On June 11, 2026 at 8:08 AM Central Time, Ian M. Halperin, Executive Director of Community Relations & Marketing, produced the records responsive to WYLIEISD-PIA-002 on the narrowed scope LION proposed on May 20, 2026 and the district accepted on May 26, 2026. The production was delivered as a single Google Drive folder link; the district did not charge a cost-recovery fee. LION recognizes the production-without-fee outcome as effectively honoring the public-interest accommodation contemplated in Texas Government Code §552.267(a).
The production includes the 2025–26 Wylie ISD Approved Whole Group Novel List (where Song of Solomon appears on the Grade 12 Advanced track, footnoted “Lit Circle in 26-27”); the May 5, 2026 Lit Circle Book List (a master tracker showing rubric and literary-justification status by title); the Literature Review Talking Points; the blank Literature Review Request and Justification form template; and the Song of Solomon internal communications portfolio — a 62 MB consolidated container of internal emails on the AP English Literature controversy.
The internal-communications portfolio documents, among other things, the following matters of public record:
The Literature Review Committee assigned reader who emailed about Song of Solomon two months after the supposed January 13, 2026 LRC vote did not know which teacher at the district had proposed the book or which classroom it was destined for. On December 9, 2025, Tedra Ault — a Wylie ISD ELAR Learning Specialist and member of the LRC — sent identical emails to three named readers (Makahilahila, Morales, Spillyards) thanking them for “volunteering to read Song of Solomon” and confirming book delivery. Under the Wylie ISD LRC Guidelines, the readers serve as the substantive basis for the Committee’s deliberation: “At least one member of the Literature Review Committee will read the book and report to the committee on the literary justification of the text and its alignment with district objectives and criteria.” On March 11, 2026 at 1:17 PM Central Time — two months after the January 13, 2026 LRC vote — Tiffani Makahilahila emailed Amy Hon asking “Who is the AP ELA 4 teacher at High?” and explaining: “I have the Song of Solomon book from lit committee, and it will be put to better use in his/her classroom than on my shelf.” The book had been proposed by Steven Ray Parker — the AP English IV teacher at Wylie East High School — for use in his class. The production contains no follow-on communications from Morales or Spillyards related to their assigned review.
The day after parents were informed of the assignment, the district’s Secondary Library Coordinator pulled Song of Solomon from open library shelving at Wylie HS. On April 2, 2026 at 10:31 AM Central Time, Wylie ISD Secondary Library Coordinator Rhia Johnson wrote to Executive Director of Secondary Curriculum Stephen Davis, Ed.D., reporting that she had instructed Wylie HS librarians: “to just keep it at the circ desk and if any students ask for it, it’s not available at the moment and to verify if they are needing it for a class assignment or if they are wanting it for leisure reading. I thought that might be best until we decide if it is going to be a ‘By Request Only’ title or if it needs to be weeded or if it is fine to stay on the shelves.”
Wylie ISD’s Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction instructed campus principals to limit teacher classroom commentary on Song of Solomon. On April 1, 2026 at 3:46 PM Central Time, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction Amanda Lannan emailed Wylie East High School Principal Tiffany Doolan (cc April Cunningham and Executive Director of Secondary Curriculum Stephen Davis, Ed.D.): “Please advise the teachers to refrain from discussing their personal feelings regarding this matter with the class. Encourage them to talk with you or Mrs. Lindsey if they have questions or concerns.” The same email confirmed Wylie ISD had not previously trained the LRC on Texas Senate Bill 412 (89th Legislature, 2025): “I will review SB 412 with the district Literature Review Committee and the Director team. We will work on a plan to communicate that legislation with all teachers as well.” Senate Bill 412 repealed the educator affirmative defense to Texas Penal Code §43.24 effective September 1, 2025 — four months before the January 13, 2026 LRC approval of Song of Solomon.
Wylie East’s principal acknowledged in writing to AP English families that the district should have notified parents in advance. The letter to AP English IV families from Principal Doolan on April 1, 2026 at 5:33 PM Central Time stated: “I also want to acknowledge that we should have communicated with families in advance about this assignment and the availability of alternatives. Just as we notify parents when students check out books from the library, we recognize the importance of keeping families informed about classroom assignments that may include more complex or sensitive themes.”
The May 5, 2026 Lit Circle Book List records no rubric and no literary justification on file for Song of Solomon. On the district’s master tracker dated May 5, 2026, the Song of Solomon row carries no entry in the “Rubric on File” column and no entry in the “Literary Justification on File” column, and the Notes column reads “Lit Circle Only” — a status that on the 2025–26 Approved Whole Group Novel List is footnoted as effective 2026–27, distinct from the original “Whole Group” approval recorded on the January 13, 2026 LRC submission form.
LION today asked Mr. Halperin, in a reply on the WYLIEISD-PIA-002 thread, to produce five additional categories of records that LION believes fall within the same narrowed scope but did not appear in today’s production: the reader-evaluation reports submitted by Makahilahila, Morales, and Spillyards; the written LRC approval document required by the district’s LRC Guidelines; any written directive issued to AP English IV teachers regarding their classroom discussion of Song of Solomon; communications surrounding the Wylie HS library access decision; and communications surrounding the demotion of Song of Solomon from “Whole Group” to “Lit Circle Only” placement.
Source: Email from Ian M. Halperin (Ian.Halperin@wylieisd.net) to LION on WYLIEISD-PIA-002, June 11, 2026, 8:08 AM CT. Production records delivered via Google Drive folder. Documents and email correspondence on file at LION.
Errors or corrections: corrections@lionwatchtx.org
