Katie Rinderle was a fifth-grade teacher at Due West Elementary School, in Marietta, Georgia. This past March, Rinderle chose to read a book characterized as a “storybook” titled “My Shadow Is Purple” by Australian author Scott Stuart. The topics of the book are “gender fluidity” and “gender identity.” Parents complained Rinderle violated a school policy about teaching “controversial issues.”
On August 19, 2023, the Cobb County School Board of Education voted 4-3 along party lines to uphold Katie Rinderle’s termination. Prior to that action by the School Board, a tribunal of educators held a hearing and then determined that Rinderle had violated the school policy but voted Rinderle should not be fired.
A statement issued Friday by the Board of Education acknowledged the value of the resolution of the matter. “The district is pleased that this difficult issue has concluded; we are very serious about keeping our classrooms focused on teaching, learning, and opportunities for success for students,”
As reported, school district lawyer Sherry Culves, speaking earlier this month at the hearing, argued that “the Cobb County School District is very serious about the classroom being a neutral place for students to learn. A one-sided viewpoint on political, religious or social beliefs does not belong in our classrooms.”
After Rinderle’s termination, the Cobb County school district in Georgia removed two books from its school library. Reporting alleged the removal of the books “added to a recent controversy after it fired a teacher for reading a book about gender identity to a fifth-grade class.” The Cobb County School District told parents on Monday that the two books, “Flamer” by Mike Curato and “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” by Jesse Andrews, were “deemed inappropriate” and were removed from 20 school libraries.
A school district spokesperson elaborated on the removal of the books, stating that “Flamer” and/or “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” contained “highly inappropriate, sexually explicit content.” The spokesperson added: “We removed the books immediately, are in an ongoing investigation, and are committed to ensuring our students are taught with content in line with Georgia standards, Board policy, and the Law.”
Background information about the two books discloses that “Flamer” is a book about a boy figuring out he is gay and navigating that during summer camp and that “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” is about two boys who become friends with a girl who is dying of cancer and which has “discussions of sex in the book.”
