TEA launches investigation into Keller ISD following book removal: report
The Texas Education Agency is investigating the Keller school district after a complaint about library books with “sexually explicit content,” according to a report.
The TEA informed the district of its investigation in a letter obtained by the Dallas Morning News.
The district came under fire in October for having “Gender Queer,” a graphic novel on gender identity, on the shelves in one of its high school libraries. The book was removed shortly after a parent posted about the book’s contents on social media.
The event drew the attention of Gov. Greg Abbott, who said he wanted the TEA to investigate “criminal activity” related to pornography in public schools. Schools in other states have banned the book, its author Maia Kobabe wrote in a Washington Post op-ed in October. In the op-ed Kobabe stressed the importance of LGBTQ children having access to such books.
A spokesperson for the Keller school district, when reached by phone, referred all questions to the district’s media email address. No one immediately responded to that email. The TEA was not immediately available to comment by phone.
