Didn’t the Board just adopt a new library policy? Why is the Board changing the policy again?

• Following a public comment period that ran from September 26, 2023, through November 9, 2023, the Board adopted extensive changes to Chapter 7 section 21 of Board Policy (“Library Media Services”) on December 4, 2023, as described below.

• Notably, the new policy language only addressed library materials already in the school libraries. It did not address any requirements for new library materials. The proposed amendments are additions to the policy intended to provide guidance when acquiring new library materials.

What did that policy do?

• Provided a definition of sexually explicit content.

• Provided a process to nominate and identify library materials that contain sexually explicit content.

• Provided parents with four choices for their child’s access to library materials. Those four choices are:

  • “No Access to Materials Containing Sexually Explicit Content” (Student cannot check out materials that have been identified as containing sexually explicit content);

  • “Parent/Guardian Limited Access” (Parent identifies specific materials their student may check out/may not check out);

  • “Open Access to All Library Materials” (Student may check out any library materials in their school library); and

  • “No Access to Library Materials” (Student may not check out any materials from the library).

• Required all District library materials to be posted on the Library Section of the English Language Arts website in order to increase transparency.

How many books have been removed from the library following this new policy?

• No library materials have been removed from the libraries because of the new policy. Once a book has been nominated and identified as containing sexually explicit content, only those students whose parents have selected “No Access to Materials Containing Sexually Explicit Content” are prohibited from checking out that material. The material stays in the library for all other students to access.

• The process to request either relocation of library materials (to a higher grade-band level library) or removal of library materials (from all libraries) is a separate and distinct process, found in Chapter 9, section 8 of Board Policy (“Public Complaints about District Curriculum, Instructional Materials, and Library/Media Materials”).

What do the proposed amendments to the library policy do?

• The proposed amendments address how new library materials are acquired/procured:

  • At the Elementary level, selection of new materials will be supervised by a District librarian or content coordinator. New library materials at the Elementary level may not be procured if they contain content that meets the definition of sexually explicit content.

  • At the Secondary level, each school Librarian is responsible for the selection of new materials for their library. Librarians are directed to attempt or endeavor to select materials that do not contain sexually explicit content.

  • At both levels, a list of all library materials selected for procurement will be uploaded to the District website and updated monthly. If a parent/guardian of an LCSD1 student believes that material on the procurement list contains sexually explicit content as defined by policy, they may nominate the material and the material will go through the same identification process as existing library materials. If the material is determined to contain sexually explicit content, it will be placed on the list of materials containing sexually explicit content. The material will not be removed from the library.

• The proposed amendments do not amend or otherwise change any of the language adopted by the Board on December 4, 2023.

When will the Board take action on the proposed procurement language?

• The Board was originally scheduled to take action on the proposed procurement language at its June 3, 2024 meeting following an initial 45-day public comment period that ran from April 8 through May 23, 2024. However, due to an error in the documents posted on-line, the Board decided to provide an additional 45-day public comment period scheduled to run from June 25, 2024 through August 9, 2024.

• Comments received during both public comment periods will be considered by the Board.

• If an individual submitted a public comment during the first round and would like to change or add to their original public comment, they are welcome to do so.

• Remember, the Board is only considering the proposed language related to the procurement of library materials at this time. All other existing language will remain the same.

• The Board will take final action on the proposed procurement language at its August 19, 2024 meeting.