Sarasota County School Board

You might remember when school board races were low-key affairs that typically drew in teachers and parents. But the ongoing culture wars have animated even these races on Tuesday's primary ballot.

The Sarasota School District preps for school board discussion on a new digital standard.

The Sarasota County School Board approved the contract for the new superintendent with a 4-1 vote during a special meeting on Monday. Terrence Connor was sworn into the position shortly after.

The Sarasota County School Board picked Hillsborough County deputy school superintendent Terrence Connor as its new superintendent following a 3-2 vote Wednesday.

The Sarasota School Board voted 3-2 against paying $28,000 for Vermilion Education to examine a range of district policies.

The controversial vote on Tuesday would grant the consultant access to a range of district policies, practices and textbooks, and includes in-person visits to three schools.

Opponents of the proposed contracts say Vermilion Education has no track record and were brought forward without any competitive bidding process.

Tom Edwards says his opposition to the law that restricts classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity, and to the state's school voucher expansion program, has made him a target for his conservative opponents.

A circuit judge granted summary judgment to the Sarasota County school board because of a sovereign-immunity law that required the case to be filed within four years of the last act of alleged abuse.

The board is requiring parental permission for middle schoolers to check out "Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You."

The Sarasota school board is hearing a final appeal Tuesday by a Venice mother who wants to ban a book from school libraries.

School boards have grown increasingly partisan, after more than two dozen of the candidates endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis won seats this election cycle.