School Board’s work session on Tuesday.

Chair Bridget Ziegler requested the update after Education Commissioner Henry Mack sent a statewide memo about school library and classroom materials.

Mack said responding to complaints alone is not enough. His memo warns that violations of state law could lead to enforcement, including withholding eligible state funds. It also lays out a recommended ninety-day plan, including a voluntary audit.

Connor’s response focused on Sarasota’s existing safeguards—and on keeping students interested in reading. He said the district reviews books for physical damage, outdated information, unnecessary duplicate copies and low circulation.

Photo: Stephan Jockel, Creative Commons

But a book that isn’t checked out often does not automatically belong in the discard pile. Classics, award winners and culturally significant works may stay. So may books that support classroom instruction.

Connor also said books must be age-appropriate, and materials that violate state law will be removed. When a book does come off the shelf, he wants a process for replacing it with another title, keeping collections fresh and giving students choices.

Parents, he said, can see what those collections contain.

TC: All of our school libraries and our teacher classroom libraries are online, so they are visible to our parents and to our community.

RM: Those online catalogs let families review available books.

Connor said parents can restrict particular books for their own children through the district’s Destiny system. There is also a formal process for challenging a book, outlined in district Policy 4.22.

Ziegler, a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, praised the approach.

Bridget Ziegler

Bridget Ziegler: I think what we have is very common sense. It’s very academic and student-focused, and it should be something we are very proud of.

RM: Ziegler also asked whether parents still receive notifications when their children check out books. After an initial answer that needed confirmation, a response relayed that a parent was still receiving them.

She said the briefing was an opportunity to highlight the district’s work and strengthen trust with families.

No other board members offered questions when she opened the discussion.

Connor did not claim the system was perfect. He said the district would keep reviewing, listening and evaluating. But his message was clear: Sarasota intends to keep its libraries places where students want to read, while following the law.

For WSLR News, I’m Rhatia Murphy.

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