This year’s local school board races have some notable trends that reflect national shifts toward banning books in libraries and schools – particularly around books related to LGBTQ+ people and their experiences, and books that address racism and U.S. history related to systemic racism.
In districts like Hilton and Greece in particular, the races reflect those trends in increased “parental rights” rhetoric among candidates when it comes to what students can be taught in school, as well as book-banning efforts.
“Typically, a district would have a committee that reviews certain texts,” said Amy Thomas, president of the Monroe County School Boards Association. “I think it's important to highlight that, you know, (rather than) taking a book out of context, you really have to look at the entire book. And that's what a review committee within a district would do.”
In Hilton, the district was hit with two bomb threats in late March that disrupted school days. The threats claimed that objections to an LGBTQ-themed library book titled “This Book is Gay” was the reason for placing pipe bombs in schools.
It turned out to be a hoax, and Superintendent Casey Kosiorek called it a hate crime. This year, Hilton has two open school board seats with no incumbents on the ballot.
At a "Meet the Candidates" event last week, the six candidates were asked their stance on the current policy on reviewing and potentially banning library books.
Answers ran the spectrum. Two candidates were clear that they oppose banning books and having parents dictate what educators are permitted to teach and what materials school libraries make accessible to students.
“I think that all people should be able to read information, think critically with some media literacy, and make decisions for yourself,” said Kristine Price. “I do not think just random parent voices should be the ones deciding that for our schools.”
“Parents have the right to know what is being taught in our school setting,” said Kaylee Bennett. “And as far as other resources go, I think we have to be OK with being not on the same page with everything that our kids might have access to in schools, but at least we know that it's a safe place for them to get that access.”
Candidates Lynda Donovan and Jack Palmeri spoke against banning books, with the caveat that parents ought to be able to decide what their own children are allowed to read in school.
“When we ban books, we're compromising children's education and development,” Donovan said. “I do believe that parents have the rights and should be able to make a decision whether their child reads a certain book in an English class.”
“I don't think banning books is the way to go,” Palmeri said. “But I do think some of these books are pretty explicit. So having a parental consent form is not such a bad idea.”
Melissa Levato and Mike Zillioux favored allowing parents to censor books from being in school libraries if they felt they were inappropriate.
“I don't like the word ‘ban,’ because I don't think that they should be in the library to begin with,” Levato said without specifying which library materials she was referring to.
“I don't think that's up to the schools. I think it's up to the parents,” Zillioux said.
In Greece, a similar question about book banning was posed to five of six candidates competing for three open seats at a “Meet the Candidates” event on April 24.
Sean McCabe and William Maloney are both incumbents, but only McCabe was at the event. Three candidates – Miguel Millan, Septimus Scott and Jordan Stenzel – are running under the same platform. The sixth candidate is Todd Butler.
As in Hilton, the candidates are divided.
McCabe and Butler argue that book banning takes away choices for all students and their parents.
“It’s one thing for a parent to say what they want their child to read. No parent has the right to tell me what my child should read,” Butler said. “When you take a book out of a library, then in many ways you’re removing that from access to anyone because you don’t want your child to read it.”
Millan, Scott and Stenzel see a need for more parental control over what their children are exposed to.
“What a parent wants their child, their student, until they’re a legal adult, to read and write or whatnot, or take in and absorb, is ultimately in their ball court,” Stenzel said.
All three candidates who support parental rights have been endorsed by at least two local Republican politicians with law enforcement backgrounds: LeRon Singletary and Jim Vanbrederode.
Thomas, with the county school boards association, said such endorsements of school board candidates are more common now than when she served as a school board member in Pittsford.
“If you look at what a board member’s responsibility is, it’s to serve all students,” she said. “So prior to recent years, it was nonpartisan, because we're looking at the entire student body and trying to serve the entire student body.”
Thomas encourages all eligible voters to turn out on May 16 to cast their ballots for school board candidates and district budgets.
“It's a direct impact on public education,” she said.
