“Roots” will be returned to libraries in Knox County School “effective immediately,” Superintendent Dr. Jon Rysewyk announced in a memo to school board members dated Tuesday, May 26, 2026. Roots Reinstated Memo
Interestingly, the final day of the school year was a half-day on Thursday, May 21.
Rysewyk was just one step ahead of the school board requiring him to take this action. Led by board member Katherine Bike (District 4), several board members had expressed concern following the banning of the 1976 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alex Haley from school libraries based on 2024 changes to state law, the Age-Appropriate Materials Act.
Reporters Shelby Wright and Lauren Davis of WBIR TV published a comprehensive report at 4:28 p.m. Tuesday. You can read it here…